When Execution Isn't Enough

The definition of great leadership, backed by ground-breaking research When Execution Isn't Enough examines the essential leadership skills that go beyond simply executing strategies well. It examines the leadership skills that inspire excellence and drive growth. Great leaders think differently, but their secrets, values, and behaviors can't be bottled—or can they? Is leadership so contextual that it defies standardization? In this book, McKinsey's global head of leadership development draws on ground-breaking McKinsey research to uncover 20 distinct leadership traits. All are important, but some make all the difference in inspiring organizations to exceptional results and growth—and a select few create the vast chasm between strong and weak organizations in terms of leadership effectiveness. Structured as a business parable, this book employs a rich cast of corporate characters to illustrate the critical behaviors of inspirational leadership and the outcomes that become possible. Attempting to nail down exactly what makes a leader inspirational is like trying to capture lighting in a bottle, but new McKinsey research has identified the behavioral leadership catalysts that inspire greatness. This book describes the behaviors to inspire that can be learned—to turn a good leader into a great leader. Understand the neuroscience of inspiration Tailor your inspirational approach to different leadership scenarios Initiate an inspiration cascade to influence people at scale The picture of leadership has changed over time. Today's great leaders are authentic, enthusiastic decision-makers with engaging visions, who are quick to communicate and take action. Less than half of all CEOs believe that their training investments will pay off, yet everyone agrees that leadership drives performance—where is the disconnect? It's in the belief that simple leadership behaviors equal results, forgetting that exceptional results only come from inspiration. When Execution Isn't Enough shows you how to attain the missing link of great leadership to bring exceptional results of your organization.

Foreword by Manfred Kets de Vries xi Introduction 1 Part One Inspiring and Influencing 5 Chapter 1 Influ—The Prologue 7 Chapter 2 Inspirational Leadership Matters 13 Chapter 3 The Science of Influence 19 Chapter 4 The Neuroscience of Inspirational Leadership 35 Chapter 5 Influ—The Consultations 47 Part Two Inspiring Others 57 Chapter 6 Influ—“I hate school” 59 Chapter 7 How to Inspire 61 Chapter 8 Influ—Finding Empathy 79 Part Three Targeting Inspirational Appeals 85 Chapter 9 Influ—“They want you out” 87 Chapter 10 What Are People Like? 99 Chapter 11 Tailoring Influencing Approaches 117 Chapter 12 Influ—Winning Carl Back 125 Part Four Inspiring at Scale 131 Chapter 13 Influ—“We have an offer” 133 Chapter 14 Inspiring at Scale: The Influence Model 137 Chapter 15 Influ—The Epilogue 147 Afterword 157 Appendix I Leadership Behaviors 161 Appendix II Organizational Health Index 163 Appendix III Personality Markers 167 Appendix IV Emotional Disposition Markers 169 Acknowledgments 171 About the Author 173 Index 175