I thought this was a nice summary of the essentials of Leadership, from Building a Leadership Brand, by Dave Ulrich & Norm Smallwood. hbr.org | July–August 2007 | Harvard Business Review.
“As a prerequisite to building a leadership brand, firms must master what we call the Leadership Code.
Leaders must master Strategy; they need to have a point of view about the future and be able to position the firm for continued success with customers.
They must be able to Execute, which means they must be able to build organizational systems that work, to deliver results, and to make change happen.
Additionally, they must Manage Talent, knowing how to motivate, engage, and communicate with today’s talent. They must also find ways to develop tomorrow’s talent and groom employees for future leadership.
Finally, they must show Personal Proficiency – demonstrating an ability to learn, act with integrity, exercise social and emotional intelligence, make bold decisions, and engender trust.â€
I liked the phrasing of the third point regarding Talent. Great strategy and systems still require great people to execute.