Kevin Vogelsang

The resistance and inertia a group of people will naturally uphold is astounding.  We’re all to blame for this at some point.

We need to get things done.  I think this is the best philosophy we can take:

Lead me, follow me, or get out of the way.

-Kevin
3.31.2010

A few months ago, I was on my way to the gym listening to the Harvard Business Ideacast.  The episode was entitled “The 5 Leadership Essentials” and featured work done by Dave Ulrich, a Professor of business at the University of Michigan and co-author of the The Leadership Code: Five Rules to Lead by.

Dave’s book attempts to answer the questions, “What is it that effective leaders have to know or do?  And are there common themes?”  Dave’s team surveyed established thought leaders on the topic and distilled their collective experiences down to five essentials. The five essentials for a leader are as follows:

• Strategic Thinking (has a position on the future)
• Talent Management (manages and engages people)
• Talent Development (develops the future people of the organization)
• Execution (gets things done)
• Personal Proficiency (takes care of themselves)

Based on my experience, these essentials do a pretty good job of boiling down the complex topic of leadership to some common themes.  But, one thing struck me as missing: commitment.

To be an effective leader, you need to be committed to the cause and committed to the people.  That’s the foundation for any leader.

Kevin
9.13.2009