Be a strong leader
Leaders all need to have a common set of traits — including passion for the work and integrity — in any initiative. But especially if you are promoting change, your passion for your new initiative must show through to be successful. It’s something that Swedish had reinforced to him as he advanced Trinity Health’s new branding foundation.
“As CEO of an organization, you’re not just selling a product,” he says “You’re building a sustainable culture. I think our lesson learned as leaders is that successful organizations have a culture that is clearly identifiable and nurtured.
“I think a lot of organizations limit their ability to create a sustainable culture because they’re only focused on the technical and process aspects of cultures, and therefore, they create limitations on the ability of communication to sustain and advance the culture. It goes beyond the technical and process aspects to strategy and structure, and supporting the culture with well-defined strategies and structures.”
Sustaining and advancing any new initiative comes back to authenticity, which is another key to being a strong leader. Your managers and employees need to know that your desire to keep them informed and involved in building the company’s new direction is something real, not a front you’re putting up to placate them.
Especially as the economic challenges of the past two years have, in some cases, placed additional strain on the relationship between management and employees, you need to realize that the people in your organization will be extremely sensitive when it comes to information disclosure from management. If employees and lower-level managers get the sense that you aren’t telling all there is to tell, their willingness to follow you down a new path will erode, and you’ll find your credibility damaged.
“The engagement of the CEO and all of senior leadership leverages off of — and this is critical — being authentic,” Swedish says. “Putting yourself out on the point requires an authentic executive able to present clarity of purpose and strategy and an understanding of tactics.
“On top of that, associates today have their antennae up with regard to validating that their leaders are authentic. The converse is that you’re disingenuous and people will stop listening to what you say. So that authenticity really drives a sustainable culture.”
But where the great leaders separate from the merely adequate leaders is at what Swedish calls the “uncommon traits.” The ability to project ambition, to aspire to something larger than simply turning a profit, and to provoke a sense of urgency throughout an organization, all of these traits help drive a brand, a culture and a work force beyond the commonly understood must-have traits for business leaders.
“And, on top of that, being a risk-taker,” Swedish says. “Being unafraid to fail. The leaders that I have observed and respected throughout my career are not afraid to fail and, therefore, are innovators and creative minds, which plays into the final uncommon trait, which is the absolute necessity to execute. When it comes to new initiatives, 95 percent of the effort seems to be in the planning. Where most businesses fail is in the final 5 percent, which is execution.”
How to reach: Trinity Health, (248) 489-6000 or www.trinity-health.org
