Global Leadership Best Practices*

Dr Richard Plenty

Managing Director This Is ...

21st – 23rd September 2011

Dublin Ireland

* Presentation given without slides - This provides a summary of the main points

Leadership is important ...

Airports increasing in size and complexity Increasing demands on leadership Not a landing strip - more like running a mini city Requires balancing expectations of many stakeholders

CEO’s report leadership is increasingly important Leadership succession is an issue Recruiting outside is expensive What can be done to develop people internally?

Leadership is challenging ...

Leadership roles have a number of components Orchestrating and leading planned change ‘Keeping the show on the road’ Responding to crises and unplanned events

We expect a lot from our leaders Build for future and get immediate results Deal with crises as well as ongoing business Take calculated risks but never make a mistake Take organisation in right direction in uncertain environment Keep disparate groups of stakeholders on board

Leadership is difficult ...Not surprisingly, given high expectations, a mixed picture of success

On positive side, most of us can think of good leaders But median tenure of Fortune 500 CEO in 2010 just 3.5 years Summary of 13 studies (Furnham 2010) showed 50% failure rate Disappointment as common as success Paradox – most people have had successful careers till then

Principal reasons for failure Lack of relevant experience Not wanting to change a winning formula People with flawed personalities making it to the top

Identifying leaders ... Starting point is good performance

But good technical people don’t always make good managers Potential is important as well as performance

Ability to see the big picture Sense of perspective, see wood for trees, see consequences Strategic thinking, spotting patterns and linkages Vision, energy and ambition

Building and sustaining relationships Build networks, relationships and partnerships Importance of empathy

Personal Leadership Lead by example Take personal accountability for delivering on promises

Developing leaders... Planned experience

Challenging roles Don’t leave to languish when young Test people fully

Structured support Don’t just leave to sink or swim Value of coaching and mentoring

Improve self awareness Assess against leadership competencies Seek feedback from others Use psychometrics and 360 Example of the

Dimensions Psychometric

In summary• Leadership is difficult...

• Don’t just leave leadership development to chance

• A structured approach to identifying and developing future leaders is an important and worthwhile investment

• Challenging experiences are essential

• Coaching, mentoring and improving self awareness make a difference

‘ A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people

where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.’ Rosalynn Carter