Defining the agile leader and the agile team

7 December 2011

‘’Agile Leadership’’ is a much used expression in this day and age in business. But what in fact does it mean? In their highly acclaimed and ground breaking study ‘’Leadership Agility’’, Joiner and Joseph argued that ‘’agility’’ in a Leader is not simply a single and charismatic quality. It is instead a wide and varied set of leadership and management skills acquired through both experience and self development. Through personal self evaluation and ongoing training, Joiner and Joseph argue, an individual can bring into play a variety of both innate and taught skills when faced with the many and often bewildering changes in the ever evolving business environment.

This ‘’agile leader’’ displays the ability to respond to circumstances by initiating swift and effective measures, both within the organisation and outside of it. Such a person is one who learns and grows through experience of tackling the unexpected and, in doing so, becomes increasingly more adept in thinking on his or her feet and thinking ‘’outside of the box’’, as well as engaging a like minded and equally agile staff in working productively and together and in a proactive fashion.

If this leader is truly ‘’agile’’ in facing all the changes and challenges encountered, then so too, and in the best of all possible worlds, should the team or organisation share that same vision and determination. This can truly only occur if that team or organisation shares the collective vision and in the leader’s ability to inspire them towards greater productivity and results. Here Joiner and Joseph make a very clear link between effective and successful leadership and personal self development and awareness with the aid of training.

So, what are some of the other key attributes of the agile leader? These must include a better understanding of self and of one’s individual impact upon the team and on the team and organisation as a whole. Of equal importance should be an awareness of how best to influence others in taking action in achieving the common good and in creating a shared vision and operating within an harmonious environment. Added to this is the invaluable skill of knowing when to empower others to lead and to take initiatives, and to have belief in this process; a far cry from the days of ‘’management from the top’’.  This being the case, then a training investment in leaders, if deemed appropriate and necessary, will lead to a variety of benefits, including the ability to tackle external business threats, to seize upon opportunities and to deal with internal low morale and inefficiency.

There are three principal and necessary behaviours in effective and agile leadership. These are strategic [a possession of a clear vision and the ability to think ahead], tactical [the ability to deal with current and practical issues] and innovative [the ability to introduce and implement both internal and external change].

Self organising teams of professionally minded individuals who are, for a whole set of personal and professional reasons, clearly stakeholders in the organisation they work for do not also respond favourably to a management belief that if people are not driven constantly then the work will not be done. The agile leader, therefore, needs to understand the need to move away from more traditional ideas of making all the key decisions and instead involve other people appropriate in taking decisions and actions. This will, with all due and appropriate consideration, lead to a much clearer understanding and a wider pool of knowledge.  A successful leader knows that a group of well intentioned, informed and skilled people will perhaps often arrive on occasion at a better strategy through consensus rather than through any self made decision. The agile leader will equally understand that one of the key roles of leadership is the creating of a working environment where others can succeed and to have trust in those people best appropriate to react and change creatively and productively, and with the assistance of management.

Agile leaders are fast and effective problem solvers. They are able to display this through the resourcing of the talents of their teams. Competitive and resourceful, they think on their feet, and they think fast. In coping with change, they are able to handle current trends and indeed even anticipate them. An awareness of one’s self and that of others, of separate abilities and motivations and of individual strengths and weaknesses, is of great and lasting benefit. With this comes the gift to recognise who possesses the necessary competencies and who should be deployed in the furtherance of achieving a particular goal or set of goals.

The agile leader is one who recognises what drives and inspires other people to achieve and to think clearly, swiftly and effectively. This is a person who knows how to get the best out of others and is driven by clarity of vision. Such a person, often requiring further self development through training, leads effectively, wisely and to good effect in an often ambiguous and fast changing world.

For further information on Workshops to be held on this subject at Catalyst in 2012 and of programmes on Leadership and Management, Team building and Motivation please contact Greg.Kirwan@cbduk.biz and visit the Catalyst website at www.cbduk.biz