Today, we’ll look at four of the most important competencies that tend to be a consistent strength for successful corporate leaders that Jay Parker discusses in the Mentorforce University video course, “Key Competencies for Executive Leadership.”
There are a handful of basic personal competencies required to be considered for higher-level leadership roles. Before we dive in, I want to make sure we have a common understanding of what is meant by “competencies.” These are not job-specific skills…these are not courses that you take in school. Executive competencies are behaviors that you demonstrate through the course of your working life (and personal life for that matter) that impact the way your colleagues and employers view your capability to take on bigger leadership roles over time. Although everyone has natural strengths and weaknesses, you aren’t necessarily born with these competencies. You can improve and adapt over time, and in fact, it’s critical that you’re able to demonstrate that.
The first is Dealing with Ambiguity. How you perform and act when you lack almost any guidance or situational certainty.
The higher you climb in an organization, the more complex the challenges that you are likely to face…the harder answers may be to find…and the less direction you will receive. As a member of an executive leadership team, your chain of command doesn’t expect to have to tell you WHAT to do every day, and HOW to do it. Nobody is giving daily direction to the CEO on how to lead the company, how to get results, or how to go about their day. And you should think about yourself the same way.
The next is what Jay calls Command Skills….can you get other people to follow your lead even when they aren’t REQUIRED to?
At the most basic level, Command Skills represent the ability to project confidence, the willingness to be the center of attention, and the charisma to compel people to follow you, whether their job requires them to or not. Some people are more comfortable with this concept than others, but everyone is capable of demonstrating appropriate command skills…it just takes an active choice on your part and practice.
The third is Communication…can you get your message across SUCCINCTLY and POWERFULLY regardless of the medium or circumstance.
The likelihood of you achieving your career goals depends almost as much on the perception that people have of your capabilities, as it does on the realities of how you perform. Nothing impacts the perceptions that people form more than the way you COMMUNICATE. Communication is the only window that we have into the way someone thinks, their attitudes, or how much they know. Of course, the topic of personal communication is extraordinarily broad. Entire college courses and even majors are dedicated to communication. But for our purposes, I am going to keep it very narrow…specifically focused on how to communicate with and around company executives, so as to leave the best possible impression about yourself, your capabilities, and your potential.
And finally, there is Strategic Acumen. Can you see the BIGGER picture when others are focused on the immediate task at hand.
When you are a member of corporate leadership in a large organization, or a company for that matter, you have to deliver current results. But just as importantly, you also have to ensure the business is set up to succeed over the long term. A period of years, not quarters. Your ability to navigate this challenge is what Jay calls Strategic Acumen. A successful executive understands the context of the industry, the competitive dynamic, evolving customer requirements, and the company’s own capabilities….and they use this knowledge to lead the company into the future.
To see what Jay has to say about building these competencies and to learn more about building your leadership skills, visit Mentorforce University.