Visioning. One of the primary responsibilities of a leader is to establish the vision for the organization and effectively communicate it to all stakeholders. The most effective visions are simple to understand and can elicit positive emotions to create buy-in. Strategy formulation and implementation. A vision is useless unless it is backed up by a well thought out strategy to bring it to life. Twenty years ago leaders thought it was enough to simply create strategy along with accompanying goals and then toss them down to the troops to make it happen. Not any more. Strategy implementation is a critical component of leadership and includes the establishment of measurable goals and timelines, ensuring proper resource allocation, and planning contingent action. Creating culture. Leaders are ultimately responsible for the cultures of their organizations through the beliefs, behavioural norms, and control systems they establish. Performance Management. Leaders keep their organizations focused on key performance targets and hold themselves and others accountable. They ensure that effective performance management is in place throughout the organization. Leaders know how important it is that everyone in the organization has a clear idea of what is expected of them and how individual performance will be measured and rewarded. They know how to celebrate successes and ensure that the organization learns from its mistakes. Risk mitigation. Leaders are continually vigilant when it comes to recognizing, assessing, and trying to mitigate the risks facing the organization. Customer orientation. Great leaders are customer focused, realizing that without high levels of customer retention any organization will fail in the long run. They spend time to interact with end user customers, and also put a high priority on establishing a positive internal customer environment. Courage. Leaders have the courage to go against the stream of conventional thinking, and when necessary will stand up for what they believe to be important. They are honest and direct in their communications and explain clearly why certain decisions were made. Decision making. Leaders have rock solid decision making skills. They are adept at balancing short term and long term considerations when making decisions, and maintain their objectivity under pressure and crisis situations. They value the opinions and viewpoints of others and actively solicit this input. Professional distance. Leaders realize that they must be approachable and open with their people, but they also appreciate the need for professional distance to maintain an appropriate business relationship. Developing others. Leaders are able to assess the skills and talents of others and keep focused on developing their human capital. They understand that the only way to create a sustainable competitive advantage is through their people. Self awareness. Leaders work hard at increasing their level of self awareness. They focus on maximizing their strengths and mitigating their personal weaknesses, and encourage others to do likewise. Leaders continually work on improving themselves and set an example for their people. Personal integrity. Leaders are ethical and consistent. They earn the trust of others through daily demonstration of their personal value system. Leadership is not a destination. It is a never ending journey of personal challenge and development. It is a passion for excellence and performance. It is a feeling of inner joy when witnessing the personal growth of others. It is a feeling of deep satisfaction when one’s efforts and dedication actually make a difference in the world we touch. Copyright 2007, Thomas Stirr and Thomas-Ritt Associates Limited. All rights reserved. No use or reproduction of any kind, including electronic, is allowed without the express written consent of Thomas-Ritt Associates Limited. This article was used with persmission by TEAM Truck Centres.