Depending on how you've come across my blog, you may or may not know about the UK's only Authentic Leadership conference.
Authentic Leadership and Business Ethics: The 21st Century Imperative - A A sustainable future built on trust
Central London, 14th September 2011
This is an unparalleled opportunity to hear senior leaders from business, the military and the public sector share their thoughts on leadership, and whether pro-social, ethically driven authentic leadership can lead us through the challenges facing us today.
The speakers will explore:
Values-led leadership within Honda
Leadership lessons from the military
Pro-social and ethical authentic leadership
How to integrate business ethics within your leadership practise
Self-leadership
Your own Authentic Leadership Quotient
Expect stimulating debate, thought-provoking discussion and lively sessions with:
Ken Keir, OBE, Executive Vice President, Honda Motor Europe
Philippa Foster-Back, OBE, Director, Institute of Business Ethics
Matthew Taylor, Chief Executive, Royal Society of Arts and former political aide to Tony Blair
Group Captain John Jupp, OBE, RAF Leadership Centre
Philip Hayday-Brown, Polar Explorer
Fiona Beddoes-Jones, Business Psychologist and M.D. of The Cognitive Fitness Consultancy
Full speaker profiles are available on the conference website:
As one of the speakers, I hope to meet you there!
My best wishes as always
Fiona
Friday, 7 January 2011
Authentic Leadership within the military
After all the data analysis, I've got some fantastic results for my PhD with my RAF military sample and I'm currently working with some major UK organisations to generate a secondary business sample so I can compare the two, which really makes me feel as if my PhD is progressing in the right direction!
(In case you don't know, at the time of writing, I'm currently 5 years into a part-time PhD which will probably take me 7 in total by the time I've written it up, as I have to fit my studies around a full-time job as a Managing Director and business psychologist and I also have to be a 'mum').
As well as designing and writing the UK's first Authentic Leadership 360 questionnaire, I've also written a feedback report. Each participant’s personal Authentic Leadership 360 report includes feedback on the the following elements:
• Self-awareness and Self-regulation
• Ethical Virtue and Ethical Actions
• Multiple perspectives on leadership
Are you interested in some of the results that my research has found?
Well, you probably won’t be surprised to learn that on a scale of 1-5 where 1 is Strongly Disagree and 5 is Strongly Agree, overall, the RAF officers who participated in the PhD research study scored most highly in the areas of Ethics and Self-regulation.
It will be interesting to see how the participants in the business sample score against the same questionnaire.
But what do these RAF results tell us? Well, they suggest a number of things to me.
Firstly, that our RAF officers are recognised by subordinates and colleagues as being ‘in control’ of their day-to-day behaviours. Because of the military context, we can take this self-discipline to relate to diet and exercise as well as having a disciplined and controlled approach to their working practices such as the hours they work, the tasks they achieve and their equilibrium regarding their mood and temper.
Secondly, they suggest to me that the military ethos of pro-social leadership and service to others, which is one of the RAF core values, is very much lived within the RAF via their day-to-day leadership activities, and it’s impressive to see that translated into, and measured by, our new Authentic Leadership 360.
Now, more than ever before, leaders are having their thoughts and behaviours examined under a microscope and are being expected to be either a Superman or a Superwoman. It’s much easier to just be yourself. That’s where the new Authentic Leadership 360 can help. I just hope that you get a chance to use it within your organisation.
My best wishes as always,
Fiona
(In case you don't know, at the time of writing, I'm currently 5 years into a part-time PhD which will probably take me 7 in total by the time I've written it up, as I have to fit my studies around a full-time job as a Managing Director and business psychologist and I also have to be a 'mum').
As well as designing and writing the UK's first Authentic Leadership 360 questionnaire, I've also written a feedback report. Each participant’s personal Authentic Leadership 360 report includes feedback on the the following elements:
• Self-awareness and Self-regulation
• Ethical Virtue and Ethical Actions
• Multiple perspectives on leadership
Are you interested in some of the results that my research has found?
Well, you probably won’t be surprised to learn that on a scale of 1-5 where 1 is Strongly Disagree and 5 is Strongly Agree, overall, the RAF officers who participated in the PhD research study scored most highly in the areas of Ethics and Self-regulation.
