Brilliant Manager, 3rd Edition

CHAPTER 2

Leadership

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Y

 ou cannot be a manager without also being a leader. Every

chapter in this book covers both management and leader-

ship issues but in this chapter we will focus specifically on

the leadership dimension of your job. It is likely that leadership

is what scares you most, and from my own observations it is the

key area that distinguishes the brilliant manager from less effec-

tive managers.

Brilliant managers make tough decisions; they don’t run away

from difficult problems; they use their power and authority to

tackle those problems; and they accept that they are responsible

for ensuring that their team survives and thrives . . . to name but

a few of a leader’s jobs! This would be a pretty daunting prospect

were it not for the fact that most brilliant leaders use exactly the

same techniques to be effective leaders. This chapter describes

those techniques and by using them you can become a very

effective leader.

Create a vision and strategy

There is an old joke that an Army officer had an annual report

which included the following comment:

His men follow him . . . if only out of a sense of curiosity.

A key part of being a leader is to create a vision of the future that

your staff will follow you towards.

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32 brilliant manager

Creating a credible, achievable vision of the future is not an easy

undertaking. It must encompass your overall business strategy

and plans, as well as the strategy and plans for your individual

offerings. Chapter 3 will provide you with a structured approach

to creating visions, strategies and plans.

It is reputed that when Napoleon was considering promoting an

officer he would often ask, ‘Is he lucky?’ My belief is that most

people have a similar number of potentially lucky breaks. The

lucky person is the one who spots when they have encountered a

potentially lucky opportunity and pursue it. A good strategy will

help you to identify when an opportunity coincides with your

vision of the future, and hence that it should be pursued.

It is no good having a great vision of the future, if you then fail to

communicate that vision to your team, your superiors and other

relevant parts of your organisation.

This will almost certainly mean that

it has to be written down. It is also

less likely that your team will buy

into the strategy if you didn’t consult

them when creating it. You have to personally lead the creation

of visions and strategies, but you must ensure that everyone in

the team has the chance to make their contribution.

brilliant

tip

A very large part of your time will be taken up with urgent fire-

fighting of the problems that will emerge on an almost daily basis. 

Most managers are aware of the difference between an urgent job 

and an important job. Creating a compelling vision, strategy and 

plans is one of your most important jobs. It is essential to ensure 

that the urgent fire-fighting does not stop you taking the time 

needed to create your team’s vision of the future.

you have to personally 

lead the creation of 

visions and strategies

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