Here's how leadership development is shaping up in Singapore

Singaporeans have engaged in robust discussions recently on a range of workplace issues, from work-life balance to the gender gap in Asia and the perennially debated topic of foreign talent.

Less discussion, at least in the public domain, has touched on the issue of leadership. A recent survey undertaken, the Singapore Management Agenda, has indicated that Singapore’s aspirations to be a centre for leadership development in the Asia Pacific region is shaping up well, as 70% of managers surveyed in that study viewed leadership in their organisation positively.

Nevertheless, that still leaves 30% of managers who view the leadership in their organisations in a less than positive light. The same study also unearthed capability gaps that exist in leadership with respect to strategic thinking, change management, and talent development.

The importance of leadership development cannot be under-estimated. This is reinforced by a study conducted on Salary and Employment by Hudson, which indicated that 68.3% of professionals surveyed have left their jobs because of a poor manager. Poor leadership which is not accepting of mistakes can also be blamed for a lack of innovation and creativity, which is an area of continuing concern for Singapore.

When respondents to the Management Agenda study were asked what effective leadership looks like, they mentioned qualities such as supportive and trusting, with excellent communication skills including good listening skills, fair and honest, having a clear vision and strategy, and possessing credibility in the organisation.

Among the characteristics of effective leadership, strategic thinking was cited as one of the areas of concern in our leadership landscape.

Bridging the Gap
Strategic thinking can feel like an ability that some people naturally possess, while for others bridging this gap appears at first glance like a task of herculean proportions. Nevertheless, just as the mind can be trained through education, thinking strategically is a skill which can be developed.

Furthermore, organisational culture has a large part to play in how leaders think strategically and how they behave. A culture, for example, that stifles broad-based thinking, and one that looks only at immediate results will discourage leaders to take a long-term view.

A rewards or recognition system that values long-term planning capabilities that are aligned with corporate strategy would encourage leaders or potential leaders to put on their strategic thinking hats as opposed to operating with short-term objectives as a strategic driver.

Breaking boundaries within an organisation allows employees to step beyond their silos and gain a wider, more strategic perspective on issues. People who operate in isolation rarely are able to envisage the big picture.

Strategic thinking thrives in an environment which pushes the boundaries to ask what is possible for the organisation, rather than what is impossible. It is easy to think of ten reasons why something will not work. It is far harder to think of the reasons why something will work.

Finally, communicating the vision of the organisation also facilitates strategic thinking. People have to know the direction in which the organisation is heading before they are able to work out how to get there.

Effective communication, interestingly, is one of the characteristics of effective leadership cited by respondents, according to the findings of the Singapore Management Agenda. It is through effective communication that the long-term aspirations of the organisation can be shared and bought into.

As former CEO and Chairman of IBM, Lou Gerstner, said, “It's about communication. It's about honesty. It's about treating people in the organisation as deserving to know the facts. You don't try to give them half the story. You don't try to hide the story. You treat them as true equals, and you communicate and you communicate and communicate.”

• A global Logistics Organisation felt that communication was an essential skill in their leadership team, therefore their programme majored on presentation skills and getting the message across.
• A major leisure and hospitality organisation in Singapore needed their senior management team to cascade the organisation’s strategic direction to their teams. Senior directors participated in their leadership programme so they were able to communicate key messages to the middle manager participants.
• An outcome of a recently conducted study, of SME organisations in Singapore, was the need for managers to communicate a compelling story to middle managers and new recruits to share purpose, values, and strategy.