What makes a great leader?
The five Q’s of leadership
The rules are changing, says Andrew Kakabadse, Professor of Governance and Leadership at Henley Business School, and if you don’t have all five Qs, you may well be left behind.
Andrew Kakabadse has spent a lifetime working with senior business leaders and researching how they behave, and he’s convinced that many of our long-held beliefs and assumptions are simply out of date. “In a mature market, it is very difficult to measure or maintain a competitive advantage”, he says. “It’s a constant challenge to engage with your audiences and stakeholders, and come up with compelling propositions.”
So, what attributes does a leader need in such a market? Andrew Kakabadse believes that it’s changed significantly during the past decade, and it’s a combination of elements he calls the five Qs.
Cognitive and emotional intelligence
The need for cognitive intelligence (IQ) is well documented, and no-one would argue that a leader needs to be able to harness resources, particularly where there are multiple agendas. And an advanced emotional intelligence (EQ) is clearly needed to develop teams to achieve their potential, through managing your own emotions as well as those of others within your team. But Andrew Kakabadse contends that there are others.
Political intelligence and resilience quotient
A political intelligence (PQ) is a leader’s ability to navigate a way forward through diverse stakeholders’ agendas. And a resilience quotient (RQ) is absolutely necessary to cope with the pressures imposed by today’s complex business environment. According to Kakabadse, it determines how self-aware you are, and how able you are to deal with negotiations, and survive across multiple contexts.
Moral quotient
Finally, Andrew Kakabadse would suggest that a moral quotient (MQ) is becoming increasingly vital, taking an ethical approach to the way you lead. “But in many markets, especially in less developed countries, a combination of inequality and corrupt governments has seen the incidences of bribery reaching epidemic proportions, and it is increasingly difficult for middle management, in particular, to impose their emotional and moral intelligence”, says Andrew Kakabadse. “They are often stuck in the middle, facing an impossible task of satisfying both senior management and their clients without succumbing to a delegitimised supply chain”, he continues. Ultimately, such scenarios are unsustainable, as they deliver less value.
These five Qs come together to inform every aspect of leadership, and each of them can, in different ways, be nurtured and practiced through learning and development.
“The world is constantly changing, and our model of what makes a great leader therefore has to be constantly reviewed and refined. But from what the current research is telling us, a balance of the five Qs appears to be the foundation for an effective and sustainable approach to leadership”, he states.