It will be interesting to see how the participants in the business sample score against the same questionnaire.
But what do these RAF results tell us? Well, they suggest a number of things to me.
Firstly, that our RAF officers are recognised by subordinates and colleagues as being ‘in control’ of their day-to-day behaviours. Because of the military context, we can take this self-discipline to relate to diet and exercise as well as having a disciplined and controlled approach to their working practices such as the hours they work, the tasks they achieve and their equilibrium regarding their mood and temper.
Secondly, they suggest to me that the military ethos of pro-social leadership and service to others, which is one of the RAF core values, is very much lived within the RAF via their day-to-day leadership activities, and it’s impressive to see that translated into, and measured by, our new Authentic Leadership 360.
Now, more than ever before, leaders are having their thoughts and behaviours examined under a microscope and are being expected to be either a Superman or a Superwoman. It’s much easier to just be yourself. That’s where the new Authentic Leadership 360 can help. I just hope that you get a chance to use it within your organisation.
My best wishes as always,
Fiona
Friday, 29 October 2010
Great article by Amanda Heath
I found this the other day (published on 21st October 2010) and wanted to share it with you. Amanda has written an excellent article which encapsulates some of the essential qualities of Authentic Leadership.
In summary, Amanda states these as
* Pursuing a genuine purpose with passion and having the courage to stay true to it
* Finding the balance between how much of your true self to display and how much to keep hidden
* Knowing when to switch your focus from yourself to others (with a low ego so that you can genuinely listen)
* Skillful communication
* Creating material value through strong relationships
Here's the on-line address of the article should you want to read the whole thing
http://blog.bowlandsolutions.com/blog/thoughts-from-bowlands-partners/0/0/authentic-leadership-the-latest-fad-or-an-essential-quality
My best wishes as always,
Fiona
In summary, Amanda states these as
* Pursuing a genuine purpose with passion and having the courage to stay true to it
* Finding the balance between how much of your true self to display and how much to keep hidden
* Knowing when to switch your focus from yourself to others (with a low ego so that you can genuinely listen)
* Skillful communication
* Creating material value through strong relationships
Here's the on-line address of the article should you want to read the whole thing
http://blog.bowlandsolutions.com/blog/thoughts-from-bowlands-partners/0/0/authentic-leadership-the-latest-fad-or-an-essential-quality
My best wishes as always,
Fiona
Sunday, 12 September 2010
Authentic Leadership and 21st Century Enlightenment
You may not have heard of the 21st Century Enlightenment Project from the U.K.'s Royal Society of Arts. It's a fascinating read and links Authentic Leadership with a humanistic, and some might suggest, even spiritual perspective.
Here's the link to the paper http://www.matthewtaylorsblog.com/tag/21st-century-enlightenment/
Let me know what you think. Matthew Taylor, the charismatic CEO of the RSA would also be interested in your thoughts and comments.
My best wishes as always,
Fiona
Here's the link to the paper http://www.matthewtaylorsblog.com/tag/21st-century-enlightenment/
Let me know what you think. Matthew Taylor, the charismatic CEO of the RSA would also be interested in your thoughts and comments.
My best wishes as always,
Fiona
Ethical Leadership in Tough Times
I've just read an excellent article by Phil Hayes of the U.K.'s Royal Society of Arts (the RSA). It sums up many of the underpinning philosophies that embody Authentic Leadership.
You can find it here:
http://comment.rsablogs.org.uk/2010/09/07/ethical-leadership-tough-times/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+RSAcomment+%28RSA+Comment%29
I hope it triggers some interesting thoughts for you, as it did for me.
My best wishes as always,
Fiona
You can find it here:
http://comment.rsablogs.org.uk/2010/09/07/ethical-leadership-tough-times/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+RSAcomment+%28RSA+Comment%29
I hope it triggers some interesting thoughts for you, as it did for me.
