COMMENT: Tough times will put leadership skills to the ultimate test

<p>Leadership is a difficult art during good times, but all the more </p><p>so during uncertain ones. The true requisites of a leader - vision, </p><p>passion, knowledge, and excellent communications skills - are tested </p><p>like never before in the face of recession, layoffs, downgraded </p><p>performance results, and political uncertainty. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>We can think of leadership as the dual ability to create and articulate </p><p>a vision and to motivate the people who can make that vision a </p><p>reality. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Rallying people to a leader's cause is impossible without empathy, team </p><p>building skills and persuasive communication. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>So how do we lead in this difficult time, knowing how important </p><p>communication is? Many of the principles are exactly those we apply in </p><p>our work for clients, but often neglect to follow in our own business. </p><p>In Asia Pacific, the Grey Global Group has developed what we call the </p><p>7As. They are: </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Accept that without regular communication to our key audiences, we </p><p>won't get share of mind for our vision and our goals. This is a time of </p><p>high distraction, ranging from concern over job security to downward </p><p>sloping sales figures. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Anticipate what key business messages are likely to be by projecting </p><p>various business scenarios, from mildly negative and worst case </p><p>scenarios to optimistic outcomes. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Analyse and understand internal and external audiences and what their </p><p>likely reaction to these messages will be - as well as the appropriate </p><p>response. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Adopt an integrated means of conveying key messages. Consider the </p><p>range of communication tools that are available. What's the best mix to </p><p>reach targets most effectively? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Act fast when conveying key messages. If there is bad news, as Warren </p><p>Buffet once said, "... get it right, get it out and get if over ... your </p><p>problem won't improve with age." Equally, it's important to convey and </p><p>celebrate good news whenever one can. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Availability is critical. All leaders need to be available to </p><p>audiences for discussion about the messages they convey, and have an </p><p>appropriate spokesperson in place when they are not. Discussion needs to </p><p>be a two-way street: feedback on how messages are being received - from </p><p>board members to junior staff - is essential for refining messages, just </p><p>as we do for clients. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>- Approachability: None of the above steps will work effectively without </p><p>the essential quality of approachability, and the path to </p><p>approachability begins by putting people first. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Nothing wins people more than honesty and empathy. Leaders who </p><p>effectively communicate have done every thing they can to protect the </p><p>interests of their key constituencies and will always fare better than </p><p>those who don't. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Leadership during these difficult times doesn't need to be a burden. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Leading effectively offers a huge opportunity to secure the long-term </p><p>loyalty of key constituencies - and the success of your business. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>