ASK defines leadership as ‘a relationship in which a person accepts responsibility for their own fate and for that of others in relation to achievement of the task’. It is not a formal position, but rather a complex set of behaviours that anyone can demonstrate.
The challenge of leadership is not only a need to know more: there is no shortage of qualified, experienced managers with significant knowledge of leadership theory. Yet working pressures, entrenched behaviours and a fear of new approaches often combine to prevent them from moving from managing to leading.
The most capable leaders embrace the challenge of adaptation, modifying their instinctive behaviours to meet changing circumstances and the needs of those they are leading. Although they continue to acquire new knowledge and skills, it is by changing their behaviour that they achieve enduring success.
We acknowledge a number of critical truths:
- for most people, behavioural change cannot be achieved through conventional learning methods
- leadership expertise is largely habitual: its development must be built around practical skills that can be readily applied
- leadership is not just about what leaders know; it is about what they do and their ability to inspire others
- rigorous post-event follow-through, monitoring and support is needed to facilitate the transfer and application of solutions
- learning and development must be aligned with line manager behaviour, reward and recognition strategies and performance management practices
- the systematic evaluation of all stakeholders is essential to success.
Although we draw on proven theoretical models, we emphasise the identification of workable, practicable solutions for individuals and their organisations, and we work with learners’ real workplace issues wherever possible. Our highly interactive approach ensures that participants understand and experience the concepts involved and identify ways to apply their learning. We believe that our role is primarily to support our clients in enabling the better application of leadership and management in the workplace.
At ASK, our interventions are both challenging and supportive, and they draw on our Stage-based Behavioural Transformation (SBT)™ methodology to maximise the probability of embedding enduring behavioural change. Our learning interventions provide a rigorous process of transfer and application that enable new, appropriate and effective behaviours to be sustained in the workplace and support enduring improvements in performance.
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