Consider the Qualities That Mark a Leader - Vision, Ability, Enthusiasm, Stability, Concern

Consider the qualities that mark a leader - vision, ability, enthusiasm, stability, concern for others, self-confidence, persistence, vitality, charisma, and integrity. On the basis of these 10 qualities, discuss the best leader you have ever had.

The best leader I have ever had would be my current supervisor at Tinker AFB. All the attributes mentioned in the description fit her. She is an inspiration to me. She came to work at Tinker through the outstanding scholar program and has quickly moved up through the ranks. She has challenged me to do things that I never thought I could do, and she encouraged me to go back to school. She leads by example. She is so young, yet she has the respect of our military and civilian leadership at Tinker. They trust her and make decisions that impact the lives of our civilian workforce based upon her recommendations and advice. And they trust her for good reason. Her advice is always sound.
I feel very fortunate to have a supervisor like her. I know what it's like to have a supervisor that does not display good leadership qualities, and it can be very frustrating.

Describe the vision of a successful leader you have known; discuss the role of stamina in achieving that vision.

My best friend is a man that I worked with at a soccer organization in Oklahoma City. He was contacted 5 years ago and asked to open and serve as the Director of Coaching for a world-renown soccer academy in Los Angeles, CA. He decided to accept the job because he had a vision of what he believed the academy could become. He described it to me in great detail as a place where children could come from all over the world to practice and train with world-class coaches and be treated like professional players. He left his family here and went out to L.A. to turn the dream into a reality.
He labored over five years trying to keep that vision alive and turn it into something tangible. On several occasions, he called home discouraged, and we would all try to convince him to come back home...but he did not want to give up on his vision. He managed to recruit and retain world-class coaches despite ridiculous financial constraints. He set up a soccer experience for children that brought clients in from New Zealand, Venezuela, Italy, Brazil, and all over the world. He took his coaching staff and performed satellite camps in countries all around the world during the off-season. He performed training camps for the children of celebrities, including Snoop Dogg and David Beckham, and provided free camps to under-privileged children in the L.A. area.
Although the academy ultimately failed due to the recession, I still consider him a successful leader. Reviews of the coaching staff and the players' experiences were always glowing. The academy had a successful 5-year run due to his leadership vision and stamina.

What values are important to you? How strong is your value system? Do you exhibit full-swing values and courage of conviction in ethical dilemmas?

The most important value, in my opinion, is integrity. If one has integrity, then everything else follows. However, I feel that the values of caring leaders listed in the book (honesty, consideration, responsibility, persistence, excellence, and commitment) are all very important values. To be a truly effective leader, one must possess all of those values. I was raised in a value-oriented family. My dad was a Los Angeles policeman turned preacher. My friends made fun of my parents because they were so squeaky-clean. My parents passed their values to me and I believe that I am a better person because of their influence. I believe that I do practice full-swing values. I know my values and I cherish them. I’m not afraid to stand up in front of a group of people and tell them what I believe. I act upon my values and I act upon them habitually. I am not, by nature, a courageous person. However, when it is necessary, I believe that God affords us the strength we need to take a stand.

Critique "The Deming Way" as it applies to your workplace. Which points are present? Which are effective? Which points are missing? What are the results? (Review the 14 points on pgs 159, 160) Paper should be at least 1 1/2 pages long.

