What is a good definition of leadership?

Leadership is a role that comes with the authority and responsibility to guide and orchestrate work. It is also a mindset and way of being that inspires, empowers, and enables others.

But more than that, if you are leading…where are you leading to? Impactful innovation leadership is setting direction, articulating a compelling vision, aligning people around that vision and enabling collective action towards it. This can happen at any level of the organisation. You don’t have to hold a manager, director, or supervisor title to lead innovation.

What leadership really means

Iron Man, Super Man, Batman … the globally dominant culture has built up lone superheroes as examples of leaders we need under crisis. We’re addicted to the idea of a “hero leader,” who drives others forward with their magnetic personality and charisma. Our collective focus tends to be hyper-individualistic: from social media influencers to government hierarchies.

For the team at InkDot, especially after working in and across a variety of African cultures and countries, it’s clear that we need fresh leadership styles and models that focus on leadership as collaborative, inclusive, enabling, and collective. We don’t need another Super Man. Even though our challenges are urgent and many, the nature and complexity of the leadership challenges are such that they cannot be solved by any one perspective, let alone person. 

“If one thing has become piercingly obvious as a result of the global pandemic, it is that everything and everyone is deeply interconnected. Whether we are talking about the invisible spread of the virus across borders and other imaginary boundaries, the potential domino effect when one link of a supply chain is unable to survive, or the contribution of the healthcare system to our entire social fabric, it is clear: we are part of (not separate from) a complex system. 

This is not a new realization, but never before has it so directly impacted so many people, in a way that is impossible to ignore. I believe that this reminder of interconnectivity points towards changes in the way we will lead; towards more connectedness, less individualism. It means the days of the Lone Ranger or Superhero leader are numbered, and the space for collective leadership opening up. It is in this space that Africa has a lot to share with the world. 

For my co-founders and I at We Will Lead Africa, collective leadership means a leadership that is relational, human, empathetic. Grounded in dialogue and story-telling, it is deeply respectful of the unifying web that we all form part of. Across African countries and cultures, we see different expressions of this we-ness. One example is the term Ubuntu, usually translated to mean “I am because we are”, that has become familiar globally.” 

– Sarah Owusu, originally published in A new narrative: The rise of African Leadership, Collateral Benefits 

What are the 4 E’s of leadership?

If we look back to more traditional models of management, we find many frameworks that set a standard for what good leadership looks like. One well known example comes from Jack Welch, a businessman who served as CEO of General Electric (GE) for 20 years. His leadership style and practices continue to influence much of today’s management and leadership training. 

He left the 4Es of leadership as part of his legacy, which were the basis of leadership assessment and development at GE. 

These 4Es are:

• Energy – the stamina and enthusiasm a leader displays
• Energise – a leader’s ability to mobilise, or move their teams
• Edge – a leader’s ability to recognize, face and resolve problems, strong decision-making, and ability to navigate conflict
• Execute – delivering results

Rooted in an innovation mindset, we believe there is a critical 5th E missing in this model:

• Empathy – a leader’s ability to understand and connect to the people they are leading

Empathy is the key to innovation-focused leadership. When you understand the people you are trying to reach, both customers and employees, and then design systems and processes from their perspective – not only will you arrive at unexpected answers, but you will come up with ideas that they’ll embrace.

What are the 5 qualities of a good leader?

Narrowing down the qualities of a good leader to only 5 is impossible. A simple list of 5 qualities is the complete opposite of everything that InkDot stands for. You cannot copy-and-paste leadership from one organisation to another, or from one leader to another.

Different leaders should find ways to express qualities that are authentic to them and that respond to the needs of their teams and contexts. Different moments require different qualities, and so much of the role of the leader depends on discernment. A quality that is required today may be completely unnecessary a year from now when a different complex problem and situation arises.

For example, we delivered a leadership development program for Mozilla Foundation that supported the leadership team to move from a group of strong, individual leaders to a cohesive and collaborative team. This program included development of a team charter, a series of 4 leadership retreats, and a tailored “skills repertoire” centred on their specific organisational goals and context.

Here is a peek into the skills repertoire:

“Whilst having clarity on the scope and expectations of the role of a Mozilla Foundation leader is critical, a role description will never provide an exhaustive picture of what it means to lead in practice. Being effective as a leader requires us to have at-our-fingertips access to a skill set that supports in the day-to-day of work, and flexes to meet the variety of situations what are inherent – but not predictable – in leadership.” 

The repertoire consisted of four categories and 13 underpinning skills, that are all interlinked and complimentary, so that improving the capability in one area will have positive impacts across all categories. 

“During the consultancy, InkDot demonstrated their expertise in tailoring specific, innovative and transformative approaches to our unique needs as a global organization. They were adept at assessing the root cause of organizational challenges, through deep listening, individual and team engagement. They supported us through a critical period of change, proposing bespoke interventions that were human-centered and rooted in best practice. Through thoughtful partnership and engaging program design, they built trust with leadership and staff, and have been essential in helping our team evolve and grow.”

– Angela Plohman, Chief Operating Officer, Mozilla Foundation

As mentioned above, there is no innovation without Empathy, so if we had to pick one leadership skill that everyone should have, it would be that. Empathy and Care are crucial prerequisites for innovation leadership and therefore, are one of InkDot’s Core Values. Building trusting relationships isn’t just important to us, we consider it the core of our work. We do it through openness, deep listening and respectful attention and support – these characteristics bundled together create our deeply empathetic and caring team. If you’d like support in moving your leadership team from individual focused to a cohesive, collaborative team that works together to solve your organisation’s biggest challenges, book a Discovery Call to explore.