The twin pillars of effective leadership

Using case studies of prominent leaders of the past 50 years, the authors explore the keys of effective leadership.

By Brian O'Connor Leggett & Conor Neill

As a manager, you no doubt have some difficult decisions to make right now. Decreasing revenues have put leaders in the thankless position of having to reduce costs, often by cutting jobs and slashing salaries. The stress is enormous, both for the manager taking the decision, and for the many others affected by it. But being in a position of leadership means having to make tough calls.

Times like these call for strong leadership.

We are not the first generation of leaders to have lived through uncertain times. Strong leaders of the past have been born from equally hard circumstances, and the great leaders of tomorrow are being forged in the current crucible of global economic uncertainty. You can be one of these leaders. This time of challenge need not be without purpose.

However, rising to the challenge requires new leadership tools, namely those of the magnet and the hammer. These two instruments may seem an odd couple, but for any leader interested in making an impact or effecting change in the world, the magnet and hammer need to be added to every manager’s toolbox. Knowing which tool to wield, and when, to elicit the needed cooperation is a critical managerial skill.

This article is published in IESE Insight Issue 6 (Q3 2010).

This content is exclusively for personal use. If you wish to use any of this material for academic or teaching purposes, please go to IESE Publishing where you can purchase a special PDF version of “The twin pillars of effective leadership” (ART-1820-E), as well as the full magazine in which it appears, in English or in Spanish.