Great Leadership Examples – How to Lead Your People in Stability and in Change

What Makes for Great Leadership? Read This, and Acquire the Traits

Great leadership examples in business portray leaders as heroes when it comes to leading teams through crisis and change. In more stable times, great leadership examples involve leaders using their skills to foster innovation and a growth culture.

So, this means focusing on the company and the people, bringing them on, and giving them a chance to shine. All in all, great leadership inspires everyone, whatever their role, to play a part in building better workplaces.

Everybody Needs Great Leadership Examples at Work

In this article we’ll look at some great leadership examples, the principles underlying them, and how you can emulate them. But first, we need to say that these great leadership examples are far from everyday experience for millions of people worldwide.

Employee recognition and rewards provider OC Tanner quotes research showing under half of workers feel their leaders work to develop them. Furthermore, a 2022 Gallup poll supports this, reporting that 68% of American job holders were unhappy with their work, and felt unsupported by their employers.

Gallup’s figure ties in with OC Tanner’s other stats showing only 26% of employees feel their leaders encourage collaboration. More than half of OC Tanner’s poll said their leader won’t give up control over anything. Only 59% believed their leader values them, and 1 in 5 said they regularly express doubts about them. This impacts morale, motivation, and productiveness – and affects the bottom line.

So, read this article about great leadership examples, and find out more about what makes for great leadership, and how you can put this to work in your business.

What This Article Covers:

• What are some examples of great leadership?
• Our concept of great leaders is changing
• What is an example of a “leadership moment”?
• What are the 5 behaviours that good leaders demonstrate?
• 10 everyday examples of great leadership in the workplace
• What difference has COVID-19 made to our thinking on this?
• What are the 5 qualities of a great leader?
• 8 qualities of a good leader
• 20 qualities of a good leader

At the end, we help you prepare to talk about your leadership experience, and say how Making Business can help you become a great leadership example. So, let’s get to work!

What Are Some Examples of Great Leadership?

Okay, So Here Are Some Examples of Great Leadership From Different Fields:

• Steve Jobs:

Co-founder and CEO of Apple, he was consistent in expecting his followers to show the same kind of curiosity, dedication and passionate enthusiasm that he did, which resulted in a spectacular growth culture. Furthermore, Jobs was not afraid of failure in business, as long as he learned from his mistakes and spoke frankly at industry forums about blunders and lessons learned.

So, this is where it gets controversial. According to the Financhill website, Jobs was unashamedly demanding, and because he wanted to be the best, he behaved as an autocratic leader, which is great for performance, but not for people. Still, this led to him being simultaneously criticised and praised by people both inside and outside of Apple for creating what’s known as a “reality distortion” field.

Jobs’ winning charisma and infectious passion for his products, as stated by Financhill, led to an almost inescapable feeling that Apple and its products could do the impossible. Even so, he pushed his employees to their limits.

• Bill Gates:

Here’s another giant of the tech revolution. Gates is often described as a visionary leader. He had the foresight to recognise the potential of personal computing early on and worked relentlessly to make it a reality. Furthermore, his vision for technology’s role in society has guided Microsoft’s strategy and innovation for decades.

However, the writeups describe Gates in more kindly terms than Steve Jobs when it comes to employees, and the Bill & Miranda Gates Foundation is an undoubted testimony to his wider philanthropy.

Furthermore, Gates is remembered as an innovator who always encouraged his employees to embrace their authenticity and creativity, to improve the quality of their work and productivity. He listened, too. Gates is famous for saying, “We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.”

• Sir Richard Branson:

Well-known as a strong believer in empowering people, Branson emphasises the importance of listening to employees at all levels and encouraging them to contribute. Branson is brilliantly successful as a serial entrepreneur, famous for taking risks and pursuing new opportunities, where others would be too timid. Reportedly, he consistently gets staff to push themselves and work towards new, higher goals, and he communicates with staff members to gain insights and new ideas.

• JJ Foodservice:

As reported in the UK trade press, at the start of the pandemic the managers of this leading catering wholesaler realised they could not carry on as they were, with many of their customers’ businesses forced to close.

Showing a combination of vision, entrepreneurial spirit, problem-solving, rapid decision-making, risk-taking, and motivating their people to cope with the change, JJF restructured in a matter of hours to take orders from consumers online and deliver them to their homes.

• Procter & Gamble’s UK leadership:

From anecdotal evidence, this is an inspiring example of senior managers getting involved in their operations’ response to changing morals and ethics.