I work for the United States Air Force. The current leadership in the 72 Air Base Wing (ABW) at Tinker AFB consists of exceptional individuals. I could discuss my office specifically or the wing as a whole, and I believe the comparison would be the same. The fourteen points of “The Deming Way” are listed below, with a brief synopsis of how it fits in my workplace. I believe that all 14 points are in effect in our organization, and I also believe that “The Deming Way” is an effective way of doing business—even government business. I believe the results are a very efficient and effective organization in which I am proud to serve.
1. Create consistency and continuity of purpose. We hear a consistent message from all of the leadership in the 72 ABW. “Integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do.” In some areas at Tinker, the civilian employees get so wrapped up in their cubicles and the work sitting on their desks, that they forget the real mission. We are there to support the war fighter—pure and simple. My leadership in the 72 ABW gives us that message every day. The message is consistent and it is constant. We are an integral part of the mission and our job is to support the war fighter with integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do.
2. Set high standards. Our leadership strives for excellence. They set the bar high for themselves, and they expect each and every one of us to do the same. A “satisfactory” rating is unsatisfactory. We fully expect to receive an “excellent” rating in the Air Force-mandated inspections, and our leadership would be unhappy with anything less than that.
3. Eliminate dependence on mass inspection for quality. In our office, we do not do an “after-the-fact” mass inspection of the items on which we work. Each item is handled with extreme attention to detail. It is a matter of pride. We spend the time up front to make sure the product is perfect before we send it in rather than waiting to find out that we made a mistake when someone else inspected the item.
4. Reduce the number of suppliers. Buy based on statistical evidence of quality, not price. Purchasing for a government military installation is a very convoluted process. There are several offices dedicated to contracting and purchasing. I am not familiar with the process, so I don’t feel qualified to discuss this point.
5. Recognize that there are two sources of quality problems: faulty system and the production worker. Strive to constantly improve the system. The Civilian Personnel Office has an entire division that works on issues regarding the problem employees. It is called the Employee Relations Office. This office works with the supervisors and managers to discipline employees who violate rules, regulations, etc. We also have an organization that does studies in the different areas to determine what may have caused a quality issue and determines corrective actions. They determine whether the issue was a personnel issue or an equipment issue. We also have an office set up to manage “change” in the workplace. We are constantly striving to improve.
6. Improve job training. Make continuous learning a way of life. Teach statistical techniques. Employees are coached and advised to seek training opportunities. Managers and supervisors are encouraged to nominate their employees for training. Much of the training is mandated. If a civilian employee is interested in furthering his career, he is strongly advised to enroll in military education programs and to seek out training opportunities. Cross-training is also strongly encouraged.
7. Provide a higher level of supervision. Focus supervision on helping people to do a better job, and provide tools and techniques for people to have pride in their work. This is an area in which I feel my leadership excels. My immediate supervisor empowers her employees and pushes us to do more than we ever imagined we could do. We feel ownership over the processes and strive to make things flow smoothly through our offices. She asks on a regular basis if there is anything we need in order to make our jobs easier. She is always willing to listen to ideas. She encourages us to constantly test our boundaries. She will not accept “I can’t” as an answer; instead she helps us to find a way.
8. Break down barriers between departments. Encourage problem solving through teamwork. We offered to assist our counterparts in other organizations, and were quite surprised and pleased when they accepted. By getting together and sharing ideas, we were able to standardize our processes. Standardization and consistency between the organizations sped up the processes.
9. Stamp out fear by encouraging open, two-way communication. This is another area that I feel my leadership excels, all the way up to the Wing Commander. Our leadership has an open-door policy. They are personable and interested in their employees’ lives. They encourage us to share our ideas. They do not berate us or make us feel stupid, even when we bring up something that we might not have thought all the way through.
10. Abolish numerical goals and slogans. I’m not aware if we had any numerical goals or slogans. I certainly have not been given numerical goals/slogans.
11. Use statistical methods for continuous improvement of quality and productivity. I’m not sure how this would work. It is probably in effect in the ABW, but I am not aware of statistical methods being used.
12. Remove barriers to pride of work. Employees need to feel a sense of ownership over the processes. If management allows and encourages input from the employees on ways to improve the process and actually listens to them, the employees will feel empowered and will have a sense of pride for a job well done. My upper management does this on a regular basis. My supervisor continually asks us for ideas on process improvement. She listens to us and implements our ideas when we all agree that it would be beneficial.
13. Institute a vigorous program of education and training to keep people abreast of new developments in methods, materials, and technologies. My upper management provides us plenty of opportunities for education and training. We are consistently encouraged to further our education.
14. Clearly define management’s permanent commitment to quality and productivity. At every Commander’s Call, we hear the same message…Integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do. Management is committed to excellence, it is routinely communicated to the workforce, and they provide us the tools and education needed.

What should a leader do to build a top-performing team? What policies and practices have worked for you? What have you seen work for others?

First, you need to choose good, positive people who are excited about working on the project. You must be sure to pick people with the right knowledge base to make the project succeed. You also need to make sure the team of people can work together--no personality clashes.
I also agree with other posts that advised that the leader stay involved in the project.

