Jenny BounmivilayReflection Blog #7

The Fundamentals of Leadership course at UC Davis offers insight to Student Leadership Competencies. Within the Student Leadership Competencies, 60 essential leadership competencies for the 21st century are listed; they are developed from five years of research analyzing learning outcomes in all 522 accredited academic programs in higher education. Of the 60 essential leadership competencies, the four leadership competencies I most regularly use and value highly are verbal/nonverbal communication, group development, goals, and follow-through.

Verbal/Nonverbal Communication:

Effective communication (verbal/nonverbal) varies greatly on the context; however, great leaders frequently practice effective verbal and nonverbal communication in order to inform, inspire, influence, counsel, and negotiate. I strive to be as transparent as I am within management and decision-making. Transparency plays a powerful currency in the workplace through developing trust; this creates strong relationships and commitment to each other, the organization and its mission. Effective communication, on all levels (nonverbal/verbal) requires open-mindedness, empathy, and trust. People are more willing to ask questions and reach out for help when they feel comfortable. As leaders, we accomplish this by creating a safe-space—an environment where people share ideas, provide feedback, follow through, and make difficult decisions. Great organizations have leaders that foster creativity and strive to develop and improve each individual’s strengths. Effective verbal/nonverbal communication is one of the many essential leadership competencies a leader must practice in order to achieve greatness.

Group Development:

As an organization, we are not only working to achieve the organization’s goals, we are participating in a process. Leaders pay attention to the group process ensuring that the group feels a sense of connection to both the group and its members. Personally, I’m all gung-ho for setting out on a mission and accomplishing goals; however, as a leader, I believe it is my duty that each person feels empowered and grows on a professional and personal level. I work to ensure that their experience is worth-while and that they understand that their experience in the decision-making/planning process is as equally important as the services we provide for our consumer’s and the consumer’s experience.

Goals:

Organization’s usually have a Mission and Vision statement. Attempting to achieve the vision can be overwhelming and a daunting task because the vision can be very large or take place over a lengthy time span. Therefore, it is essential to break the vision down into smaller, measurable, and more readily achievable goals that contribute to the overall vision of the organization. By achieving these goals, we can measure progress towards the goal as well as feel a sense of accomplishment. TEDxUCDavis’ vision is “to be acknowledged as

a locally, nationally, and internationally first class TEDx organization that brings people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED talk videos and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection, with the aim at bring the community closer together and fostering innovation and creativity amongst it.” As Director of Marketing for TEDxUCDavis, I am directly responsible for TEDxUCDavis' branding, sales revenue, creating engagement programs to spark up conversation before, during, and after TEDxUCDavis events, and overall guest experience. Ways that the marketing team works to achieve the organization’s vision is through two initiatives: The Art Project and Student Ambassador & Volunteer (SAV) Program. Through these two initiatives, we will have the community be a part of the decision-making in preparation for the annual TEDxUCDavis Conference (held May 1st, 2016). Their participation is essential to making the experience a rewarding one.

Follow-through:

In order to create an environment where people can thrive on a professional and personal level, people must be able to depend on and trust each other to follow through on their commitments even when facing obstacles. An individual who can carry out and accomplish their tasks, despite adversity/challenges, demonstrates that the individual can be relied upon and trusted to carry out commitments. As a leader, I practice different leadership styles dependent on the context: Autocratic, coaching, cross-cultural, emergent, leader exchange, laissez-faire, and situational. There will be times when people need more direction and times when they need less. It all very much depends on the individual and it is the Leader’s responsibility to know the individual and team well enough to know when to apply which leadership style. My marketing team is extremely competent and talented; however, when we set out on new goals, direction is needed heavily in the beginning. This eventually occurs less and less as tasks are defined and understood. People are then more capable to achieve their commitments when they understand what is expected of them.