While some businesses on either side of the Atlantic shy away from publicly supporting certain aspects of diversity and inclusivity, P&G’s UK managers show courage in making their company’s LGBTQ ‘story’ part of their core proposition. They support their local teams’ involvement in events like Pride Month and use social media to talk about it.

Great Leadership Examples Can Also Be Found In Sport And Culture

Here are some more examples, from sports and popular culture:

• Marcus Rashford:

The Manchester United and England footballer led a successful campaign just after the pandemic to end child food poverty in England. He asked the government to offer a guaranteed meal every day to all schoolchildren in England in financially struggling families.

One thing he is remembered for in his campaign is being humble and knowing that people listened to him because of his position as a famous footballer. But he relied on people on the ground to make it happen, which is a great leadership trait.

• Gareth Southgate:

The England men’s football manager, Gareth Southgate is famous for his humble leadership because he demonstrates empathy and humility when he leads the team to go for success when they’re training, and during matches. He is quoted as saying, “As a coach, you always have to be there to support the person. Improving them as a player becomes secondary to a degree. But if a player feels that you respect them and want to help them, they’re more likely to listen to you and follow you.”

• Sir Mick Jagger:

Mick, as his many millions of fans know him, has kept the Rolling Stones recording and touring for many decades. He has famously taken the lead in getting the band back into the studio and on the road, most recently to record the Hackney Diamonds album and go on tour promoting it, as well as motivating the others and keeping a close eye on all the details. Furthermore, in the TV documentary series My Life As A Rolling Stone, the two other long-serving members Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood are visibly content with the arrangement.

• Sir Alan Sugar:

Sir Alan appears to relish putting the candidates through hell as host of the popular TV show The Apprentice. But in fact, they’re experiencing the kind of leadership moments – see below – and decision-making under pressure, that have made him a great business leader.

Our Concept of Great Leadership is Changing

Many businesses worldwide still follow traditional authoritative leadership practices; in these settings, the boss—or bosses—make all the decisions, down to the last detail. This is often the case, for example, with owner-managers of small businesses. Additionally, large companies employing unskilled workers on zero-hours contracts also tend to adopt this approach.

Importantly, such leadership robs individuals and teams of the opportunity to develop critical thinking skills, share responsibility, and come up with new ideas. Moreover, on OC Tanner’s website, they point out that previous generations of workers have tolerated and resented this management approach for decades. They have often gone along with it because they didn’t want to cause trouble or risk losing their jobs.

In the end, such bosses can’t be complacent. So, what’s changed in recent times is, that Millennials and Gen Zs are likely to reject these practices outright and expect great leadership in their workplace every day. If they don’t find it, they’ll change jobs, and you’ve lost them. That makes it even more important for employers to get up to speed.

What is an Example of a “Leadership Moment”?

Keith Thurgood at the University of Texas says in times of crisis, leaders come face to face with their “leadership moment.” In these moments, he says, the leader’s character emerges, as well as an opportunity to refine or develop it further.

Leaders Take Discrete Actions in a Crisis

Thurgood goes on to say that leading in a crisis involves leaders taking three “discrete actions”:

• Providing stability
• Defining the purpose
• Identifying priorities

“Providing stability” means:

• Defining the current reality – Find the facts and share them.
• Cultivating deliberate calm – In short, “keep calm and carry on!”
• Delivering on commitments – Keep your promises.

“Defining the purpose” involves:

• Being clear about what needs to happen.
• Allocating responsibilities.
• Giving people the power to make decisions.

“Identifying priorities” means:

• Determining what you need to do right now while thinking about what happens next.
• Developing a communication strategy: when, how often and with who.
• Crucially, establishing a process to review actions and make changes to the plan.

When Do Leadership Moments Happen?

You don’t need to wait for a crisis before you show great leadership. Keith Thurgood says the leadership moments he describes, also happen when you:

• Use your anger intelligently in the workplace: meaning, you channel it usefully.
• Recognise and deal with other people’s “terminal politeness,” as in, having the necessary conversations and debates when others are avoiding them.
• Take ownership when others see a problem as external: “It’s outside my control.”
• Identify and overcome pessimism.
• Inspire others to action, otherwise nothing will get done.

The point is, that everyone can have great leadership moments, whatever their role. Later, we’ll look at how to reflect on these, so you can talk about them in job interviews and use them to build your career. But before that…

So What Are the 5 Behaviours Good Leaders Demonstrate?