We have put together teams to work on all sorts of projects at Tinker. The successful projects always seem to have a very effective leader...someone who knows how to motivate the team and knows how to communicate effectively. The successful teams are always made up of a diverse group of highly-motivated people.
It is imperative that the team members treat each other with respect and that they trust each other. They must rely on the strengths of each of the members.

How important is emotional intelligence for leadership success? Do you know a leader who is a master at understanding and dealing with people?

I believe that emotional intelligence is imperative for a person to be a successful leader. However, I believe that there are degrees of emotional intelligence. To say someone is a master at understanding and dealing with people would intimate that the person is at the highest degree of emotional intelligence. I have met a few people who were very good at reading and understanding people. They knew how to motivate the different personalities, and were amazing to watch. However, even at that, I think it would be a stretch to say they were "masters." Those individuals still had their own personality clashes with certain personality types.

Discuss the role of leaders as organizations adapt to change. What does "good" leadership look like in this type of environment?

The leaders are key to the success of any change made in an organization. If the leader is on board and can get the other employees on board, then the likelihood of success is so much higher.
A good leader will communicate to the workforce the reason for the change. If people understand why a change is forthcoming, they are more likely to be receptive to the idea. Just recently, I attended a meeting where the presenter stood in front of a group of resource managers and stated, "I know you all don't like this change...neither do we and it's going to suck...and you guys are going to have to pay the price..." Before the briefing even really got going, they had a roomful of disgruntled people because of how they set the stage.

Discuss the importance of setting goals. Apply the concept of performance planning to your own job or career.

I believe that goal setting is one of the most important things that we can do to improve our personal lives and our professional careers. We should identify our long term goals, and then set short term, more easily achievable goals. For instance, my long term goal in school is to obtain a Master's Degree, at work--to reach a certain grade level, in my personal life--to become debt free. All of those goals are very overwhelming when looking at them from the starting point. I'm 47 years old, and the thought of going to school long enough to obtain a Master's Degree, at 2-3 classes a semester, is overwhelming. However, when I break it down into short-term goals, achieving the grandiose goals becomes manageable. I am well on my way to achieving all of my long-term goals and must continually adjust and reset my short-term goals.
Performance planning establishes direction and clarity of assignment. Performance planning really is about setting goals. Our performance plans have clear, measurable objectives (or goals) that we strive to obtain. I must initiate Requests for Personnel Actions within 5 days of receiving the request, and it must be accurate when it goes forward. When I do this on a regular basis, I know that I will be rewarded and if I fail to do so, I know that there are consequences.

In today's current political environment, many on both sides (left and right) feel that Congress is not listening to them. As a leader, what steps would you take to ease the concerns of those you lead who feel their thoughts and ideas are not being heard?

The first thing would be to instruct the people on the way to have their voices heard. I know I was complaining that my voice isn't heard, but I have never contacted a congressman to let him/her know how I feel about a particular issue. However, the second issue would be to actually listen to what my constituents wanted. Actions speak so much louder than words. You cannot alleviate the public's concerns that their voices aren't heard...if you don't act upon what you hear from them.

This week the administration has determined that it would change policy regarding what we will do with our nuclear weapons if attacked by terrorists. The President's position seems to have made both sides unhappy. Those on the right are unhappy that he has "telegraphed" what he would do if attacked. Those on the left are unhappy that the President will still use nuclear weapons if attacked by a country that also possesses nuclear weapons.
Question: When is it appropriate for a leader to make a decision without consulting the "will" of the people he/she leads? To what degree is the opinion of others important in the decision of a leader?

I think the President should listen to the will of the people when we're talking about health care reform, social security reform, etc. However, we have such a diverse people with wide-ranging views and some who are polar opposites, it would be extremely difficult to determine what is the actual will of the "people." Which people?
In matters of national security, however, I think the general public doesn't have the time to study the issues enough to make an intelligent decision...and quite honestly, I wouldn't want to trust my security to some of the people that represent the "general public." When the news channels get out there and interview some of the people representing the "general public" here in Oklahoma, I can't even imagine entrusting matters of national security to their wise counsel...