Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Jeffrey Sugerman, Ph.D., is the president and CEO of Inscape Publishing, a leading provider of training materials for the corporate market. Sugerman brings 20 years of experience in senior management, marketing, and business development in the technology, training, and publishing industries. He joined Inscape Publishing in 2001 to lead its transformation into an independent company after Carlson Companies sold the Carlson Learning Company to Riverside Company, a New-York-based private equity firm.
Sugerman received his Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Washington University in St. Louis and his B.A. from Northwestern University. He was an Assistant Professor at Farleigh Dickinson University, before joining Sirota and Alper Associates, a consulting services to Fortune 500 companies. Sugerman has worked in corporate publishing since 1988, when he joined a subsidiary of Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. From 1992 to 1999, he served in various senior executive roles in the Assessments Division of National Computer Systems, now a subsidiary of Pearson PLC.
Sugerman is past-President of ISA, the trade association for training and development industry suppliers. He is the 2009 recipient of ISA's prestigious Broomfield award.
Sugerman currently serves as a Board member for Coffee House Press, an independent, not-for-profit literary press based in Minneapolis. He serves on the Advisory Boards of experiencepoint, a creator of computer-based leadership development simulation systems, and Management Concepts, a leading provider of training services to the federal government. Jeffrey's non-work interests include playing upright bass in a jazz quartet and practicing yoga.

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The 8 Dimensions of Leadership

Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.

Contents

Preface...................................................................ixPart I: The 8 Dimensions of Leadership Model..............................1Chapter 1: The 8 Dimensions of Leadership.................................3Chapter 2: Discover Your Primary Leadership Dimension.....................11Part II: A Deeper Dive into Your Primary Dimension........................29Chapter 3: The Pioneering Leader..........................................31Chapter 4: The Energizing Leader..........................................39Chapter 5: The Affirming Leader...........................................47Chapter 6: The Inclusive Leader...........................................53Chapter 7: The Humble Leader..............................................62Chapter 8: The Deliberate Leader..........................................69Chapter 9: The Resolute Leader............................................77Chapter 10: The Commanding Leader.........................................85Part III: Lessons from the 8 Dimensions...................................95Chapter 11: Lessons from Pioneering Leaders...............................101Chapter 12: Lessons from Energizing Leaders...............................113Chapter 13: Lessons from Affirming Leaders................................127Chapter 14: Lessons from Inclusive Leaders................................139Chapter 15: Lessons from Humble Leaders...................................151Chapter 16: Lessons from Deliberate Leaders...............................163Chapter 17: Lessons from Resolute Leaders.................................176Chapter 18: Lessons from Commanding Leaders...............................187Chapter 19: Pulling it all Together.......................................199Appendix: DiSC Background, Theory, and Research...........................205References................................................................219Index.....................................................................221About Inscape Publishing..................................................229About the Authors.........................................................230

Chapter One

As we pulled together material for this book, we had the pleasure of speaking with leaders in all phases in their careers—from those just getting their feet wet to those who are approaching retirement. Across the board, everyone had learned some important lessons along the way. Many laughed openly about the naïveté that they brought to their first leadership roles, or the fact that they just didn't "get it" at first. Some were so driven that they didn't pay much attention to the needs of the people around them. Others lacked confidence and struggled to make unpopular decisions. One referred to herself as nothing short of a "hard-ass" in her early days as a leader.

Learning to Lead

The fact of the matter is, we all approach leadership from a unique starting point—a combination of our own psychological make-up, intelligence, training, and experience. Life has taught each of us what it means to be a leader, and we probably caught our first glimpses of it as children. As we watched teachers, coaches, parents, and scout leaders, we started to form our own concepts of "leader," and with every new experience, that concept became more complex. Not only did we note examples of outstanding leadership, but we also thought to ourselves, "I'm not going to do that when I'm in charge."

So, well before any of us took on our first leadership roles, we started to imagine what it means to be a leader. And yet, as evidenced by the conversations we had with seasoned leaders, few of us are actually prepared to lead. In many ways, leadership is a learn-by-doing art form, and that's one of the reasons there are so many books out there suggesting the latest and greatest way to lead. And people eat this stuff up, right?

With all of this information out there, why do so many leaders feel ill-prepared? One leader gave us his take on the institutional systems that typically funnel promising people into leadership roles. "When I started at [a large corporation] back in 1981, I was rewarded for being the smartest assistant product manager," he said. Not only was he smart, but he did what management wanted to see. "Beating my peers," he said, "being the first one to answer. Being smarter than them in seeing trends. Pointing things out that other people didn't see. And I got rewarded for that type of get-it-done behavior."

Seems pretty straightforward, right? If you perform your job well and show some hustle, eventually, you'll move up the ranks. "So you do this for a number of years," he added, "and then all of a sudden, someone says, 'Great, we're going to reward you. You're now the head of the operation. And you've got 50 people working for you.'" This is where things got a little more complicated for our leader.

You see, he kept on doing exactly what he'd been doing—exactly what he'd been rewarded for. "And guess what?" he asked, "You don't get rewarded now—now all of a sudden, people hate you. They're like, 'No—I do it. You need to motivate and inspire me to do it.' And nobody taught me how to do that." Now, our leader had done all of the traditional things that people do to prepare for leadership. He'd been to business school, for example, but still, he was caught off guard by the unique demands placed upon him as a leader. And, in the day-to-day chaos of it all, there was probably little time for conscious reflection on the art of leadership.

What Does Leadership Require?

To be a leader is to make tough decisions—often being forced to choose between competing demands—but what makes it a truly messy endeavor is the fact that people are involved. People, in all of their complex glory, make leadership the art that it is. Leaders often need to orchestrate people around complex goals, deal with people who choose to resist, and try to gain alignment from people with a variety of interests.

As you strive to grow as a leader, you'll need to focus your leadership energy in new directions, and this will sometimes be a stretch for you. While you may land your first leadership role because of your outgoing nature and positive attitude, you may need to develop your analytical side to be more successful in your next role. The more responsibility you gain, the more you will probably be challenged to increase your competencies. Not only will you need to be good with numbers, for example, but you'll need to be seen as someone who can rally the troops when energy is lagging.

The world may not need another book on leadership, but we think you need this book. Why? Because despite all of the courses, books, models, and practical experiences most leaders encounter in their careers, they are often missing something important: a broad perspective on the range of behaviors that is required to be a truly effective leader. Our research consistently finds eight dimensions of leadership behavior that organize the large collection of priorities, actions, and attitudes that people demonstrate as they provide effective...