Our Approach to Leadership Development

Leaders: Good versus Great

A leader's role is to engage others in committing their full energy to creating value and success. Ultimately, leaders will be judged not on how well they lead but how well they are followed. We believe a leader's role is to integrate both Essence (character) and Form (what a leader does and says)—the "being" and the "doing"—in executing the leadership role.

While a balance of Essence and Form is required, effective leaders are first clear on what they want to Be (Essence) as a leader, before deciding what they need to Do (Form) as a leader.

Because Essence is more enduring and core to a leader, it tends to remain more constant over time. Form, in contrast, represents those elements of leadership that need to change as the level or functional role of the leader changes, and as the organizational challenges change. While distinct, both aspects are essential to effective leadership:

• Leadership Character: The Essence of Leadership
• Leadership Form

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