"Never pass a fault they say.
But why do they say that?"
I remain forever curious about the world and systems around us and I always strive to understand where we are and how we got there so that I can identify opportunities for improvement, drive innovation, and make informed, impactful decisions because the excuse that something is done because 'thats the way we've always done it' will never stand up to scrutiny.
Leadership
As a leader, often operating in ‘no-fail’ environments, I have always strived for excellence by leading from the front and by example. I believe in seeking and accepting responsibility and learning from both experience and those with experience. I equally recognize the importance of followership, understanding that effective leaders must also be effective followers who support and amplify the goals and strategies of their superiors. My approach to collaboration is based on transformational leadership and founded on the principles of accountability, professional excellence, and fostering relationships that enhance team cohesion, morale, and retention. I will always embrace change positively and leverage it as an opportunity for growth, innovation, and continuous improvement.
"Achieving the impossible through transformational leadership is about knowing and leveraging your team’s unique strengths, inspiring them to accomplish extraordinary feats in the pursuit of a shared vision."
Transformational Leadership
Throughout my professional journey, I have consistently employed a ‘transformational leadership’ model as the basis for how I inspire, motivate, lead and generally conduct myself.
Transformational leadership is a style of leadership in which leaders inspire and motivate followers to achieve exceptional outcomes and develop their own leadership capacity (Khan et al., 2020). It challenges traditional leadership models that are commonly based on transactional relationships that focus on an exchange of rewards for results or compliance (Steinmann et al., 2018) and can complement transformational leadership as much as it can compete with it (Lowe et al., 1996). It is founded on four core principles: idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration (Khan et al., 2020). Transformational leadership has been linked to positive outcomes in various organizations, including increased performance, motivation, and job satisfaction and encourages followers to exceed expectations and become leaders themselves in the process (Khan et al., 2020; Steinmann et al., 2018).
"The strongest teams foster inclusivity and trust, creating communities that believe in themselves and each other.”
Inclusion & Community
I have always led by example, providing mentorship and coaching to peers, subordinates, global partners and project stakeholders to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes. In all these roles, socio-cultural geopolitical diversity and intersectionality were always factors, whether integrating recruits into a Canadian service culture, coaching military members on best practices for collaborating with unique stakeholders, including First Nations partners, creating inclusive environments both for recruits and in office and work floor environments, or conducting community outreach programs that informed surrounding communities about the military. My teams successfully engage with local stakeholders to further mutual aims through collaborative engagement, ensuring higher-level messaging and purposes are effectively communicated, briefing senior commanders and civilian decision-makers up to the ministerial level on those strategic, operational, and tactical situations and outcomes.
References
Khan, H., Rehmat, M., Butt, T. H., Farooqi, S., & Asim, J. (2020). Impact of transformational leadership on work performance, burnout and social loafing: A mediation model. Future Business Journal, 6(1), 40. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43093-020-00043-8
Lowe, K. B., Kroeck, K. G., & Sivasubramaniam, N. (1996). Effectiveness correlates of transformational and transactional leadership: A meta-analytic review of the mlq literature. The Leadership Quarterly, 7(3), 385–425. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1048-9843(96)90027-2
Steinmann, B., Klug, H. J. P., & Maier, G. W. (2018). The Path Is the Goal: How Transformational Leaders Enhance Followers’ Job Attitudes and Proactive Behavior. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 2338. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02338