Rockstar Leadership & Corporate Culture

Leadership.

Yesterday I had the great privilege of providing the keynote address for a Medtronic Global Leadership Summit.

With executives assembled from around the globe we focused on the unique opportunity today’s leader has to cultivate culture as a competitive advantage.  With a jam packed 3 day agenda filled with content central to the challenge of running a complex, global Fortune 500 organization amid such a time of challenge and change  the moment was right to reinforce the awesome responsibility bestowed upon today’s leader.

Challenge and change require clarity and confidence and the leadership mandate is simple:  Put people first…Performance and profit follow….

While an effective manager will often expressly focus on systems and process (and those are necessary qualities to organizational excellence) a leader understands that people are the priority…It’s people that drive the process and deliver the plan….

What do people want?  What accelerates engagement and performance?

1.  Leadership demonstrating care and concern for their people

2.  The opportunity to do meaningful work and continue to develop skills and competency

Put the right people in the right job and provide an environment where they can fulfill their potential.  Focus on getting the culture piece right…..and you’ll be heading in the right direction. Passion at work can occur when the right person, in the right job is supported by the very intentional and strategic action of the organization and it’s leadership.  It doesn’t manifest on auto pilot.

What are the leadership competencies that contribute most significantly to culture as a competitive advantage?  You can see the photo above – our list of what constitutes Rockstar Leadership from yesterday’s keynote.

What’s on your leadership list?  Is your corporate culture a competitive advantage?