Champions
20 May 2008The term champion is used to describe a person who has certain leadership abilities and personal qualities, namely:
- Curious to know how things work and how people tick
- The absence of negative judgement about others and situations
- Positive outlook
- Emotional balance
- Desire to improve and do better
- Questions what, where, when, how and why, with anyone, regardless of status
- Considers skills, resources and solutions of higher importance than status
- Appreciates what individuals and teams have to offer
- Is able to consider tasks and projects within a strategic frame of reference
- Has an understanding of the business, its customers and the marketplace
- Influences people positively so that they are both receptive to and advocates of change
A champion can be anyone. It doesn't have to be a senior manager or director, and the more champions you have in an organisation, the easier it will be for it to change when required to do so.
Some organisations consider their champions to be 'forces for good' and act as role models others can learn from. This concept is born from the realisation that not every employee has the type of thinking, the confidence and the communication skills to question decisions and processes; nor do they find it easy to do so. It is also very costly to develop these abilities in all employees in most medium and large organisations. Some do attempt to 'sheep-dip' by sending everyone on a one or two day high energy motivational course, but these events rarely teach skills, and pumped up employees soon become deflated, or skilled at the false smile.
The solution is to select an appropriate number of champions for development via a good quality and reputable programme, where they will acquire leading edge thinking and communication skills. The change in these individuals when they return to the workplace is so great that others are affected positively by them. Changes include increased confidence, higher levels of motivation, reduced stress, the desire to question what others blindly accept, and general elegance in communication, particularly with client and corporate presentations where their influence has wide impact.