Blink, makers of the app for frontline workers, say good leaders:

1. Engage in open communication and are open to change and new ideas.
2. Set clear employee goals and delegate work, and are passionate about it.
3. Encourage professional and personal development. After all, good leaders are always learning, and have a positive attitude, even when things go wrong.
4. Think like famous leaders do. So, this means, giving constructive feedback on their performance, and asking for feedback on your leadership style: being humble and accepting reasonable criticism.
5. Lead employees by example, and act as a role model. You should:
   • Give clear instructions.
   • Use respectful words like ‘please’ when doing so.
   • Be ready to answer questions.
   • Make people feel part of the team by letting them know why you’re giving them specific instructions and what their contribution means to the whole.

So, don’t stop there! There’s always more you can do.

10 Everyday Examples of Great Leadership in the Workplace

So, here are some more ways everyone can show great leadership like our famous examples. The resume template website Novoresume.com says this happens when you use the following soft skills effectively:

1. Communication: Active listening, written communication, public speaking, body language, presentation skills.
2. Creativity: Curiosity, welcoming diversity, innovation, open-mindedness, critical thinking.
3. Conflict resolution skills: Emotional intelligence, patience, interpersonal skills, assertiveness.
4. Delegation: Encouraging people to grow and get things done more effectively: delegating tasks to others to build rapport and make them feel valued and trusted.
5. Empathy: Walking in other people’s shoes: regarding them with compassion and openness.
6. Integrity: Speaking out against injustice in the workplace, for instance, colleagues being treated unfairly, or calling out discriminatory behaviour, including from clients. Integrity shows strength and courage and is respected and valued outside the workplace.
7. Mentoring: This involves teaching, guiding and challenging co-workers. Good mentors prioritise the team’s success over their achievements and have these traits: helpfulness, openness, giving feedback, and motivation.
8. Organisation: Decision-making, strategic thinking, goal setting
9. Relationships: Balancing the need for results with the need to foster strong work relationships.
10. Reliability: If your team feel they can depend on you to instruct them, guide them and give feedback, they’ll be more likely to regard you as their leader. To be seen as reliable, you need to show confidentiality, honesty, professionalism, and responsibility.

What Difference Has Covid Made to Our Thinking on This?

During the pandemic, people celebrated UK business leaders like the leadership of JJ Foodservice who as we mentioned earlier, held their nerve, worked out a plan of action, pivoted successfully, and got through the crisis.

With companies having to adapt to new ways of working, it’s become widely recognised that managing change at pace is only one instance of great leadership examples. Another is recognising that there is a generational shift in attitudes to work, and becoming more open.

The terms “boss” and “supervisor” increasingly sound out of touch to younger employees. In addition, technically qualified Millennials and Gen Zs prefer to think of effective leaders as inspiring mentors, advocates and influencers. Hence, if you aren’t helping these employees to succeed, learn, grow and find meaning in their work, you risk not being viewed as a good leader. This is particularly the case in IT, tech and creative industries. Furthermore, this expectation is likely to spill over into other industry sectors too.

Great Leadership by Numbers

Now let’s recap what makes great leadership, with some insights from different sources. So, here’s the first one:

What Are the 5 Qualities of a Good Leader?

Aston University say,

• Clear communication
• Decisiveness
• Empowering others
• Resilience
• Trustworthiness

Now here’s another list:

What Are the 8 Qualities of a Good Leader?

Michael Page Recruitment says,

• Share the vision
• Lead by example
• Demonstrate integrity
• Communicate effectively
• Make the hard decisions
• Recognise and reward success
• Empower others
• Motivate and inspire

Okay, so here’s one more:

What Are 20 Qualities of a Good Leader?

Well, Erin Wilke at Indeed.com says these are:

• Accountability
• Active listening
• Collaboration
• Courage
• Communication
• Eager to learn
• Empathy
• Flexibility
• Focus
• Growth mindset
• Innovation
• Optimism
• Passion
• Patience
• Problem-solving
• Resilience
• Respect
• Self-awareness
• Transparency
• Trust

And Finally: Prepare to Talk About Your Great Leadership Examples: How Making Business Matter Can Help

So, here are four steps to help you prepare to talk about your leadership experience in interviews:

1. Reflect on your leadership experiences which will be relevant to the next job.
2. Choose some relevant and powerful examples.
3. Focus on the difference you made: The situation, the action you took, and the result.
4. Practise talking about it before the interview. Don’t wait until you get in the room!

Ultimately, great leadership examples involve showing the following traits:

• Being a visionary leader with ideas and values.
• Finding the right talent and delegating.
• Valuing and empowering people.
• Solving problems and learning from them.
• And putting employees first and being approachable.

Concentrate on these 5 things, and you’ll be an example of great leadership in your business, up there with the famous names.

Need Some Help? You Can Learn More About Leadership With Making Business Matter’s Training and Coaching. So, Talk to Us!

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