Q: What are the core competencies we could expect from a leader in an organisation whose culture is driven by innovation?
In times when a flow of incessant change is driven by a frantic competitiveness; where endless innovation leads to cannibalization of products; when new entrants in niche markets may impose new rules that affect mature markets; whenever that a disruptive change appears in business environments and adds even more uncertainty and entropy, I wonder if the the classic paradigm of an inspirational leader on which we have believed for years is no longer relevant to manage and lead an organisation whose culture should be clearly driven by innovation.
Although one could suggest to Steve Jobs from Apple and to Sergei Bryn and Larry Page from Google like paradigms of a new style of visionary leadership, what are, from your own professional perspective, the core competencies, distinctive personality traits and managerial style, that could differentiate to these leaders, from leaders belonging to more traditional cultures typical in mature organisations?.
As always, your responses will be properly acknowledged.
Octavio
A: Dearest Octavio: My answer is a leader must be driven by passion, direction, and wisdom. A true Visionary Philospher is one in millions; but as you point out, they do exist. What calls a Visionary to action? When all of the details of a goal come together and fit like a puzzel - maybe a 5,000 word puzzel, but nonetheless the project is solid and conficent. I was deemed a Visionary Philosopher by NYTimes testing several years ago. Yes, very high IQ, but moreso were the additional answers to questions that assigned me that title. A Visionary's mind's strengths allow one to think ahead of the game-to imagine or anticipate what should come next in just about any situation. As explained to me, being judged by the IQ quotient or processing information is not the total picture. A true Visionary is also equally skilled in the numberical and verbal universes of the brain, by drawing from multiple sources of information to come up with great ideas. The timelessness of the vision and the balance between other skills (IQ) are what makes the VP. In addition to strengths in math and linguistics, there is a knack for matching and anticipating patterns. These skills and the uncanny ability to detect the underlying blueprint of most of life's situations add the a Visionary Philosopher mind. Plato and Benedict Spinoza along with many free thinkers, lead successfully and memorably. What is so inspiring to a VP is that when the puzzel comes together, it becomes exciting and fun. Up's, down''s - bring them on - just fix the puzzel. Truthfully, very few VP make but a few mistakes overall. I am one of the lucky ones; it is the magic carpet ride! As always,
kk
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