What are the defining characteristics of a great business leader?

The leader of a company sets the vision, makes a set of rules to establish a company culture, builds the management team, then leads the team on the journey to make the vision a reality. The leader needs to be able to fly at thirty thousand feet to be able to see the forest from the trees.

The management team is tasked with using the set of rules to realize the vision. They are similar to referees in a game, making sure that the game is played according to the rules. Generally the environment may be changing and the rules need to be tweaked. The management team typically operates at ground level amongst the trees and generally cannot see the forest.

In a successful start-up, the entrepreneur has to be both leader and manager. He/she needs to fly high to establish the vision and see how the forest is progressing but also needs to come down to ground level to keep planting the trees in the forest.

Here are twenty defining characteristics of a great business leader:

1 Focuses on solutions and not problems
2 Takes responsibility instead of blaming others.
3 Finds opportunities in crisis and refrains from complaining.
4 Enjoys being in the present and learns from the past.
5 Makes promises and keeps them no matter what.
6 Focuses on achieving rather than making excuses.
7 Listens well and does not try to talk at every chance.
8 Faces fear accepts it and takes the plunge.
9 Is action-oriented.
10 Learns from failure.
11 Knows how to plan and set goals.
12 Believes that personal development is a priority.
13 Is a life-long learner.
14 Is humble.
15 Is a hard worker.
16 Always is ready and leaves nothing to fate.
17 Is a leader and not a follower.
18 Believes in himself/herself.
19 Has passion for what he/she is involved in.
20 Always gives more than he/she takes.

The defining characteristic of a great business leader is the ability to lead in times of adversity. Be a leader when things are going well is easy. It’s when the going gets tough the great leaders will shine.

There are many elements to leadership from both the vision and the execution side. But here's one characteristic you don't see mentioned a lot - The ability to identify leverage points and keep their organization focused on high-leverage changes.

80% of our activities under-perform significantly So knowing where your leverage points are and keeping the organization focused in that direction is how exceptional leaders outperform.

Hi Mike ...I recently blogged about this very topic. To me, leadership includes:

- The ability to think both tactically & strategically and the ability to think both short term and long term….similar but not the same.
- The ability to translate and link disparate things into something cogent.
- Being pragmatic, a good listener, thoughtful and decisive.
- Being a good communicator, results oriented and a collaborator.
- The ability (and courage) to know your own strengths and weaknesses.
- Being a good administrator which is another way of saying executing well: Provide clear goals, roles & responsibilities, communications, time frames & milestones and contingencies.

In the context of the volumes that have been written about this topic, my definition seems simplistic. But that’s the beauty of it …its simple.

Geoff

Someone who believes in possibilities.
Whose ego isn't the most important thing.
Who appreciates the contributions of others.
Who is not daunted by problems that may arise because they know they will discover a solution.
Someone who knows what they don't know and isn't afraid to bring in people and resources to fill those gaps.
Someone who empowers others to be successful.
Someone who communicates effectively.
Someone with clarity and focus.
Someone who is a team builder
Someone who is passionate about their business
Someone who gives back to the community

At the risk of being very simplistic, I believe that the key defining trait of a leader (which are not position based!) is to be visionary. In other words, have the skills, ideas and foresight to identify, articulate and communicate a credible future.

Successful leaders also have one further trait - that of an ability to inspire behavioural change in others. To give it some depth - have the ability to connect with others, develop their belief in their personal vision and be able to inspire them to work and take personal responsibility in helping to achieve that vision.

Guy

Listening skills, compassion, self-awareness and kindness.

doesn't need to be complex!
simply,
Passion
Drive
Unswerving commitment to achievement
the ability to persuade others to follow

think about Churchill, T E Lawrence, Scott, Nansen.

Leadership requires more than mere vision to set the goals and direction. Leadership involves the true coaching ability to define and redefine the goals and measures of success to meet emerging needs and opportunities, then to effectively motivate and manage the performances needed from the team to mentor the meaningful performances from key members of the team needed to promote achievement of the desired objectives at the time while preserving and promoting the adaptability to lead the team to meet the next opportunity.

Very good question! When I published my book on leadership, I intentionally listed the most common characteristics of a great leader with the hope that those in leadership positions would be able to identify with one or more of the characteristics listed, preferably more. Below are the characteristics I listed in the book. Hope this helps.

Risk Taker Visionary Disciplined
Motivating Steadfast Open-Minded
Flexible Dedicated Determined
Authentic Honest Selfless
Consistent Courageous Adaptable
Committed Competent Caring

From my experience, three characteristics define a Great Business Leader:

1) Superior Contextual Intelligence: The ability to recognize, understand and capture the untapped opportunities in emerging macro changes, e.g., technology, globalization, government regulations, social values, demographics, etc)
2) Financial Results: The ability to create and deliver superior financial performance (Return on Assets, Market to Book Value, Market Value Appreciation)
3) Great Mentors: The willingness to share. They inspire others to excel, lead by example, are inclusive and thrive in helping others to succeed

I learned these from Patty Vogan and I follow them each and every day ....

You must have a vision
You must have passion
You must learn to be a great decision maker
You must be a team builder
You must have character

Simple, but true!

I prefer the simple answers to business questions. Just today, someone wrote to me about quality, and seemed to think it was the result of a great deal of analysis. My response is that quality and simplicity are often synonymous, and I gave Apple Inc. as an example.

Apple's great success is due, in large part, to a powerful vision that speaks to the interests and motivations of Apple employees, binding them to it in very personal ways. And the respect Apple is able to show its customers is demonstrated throughout the company. While there is little to no tolerance for underperformance, excuses and mediocrity, there is real encouragement to keep those being served at the center of all decisions.

I'll sum it up like this. Great leaders (and teams!):
1. Hold the focus - the answers to three questions are kept in front of all throughout at all times: What are we doing? Why are we doing it? Why does it matter?
2. Keept it meaningful - go beyond slogans to simple connecting acts of respect, spreading the word about what's happening, and keeping people in the loop of decisions before they are made
3. Manage themselves - People can look to their leaders as living examples of how they are expected to conduct themselves

Management guru Peter Drucker said "leadership is all about results." My only caveat is "by demonstrating positive core values." Everyone is a leader it is just some get paid for being one because they are responsible for getting more results from more people. This is why the general competencies vary because people vary.

Effective (doing the right thing) leaders understand the importance of having a desired end result (vision) along with articulating the behaviors (positive core values) necessary to move everyone from where they are now to where they need to be. Their individual talents will be different because people are different. Some consistent ones I believe are personal accountability, active listening skills, better than average high order thinking skills including reflection and a high level of energy.

Defining Characteristics Of A Great Business Leader

1) Service
2) Decisiveness
3) Courage
4) Trust
5) Accountability
6) Execution
7) Humor