What does great leadership look like?

Effective leadership is often what makes at the difference between an organisation that thrives and one that doesn’t.

I recently got to dwell and ponder on the story of a very remarkable leader who was a school principal and decided to leave for another role in the education sector.

While I had always noticed how efficient, he was in leading his team as well as the children in the school, the reason I started I am writing about it is when he left, every party that had worked with him had a lot to say about what a great leader he was – his team, the children and parents and the wider community.

What sets this leader apart?

1. Clarity in how he communicated

People who had to interact with this leader always knew where they stood. He had clear lines of communication to deal with any issues and was also very clear in what was needed, what was allowed/not allowed and

2. Exceptional link with his team

A leader surrounds himself with strong team with skills and competencies that aligned with what the organisation needed and this was what I witnessed in this school. The staff was and is so dedicated and willing to work and go the extra mile to reach the shared vision. They had faith in their leader and took on the challenges they faced bravely. Their leader knew how to motivate them and also had a strong respect for their contribution.

Even if he has now exited the organisation, the team is building on the strong roots that he has created.

3. Had a vision in place for where to bring the school

The school had started from scratch in the sense that there was no building and no pupils which meant that it grew from a seed to a now very strong forest with strong trees. This leader had a vision of what he wanted for the school and where he wanted to bring it. He always had this in mind and in the end did reach the goal he had aspired to.

4. Resilience in times of adversity

It was not plain sailing though because building a new school from scratch is not a small undertaking. There have been a lot of hurdles for a number of years but the vision remained and while it became sometimes faint it was always there. The pandemic also did not help and demonstrating resilience and bringing along the team and wider school was even more important.

5. Ability to deal with every sphere of the organisation and was fun

This leader knew every name of every student and made everyone feel important. He was able to deal with the patron and also talk about his favourite sport or band to everyone which made him very relatable and fun.

No wonder that it was a big adjustment for the whole organisation after losing such a valuable member and captain! In his words though, change is a challenge and it has to be embraced!

If you are a leader of an organisation and would like to discuss more around this area, please get in touch on [email protected]