My Brain Trust Weekly: Effective Leadership

How important is the person leading your company? Just ask the employees and shareholders of Uber, Papa Johns and Wells Fargo. Their CEOs all played a pivotal role in nearly destroying their companies. As outlined by Minda Zetlin in Here’s How 3 of the World’s Worst CEOs Almost Killed Their Companies, it takes particular ineptitude to start with a perfectly successful company and drive it toward failure. That’s especially true when the reason for the decline has nothing to do with the company’s product or services, and everything to do with bad behavior by its executives.

So what makes a good leader, and what does one do if they believe they’re working for an organization with a leader who is not ready – or worse – is not ethical? The far-reaching impacts on the company, its employees, and shareholders, cannot be understated as the above examples illustrate. Here are some great articles that examine the traits that make the best leaders, as well as the consequences if they are left unchecked.

Best Company Traits: Smart Leadership (Forbes)
The best companies, the ones that have arrived at the zenith of achievement in their field, have been guided to their current position by exceptional leaders. The use of the plural is intentional; too often we get tied up in the singular visionaries in considering the achievement of the greatest business success stories.

Six Key Behaviors That Make a Great Leader (Bloomberg)
In a corporate environment where metrics for success are always changing, the importance of human interaction and connection remains a constant. Empowering people to work together in ways that inspire curiosity and innovation is key to creating a successful environment while encouraging growth and development.

Nimble Leadership (Harvard Business Review)
obody has really recommended command-and-control leadership for a long time. But no fully formed alternative has emerged, either. That’s partly because high-level executives are ambivalent about changing their own behavior. They know perfectly well that their companies need to become more innovative—and they suspect it won’t happen unless they’re willing to push power, decision making, and resource allocation lower in the organization. But they’re terrified that the business will fall into chaos if they loosen the reins.

30 Of The Best TED Talks On Leadership That Every Great Leader Should Watch – 2nd Edition (Inspiring Leadership Now)
Leadership is often a skill that’s self-taught. It comes as a result of being aware of the qualities you possess, the ones you lack, and the ones you respect and admire in others. And then as a result of this knowledge, working to constantly improve your leadership style through learning, self-evaluation and listening to feedback. These are crucial steps when deciding you want to lead others. To learn what some of the most forward-thinking and innovative experts have to say about leadership, check out our list of the crème de la crème of TED Talks on leadership.

From Costco to Google, the Top 25 U.S. Companies with the Best Bosses (Business Insider)
A Comparably survey asked employees to rate their leaders, starting from the C-Suite and working down to direct managers. Based on anonymous responses over a one-year period, Comparably created a list of the best leadership teams in companies across the United States.

The 5 Biggest Leadership Trends to Watch for in 2019 (Inc.)
Becoming a great leader requires taking proactive steps to improve your own leadership capabilities. But there’s more to it than that. Engaged leaders need to stay on top of the current trends influencing their individual company, their industry, their employees and attitudes toward the working world in general.