Strategic implementation cannot occur without strategic leadership. Leaders are often faced with the seemingly contradictory – providing strategic clarity and consistency on the one hand while remaining open and responsive to the ever-changing strategic and competitive context on the other.

Be too consistent and risk rigidity (think Kodak, who never thought digital cameras would ever replace film). Be too agile, and risk being unfocussed and reactive.

Some leaders thrive naturally with consistency. Others are attracted to the new. Strategic leaders skilfully balance consistency and agility.

Through their research and consulting practice, Paul Shoemarker, Steve Krupp and Samantha Howland identified 6 key traits that distinguish successful strategic leaders.

1. Anticipate

Strategic leaders scan the environment they operate in to signs of change. A keen eye on trusted media, broad networks, political and social trends, customers (both gained and lost), suppliers, competitors and market disruptors are all sources of valuable information and insights to distil.

2. Challenge

Strategic leaders challenge the status quo, and they challenge their own and others assumptions. While strategic leaders challenge, the best strategic leaders also welcome being challenged by others. This requires strategic leaders to create a culture characterised by high and enduring trust where open conflict of ideas and perspectives are welcomed and encouraged.

3. Distil

Strategic leaders distil the complex and contradictory into the useable and used. Strategic leaders recognise patterns, systems and implications.

4. Decide

Strategic leaders often need to make decisions with incomplete information and in a context of uncertainty and complexity about the future. Before making such decisions, strategic leaders consider options, listen to others, balance speed with rigour, assess trade-offs and consider short and long-term implications. And then decide, being prepared to review, refine and pivot as the future reveals itself.

5. Align

Strategic leaders communicate early and often, build trust and align key stakeholders, decision-makers and the leaders they lead to ensure execution is consistent with intent. Strategic leaders also build aligned, unified, high trust teams, are open and transparent, enable, empower and trust others, make decisions that are aligned and consistent with the strategy, and are role models for the behaviours expected of others.

6. Learn

Strategic leaders are learners. They are curious. They learn from success and failure on an open, constructive way. They create a culture in which others are encourage to learn.

Summary

Leadership is the key enabler or disabler of strategy. Leaders are often faced with the seemingly contradictory – providing strategic clarity and consistency on the one hand while remaining open and responsive to the ever-changing strategic and competitive context on the other. Strategic leaders skilfully balance consistency and agility.

The most successful strategic leaders anticipate the future, challenge the status quo, distil the complex and contradictory, are disciplined in their decision-making, communicate early and often, align the organisation and its culture to the strategy and continuously reflect and learn.

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