My best wishes as always,
Fiona
Wednesday, 18 August 2010
Sustainable Leadership vs Authentic Leadership
People Management magazine in the U.K. recently published an article on Sustainable Leadership and I was struck by its similarities to Authentic Leadership. The crux of the author's argument being that only ethics-based leadership will be sustainable in the longer term
Here's the link to the article
http://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/pm/articles/2010/08/sustainable-leadership-perennial-philosophy.htm
Here's the link to the article
http://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/pm/articles/2010/08/sustainable-leadership-perennial-philosophy.htm
Monday, 31 May 2010
Professionally ethical and morally corrupt?
When I first began my PhD and starting working within the UK military's Royal Air Force, the Group Captain I was working with made it very clear to me that within his representation of Authentic Leadership there is a differentiation between the personal and the professional.
I was only to study professional leadership within the RAF. Naturally I agreed. After all, Leadership, much as it is a personal journey, is most often considered to be a professional role, and it was the perception of that role that I was investigating.
Of course, always curious, I wanted to explore what he meant in more depth.
It transpired that he meant the difference between what he described as professional ethics and personal morals.
Leadership and management within the military (and I expect that this is true within all of the UK's armed forces, not just the RAF) is a highly stressful and pressurised role in an equally stressful environment, and very often marriages bear the brunt of that pressure. Before a marriage breaks down irrevocably, or perhaps as a way of coping within a marriage that hasn't yet broken down irrevocably, some service men and women, like men and women from all other walks of life, may look outside their marriage for comfort. Within my PhD, I was only to focus on professional ethics and not on personal ones.
As leaders are always expected to be role models, is it possible, I wondered to be both professionally ethical and morally corrupt at the same time? Or is this a value judgement that is severely limiting?
You will have to think about that particular dilema for yourself as I am not about to answer it for you (I couldn't - you need to make up your own mind, baed on your own beliefs and values)
What I can say though is that the Group Commander's comment links to the difference between the way that ethics is perceived in the military in the UK compared to the US where it is very different.
The US military sees ethics as a part of someone’s CHARACTER. e.g. are they honest and trustworthy in what they do? (and therefore, will they do the right thing?) In contrast, the UK military sees ethics as higher moral reasoning, i.e. as the ETHICAL CAPACITY to think through ethical dilemas and therefore to do the right thing.
An interesting insight and not yet something that is really being debated within the UK military, even though ethics are becoming very much debated at the highest levels in all 3 UK armed forces.
I think I can confidently predict that the integrity and transparency of leadership decision-making within the UK's 3 military services will be on the agenda at the highest levels for some time to come.
I was only to study professional leadership within the RAF. Naturally I agreed. After all, Leadership, much as it is a personal journey, is most often considered to be a professional role, and it was the perception of that role that I was investigating.
Of course, always curious, I wanted to explore what he meant in more depth.
It transpired that he meant the difference between what he described as professional ethics and personal morals.
Leadership and management within the military (and I expect that this is true within all of the UK's armed forces, not just the RAF) is a highly stressful and pressurised role in an equally stressful environment, and very often marriages bear the brunt of that pressure. Before a marriage breaks down irrevocably, or perhaps as a way of coping within a marriage that hasn't yet broken down irrevocably, some service men and women, like men and women from all other walks of life, may look outside their marriage for comfort. Within my PhD, I was only to focus on professional ethics and not on personal ones.
As leaders are always expected to be role models, is it possible, I wondered to be both professionally ethical and morally corrupt at the same time? Or is this a value judgement that is severely limiting?
You will have to think about that particular dilema for yourself as I am not about to answer it for you (I couldn't - you need to make up your own mind, baed on your own beliefs and values)
What I can say though is that the Group Commander's comment links to the difference between the way that ethics is perceived in the military in the UK compared to the US where it is very different.
The US military sees ethics as a part of someone’s CHARACTER. e.g. are they honest and trustworthy in what they do? (and therefore, will they do the right thing?) In contrast, the UK military sees ethics as higher moral reasoning, i.e. as the ETHICAL CAPACITY to think through ethical dilemas and therefore to do the right thing.
An interesting insight and not yet something that is really being debated within the UK military, even though ethics are becoming very much debated at the highest levels in all 3 UK armed forces.
I think I can confidently predict that the integrity and transparency of leadership decision-making within the UK's 3 military services will be on the agenda at the highest levels for some time to come.
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