Competent executives exhibit a range of vital leadership activities that are well-known. Respectable managers and leaders inspire others to achieve exceptional results. They know how to delegate with skill and authority. Also they can clearly articulate the vision of a company to its employees. However, the difference between competence and excellence in vital leadership activites is stark and vast. This difference has far-reaching implications on company culture and success. A great leader will guide their organization to prosperit. They will achieve the highest class of professional eminence. To achieve this, they must go beyond the typical habits and well-known traits of most executives. To accomplish the outstanding at the top of an organization, you must learn and employ the vital leadership activities employed by the most experienced executive leaders in business.
1. Succession Planning
An essential component of success for any corporation of substantive size and c-suite level management is succession planning. Unfortunately, this critical issue is often overlooked, which can lead to disastrous consequences. Succession planning is a concerted organizational approach to ensure that necessary talent, skills, and tactical abilities will be available when needed and essential knowledge will be maintained when people in important positions leave. For a large-scale business to continue profitable operations for years or even decades, succession planning must be an integral part of leadership’s long-term survival strategy.
Business is an ever-shifting endeavor. Finding collective success in the world of enterprise is always temporary. The companies that stand the test of time know how to adapt to rapid situational changes. Whether a CEO leaves their role abruptly, an executive is planning to retire, or a critical project leader is rendered unavailable due to health or family issues, top-tier executive leaders know how to respond and weather the storm. Proper succession planning eases the disorder that can result from abrupt organizational changes, and involves always having a plan to fall back on should it occur.
In practice, the best executives conduct succession planning by:
- Performing a comprehensive assessment of the company culture
- Laying out specific plans and delineating timelines for action in response to possible succession scenarios
- Cultivating talent within the organization, identifying and developing exceptional employees
- Communicating openly with other leaders and gaining consensus before implementation of any changes
- Earn the commitment of upper-level management to execute any transition intentionally
2. Cohesion and Conflict Resolution
At the highest levels of leadership, those at the top have a tendency to become somewhat distanced from the fundamentals of conflict resolution. Senior management duties at major companies usually don’t involve common workplace conflict and disharmony between members of the executive team. A unified vision and guidance of an organization is easier to achieve between a few passionate c-suite executives. However, if conflicts do arise and discord results from the fallout, terrible results could ensue very quickly.
Keep your finger on the pulse of your company culture, foster open communication between supervisors and employees in every department and at every pay grade. Offer beneficial team building programs to lower the chance of conflict and provide easier resolution methods when they do arise. Create a counseling strategy for alleviating and moderating conflicts and make sure everyone in the organization knows about it. Be patient, understanding, and treat your colleagues with respect at all times.
3. Building Trust at Every Level
Top-class leaders know how to build rapport, motivate loyalty, and earn the trust of coworkers throughout an organization. When done well, upper-level management has the trust of their subordinates, supervisors trust the direction of executive leadership, and colleagues trust each other. In order to be a trustworthy professional, the most important habits must be a part of your tactical leadership style:
- Establish credibility through integrity and honest action
- Be a great listener, attentive and open to the ideas of others
- Be diplomatic in your perspective and approach to operations
- Never place blame on others, seek to understand and improve
- Lead by example and set the tone for positive action by doing
These vital leadership activities are easier to explain than to execute. By understanding their importance, this is the first step in refining your ability to carry them out. Through practice, you can become a world-class leader by incorporating these traits into your professional reputation and character.
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Andrew Deen has been a consultant for startups in almost every industry from retail to medical devices and everything in between. He is currently writing a book about scaling up business and his experience implementing lean methodology.