Our research has repeatedly identified that, when evaluating leadership capability and potential, “context takes primacy.”
We all know of leaders who have been very successful in one context and then struggled to perform in another. This is not due to their skills and experience suddenly disappearing; rather, it is because different contexts require different leadership approaches and styles.
Adaptive leadership is, in our view, the highest order of leadership capability.
Adaptive leadership means that leaders are able to quickly understand their operating context and then seamlessly adjust their style and approach to maximise the performance of themselves and their team, whilst remaining authentic.
This requires expert-level capability in terms of self-awareness, emotional intelligence, empathic understanding, relationship management, observation, analysis, and strategic thinking, to name but a few of the required attributes.
When we are asked to evaluate leadership capability and potential, we look for ways to objectively evaluate these, and other attributes, within the context that the leader is working and, most importantly, within the context that they are likely to be working.
This enables us to take a view on their adaptive capability as well as enabling us to provide a very focused and specific development pathway to enable these attributes to be maximised and their leadership potential to be realised.
Above these attributes, however, we use four additional measures to give a very personalised and contextually specific evaluation – in effect, a measure of their leadership equilibrium.
Capability
The skills, knowledge, and experience level of the leader to deal with the performance challenges and opportunities they are likely to be faced with, together with their ability to seamlessly and authentically develop and adapt their approach when dealing with changing contexts and demands.
confidence
The self-awareness and self-assurance of the leader and their ability to use this effectively to lead, build trust, engage, and inspire outstanding performance from their teams and to make bold and insightful decisions which challenge the status quo and drive commercial success.
commitment
The personal drive, energy, and passion which the leader brings to their work and the degree to which this ensures an embedded consistency in their values and goal focus, together with their ability to be persistent and resilient over time to ensure that their goals are owned and achieved.
capacity
The leader’s ability to sustain effort over time, whilst managing multiple complex challenges and adapting to changing demands, together with their focus on balancing energy levels, driving continuous improvement, and ensuring a safe and productive work environment.
Measuring leaders against these four dimensions enables us to map their position and to identify focused development support to help drive leadership and team performance. The pattern is as unique as the individual and so, therefore, is the development pathway.
When we evaluate leaders for whom these four elements are balanced and highly visible, we see exceptionally capable and adaptive leaders who:
Guide with clear vision through disruption whilst seamlessly adjusting their approach to maximise performance
Empower Others through an engaging leadership style, building trust, ownership, and co-creative team performance.
Encourage Innovation & Experimentation by promoting creative problem-solving, taking calculated risks, and implementing transformative solutions.
Continuous Learn and grow by seeking new knowledge, skills, and perspectives to remain effective in changing and complex environments.
Today’s fast-paced world of constant change places high demands on our leaders, and a balanced leadership equilibrium is central to building an adaptive leadership capability.
Achieving this balance enables leaders and organisations to thrive and to use their past experience not as a blueprint for future success but instead as insights through which change is evaluated, understood, and managed.
