Leadership
Leadership: view from ‘Third sector’ The Quick Read If you work in the charitable sector or public service does this affect leadership style? The desirable qualities in leaders are very similar to other sectors. Some felt that the alignment between senior management and staff was more unified when working for organisations with clear charitable missions but certainly not all. This largely related to the individual leadership skills in an organisation. However, an issue for some was inadequate funding which resulted in a lack of training and time allocated to building a team. Temporary appointments to more senior roles or ‘acting up’ to another position were highlighted as a key way to develop leadership skills.
Darlene Waite Solicitor What leadership skills are valued in public work? This is wide ranging and will vary depending on the area of public work we are talking about. However generally I think traditional skills, such as strategic thinking, communication, change management planning and delivery, people management and the ability to influence and persuade are still highly valued. This is not an exhaustive description but certainly these often appear in job descriptions or competencies required for leadership jobs. However “soft skills” are now being given weight and value in leadership roles which previously may not have been the case. What may be changing is the way that these skills are being applied, for example planning and delivery requires a manager to be able to communicate with staff effectively and persuasively at times and this consists of more than simply telling another person what to do. This is true regardless of the seniority of the parties engaged in the discussion. Similarly, change management requires a good manager to engage with their team, to delegate effectively based on the skills of team members and to communicate effectively ensuring that each member of the team understands their role and how it affects the outcome of the project. How are these skills nurtured / developed in staff? Leadership skills are not necessarily developed in staff. Much will depends on the organisation itself and the attitude of the existing senior management, those in positions of power and influence, and whether they recognise the value of nurturing and developing staff. Where staff are developed, I believe this take the form of: ■ Identifying staff with the potential to move into more senior positions through regular one to one meetings and annual appraisals as well as listening to and communicating effectively with team members. ■ Sending staff on courses which enable them to develop both the skills they require to carry out a role and building their confidence. ■ Allowing individuals to be promoted to more senior positions on a temporary basis so that they obtain relevant experience and are then in a position to apply for senior permanent positions. 30 | LegalWomen
■ Carrying out all of the above regardless of the protected characteristics of the team members. Do you think that the leadership skills valued by senior and junior staff are aligned? If not, how does it differ? When leadership skills between junior and senior staff are aligned, it has the potential to create a very successful team or organisation. Invariably such alignment does not always occur despite claims to the contrary. It will not occur where senior members of staff are concerned only with measurable results such as degree results, ability to speak a foreign language, meet billing targets or attendance at court a specific number of times, to the exclusion of qualities and skills which are less measurable, but yet contribute to the success of the organisation. By virtue of their position, junior members of staff often tend to have less input in respect of strategic and financial decisions and are required to carry out the tasks set out by senior management. This position could be improved by the senior members of staff eliciting the views of junior colleagues and genuinely taking on board their views as opposed to just seeking their views as a “window dressing” exercise. Has the perception of leadership changed due to the pandemic (or during the recent past even if not related to the pandemic)? This depends on the unit of measurement being used and the employment sector we are considering. What constitutes leadership and the qualities needed to be a good leader may be changing but not quickly or radically enough. One only has to look at the FTSE 100 companies to conclude that there is still a perception that white men have better leadership qualities that women or black or Asian people (although to be fair in the public sector the percentage of women who occupy leadership positions has increased). The pandemic has exposed and shone a light on inequalities that we knew existed but which received limited attention. It has also highlighted the importance of the work of women and minority groups. For example, the work of Kate Bingham who is the venture capitalist responsible for securing the Covid 19 vaccine, the team of female scientists who researched, designed and manufactured the AstraZeneca vaccine or the teams of NHS doctors, nurses, care workers and other essential workers (often from minority groups) who were responsible for the care and wellbeing of much of the population during the pandemic. Some of these essential workers died as a result of contracting the Covid 19 virus. While not being in leadership positions they are undoubtedly essential and arguably it is the fact that such essential workers were not in leadership positions which led to their greater exposure to the virus and their subsequent deaths.
