5 Cs of Leadership

I admire Indra Nooyi’s take on Leadership, and find it relevant in the current world of Digital transformation and Servant Leadership as much as it was, a decade ago.

1)    Compass / Integrity

The compass of a person is the core integrity of the person. Integrity is everything in life, at work or outside work. Aristotle, said leadership cannot occur in the absence of three things—logos, pathos, and ethos. Logos is logic—making a rational appeal. Pathos is emotion—making an argument that resonates with people on an emotional level. Ethos is super critically important—Ethos is character. If your team doesn’t trust you because you have shown a lack of character, they are less likely to follow you and embrace your ideas. Even if they do, it will be due to fear, with a shallow commitment.

2)    Consistency

As a leader, of course when situation warrants you can change your mind, but always do so against a consistent framework. If as a leader, you say one thing in public, but act very differently with employees and teams, team will get demoralized. Consistency matters. Leaders who deliver inspiring speeches are respected, but employees are far more inspired by the true caring shown, and when the leader really walks the talk. People around the leader are watching for consistency in words and actions.

3)    Communication skills

“You cannot over-invest in communication skills—written and oral,” says Nooyi. Young professionals who stand out from their peers are often the ones who practice presentations and who work on improving their public-speaking skills, being competent having the courage to speak and to present your ideas is paramount.

 4)    Courage and Confidence

A leader can be competent in his/her role, but he/she needs to build up the courage to speak up the ideas. This advice is on the lines of Wharton professor Adam Grant wrote in his bestselling book, Originals. A leader original, is a person who “champions a set of novel ideas that go against the grain but ultimately make things better”. Your idea may be priceless, but it is still meaningless unless you can advocate the ideas effectively.

5)    Competency

Lastly, Empowering your team doesn’t mean you lose relevancy of the subject matter, An outstanding leader is still an expert in the subject matter, having the ability to set the context and strategise, and having the ability to provide expertise, guidance and mentorship as needed by the team. In the dynamic world we are in, this is a super competency as this warrants the Leader to be a life-long student of the subject matter. The change from “learn to know” to “Know to Learn” in a continuum makes a great leader. Often this would mean you will have to learn to unlearn and relearn continuously.