The Habits of the Effective Executive

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Posted on : 14 Oct 2020

Intelligence, imagination, and knowledge are essential resources, but only effectiveness converts them into results” – Peter F. Drucker

Why Do Executives Need to be Effective?

Whether an executive works for the government or in a private run business, hospital or university, bank or at the bourse, at the social security office or in the army, the executive is expected to be effective and this is by getting the right things done.


Some of the common attributes of executives include high intellectual capacity which is not uncommon. Innovativeness that is unique. A very high knowledge base. Yet there seems to be a big disconnect between the levels of intellectual capacity, innovativeness and the knowledge levels. Bright men and women are simply lousy, inept and incompetent; they don’t seem to grasp the fact that, the being bright perception is not an accomplishment by itself. One lesson that they haven’t learnt is that the perception turns into effectiveness as a matter of putting in fundamental and systematic hard work.


All this seems common knowledge and we wonder why there has been little attention given to effectiveness over the years? Yet there is no shortage of books or seminars that talk about the roles and duties of the executives. One thing that they have not addressed and has always been left out is effectiveness which is the discipline dealing with the art or science of applying specific knowledge towards solving practical problems. The truth is that, until very recently is when it was actually discovered that there are only a sprinkle of these type of men and women.


Efficiency is doing things right. Effectiveness is doing the right thing” – Thomas K. Connellan


It’s a fact that for physical labour, manual labour and handwork only efficiency is required i.e. the capability to do things right rather than focusing on doing the right thing. 


In the last century we have tended to lean more towards focus on the quantity and the quality of work that defines the results such as the quality of a finished suit. We have put more emphasis on how to ascertain efficiency and determine the quality of physical labour–sadly; we only just replicate this effort of one individual astronomically to attain results.


In the past, few people of effectiveness were required; the leader that disseminated the orders to be executed. Because they were so few their role of effectiveness was assumed and we drew the inference that they just formed a tiny part of the organization, but in actual sense what they knew, it would take the rest of the people ages and they would have to learn it the hard way. Organizations were dominated by the manual labourer.


The tiny part that composed of knowledge workers like programmers, physicians, lawyers, accountants only worked for themselves maybe with just a clerical worker, so the issue of effectiveness only concerned them. Today, the reality is such that, the large knowledge corporation is the inclination of the modern world which is a composition of organized corporations.


Take the example of hospitals, in the last few decades other than a handful of nurses; the other people were predominantly cleaning staff and kitchen support staff. Healthcare professionals such as primary caregivers, medical doctors, medical assistants, apothecary, anesthetists, X-ray administrators, lab technologists, chemists and other medical professionals were a rarity and unheard of. Today, the hospitals employ almost more than two or three of them for every patient population.


What Makes an Executive to be Effective?

The effective executive doesn’t need to be the one wielding power or the most powerful person in the world. What makes the executive effective is that they follow certain habits and make it a practice and the rest is history. If you want to become an effective executive look no further, and put these laid down guidelines into practice, and nothing will stop you from achieving extra-ordinary results that you desire and become the winner you were born to be.


Below herein is a simplified guideline outlining the 9 habits and practices that should be adopted for the executive to be effective;


• Talk Less, Listen More: Top Secret #1 of Effective Executives.

• Do What Needs to Be Done: Important for Success of the Executive.

• Do What is Right for the Company: If it’s not Right for the Company, in the fullness of time it will Hurt the Shareholders.

• Creating a Strategic Plan for Success: An Essential Tool to achieve the Desired Outcome.

• Most Effective Meetings: The Science of Powerful Business Solutions.

• Take Responsibility: The Ultimate Action Plan.

• Take Accountability: The Ultimate Communication Plan.

• When and Why Thinking Can Be Harmful: We–vs.–I Mentality.

Change of Mindset: Pay Attention to the Opportunity Not the Problem.

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Posted on : 14 Oct 2020