Conclusion

The above material is a sample of the concepts the clients are challenged to evaluate as they search for more successful ways to lead.

Benefits & Metrics

The Benefits:

The key benefit of embracing the Authentic Leadership model is a workforce of enthusiastic, emotionally loyal and engaged employees committed to the Vision, Values, Purpose and Priorities of the organization.  The principle benefits of shifting the primary focus from tasks to relationship dynamics are:

  • Perpetually increasing productivity, creativity and innovation,
  • Consistently high product quality, and
  • An ever-expanding base of loyal customers.

These metrics are the real-time and leading indicators of performance.  These three, synergistically, are what create the more classical measures of performance, which are actually the secondary benefits, or the consequences, of this model:

  • Increased profits,
  • Increased sales,
  • Increased market share, and
  • Increased shareholder value.

An additional primary benefit of this model is the measurable reduction in employee turnover.  More precisely stated, Authentic Leadership significantly reduces the deterioration of your business's primary earning assets: a highly productive, loyal workforce.

The Metrics

We have no hard data from clients on the benefits.  They report these benefits qualitatively and continue to engage us to work with their rising, young leaders.  Most of our clients have been with us more than five years.

Lessons

1. While Authentic Leadership evolved in non-directional Executive Leadership Coaching relationships, there is nothing intrinsic about it to prevent it from being delivered in more traditional or conventional ways.

2. Authentic Leadership does not work unless there is enthusiastic Buy-in and full cooperation from Senior Management.  It requires leaders who embrace two self-evident truths: 1) all leadership is example, anything else is coercion and 2) moment-by moment, we are choosing to create either Resonance or Dissonance in all of our human encounters.  (This concept is expanded in the "A Very Simple Model" Coaching Handout).

3. Authentic Leadership requires leaders with higher Social Emotional Intelligence then is commonly found in most organizations.  When Senior Management commits the organization to living by Authentic Leadership Principles, it will discover some employees, typically middle managers, who are not capable of developing the required Social Emotional Intelligence skills and will have to be replaced.  Most often these "SEI Challenged" individuals stagnated in their positions long ago.