EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP

1
EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP A Guide for Ethnic
Community-Based Organizations in Five
Modules Prepared by The ECDC Consortium with
funds from The Office of Refugee Resettlement
2
Leadership is
The ability to set a course of action and
influence others to follow.
3
Guide contents
Module 1 Core elements of effective
leadership Module 2 Organization
leadership Module 3 Staff leadership Module 4
Community leadership Module 5 Building
partnerships
4
Module 1
Core elements of effective leadership
5
3 Core elements of effective leadership

• Qualities of a leader
• Skills to lead effectively
• Styles to project leadership

6
Core element 1 Qualities of a leader

• Self-Awareness
• Knowledge of your operational situation
  organization, its staff, and the served community
• Confidence and a shared vision for the future
• Personal integrity

Adapted from The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a
Leader
7
a. Self-Awareness

• Recognize your strengths and limitations
• Understand how you communicate, listen, and
  delegate

8
b. Knowledge of your operational situation

• Understand your workplace culture
• Identify your organizations internal strengths
  and shortcomings
• Know the served community
• Acknowledge external factors political climate,
  public opinion, funding opportunities, potential
  partnerships

9
c. Confidence and belief in the future

• Continually articulate your organizations vision
• Shape workplace culture through communication and
  practice
• Address issues and make decisions decisively
• Listen to constituents regularly and project
  leadership to them

10
d. Personal integrity

• Honesty is paramount
• Listen to understand
• Make commitments you can keep and keep your
  promises

11
Core element 2 Skills to lead effectively

• Planning
• Decision making
• Communication
• Cultural awareness
• Facilitation
• External awareness

Adopted from Everyone A Leader A Grassroots
Model for the New Workplace
12
a. Planning

• Organizational vision and values root all
  planning Are your activities consistent with
  your vision?
• What is necessary to complete organizational
  objectives? Do you have the resources,
  knowledge, and skills to achieve success?
• Workplans keep staff on-task What are the
  tasks, who are the task holders, and what are the
  deadlines necessary to achieve objectives in a
  timely manner?
• Monitor and evaluate progress Have we set
  progress benchmarks and have we achieved these?

13
b. Decision making

• Gather as much information as possible
• Identify options
• Weigh merits and consequences
• Make a decision and inform stakeholders
• Monitor the decision and make adjustments if
  necessary

14
c. Communication

• Communication is the glue that binds an
  organizations staff, clients, and community
  stakeholders. Consider your words, tone of
  voice, and non-verbal cues.
• Listen attentively first and convey respect
• Ask questions to completely understand
• Offer comments and make decisions clearly and
  concisely

15
d. Cultural awareness

• Cultural norms are influenced by ethnic
  background, family upbringing, education, and
  personality traits.
• Acknowledge and value cultural difference among
  staff
• Allow for free expression
• Avoid stereotype and generalization
• Formalize mechanisms for cross-cultural conflict
  resolution

16
e. Facilitation

• Facilitation enables groups to work well
  together.
• Listen neutrally and objectively
• Elicit opinions and ideas, then paraphrase
• Keep groups focused on task
• Always be supportive of all participants
• Pursue mutually beneficial and supported
  solutions

17
f. External awareness

• Less controllable than internal operations but
  can be influenced
• Includes clients, legislation, public opinion,
  funding sources, and other providers
• External factors should be balanced with internal
  factors (like the teeter-totter above)
• Ask external constituents for perception of
  organization

YOUR ECBO
Adapted from Building a High Performance
Organizational Culture
18
Core element 3 Styles to project leadership

• Know yourself
• Find your voice
• Four leadership styles
• Focuser
• Relater
• Integrator
• Operator

19
a. Know yourself

• No one leadership style is better than any other,
  as long as it is genuinely yours. You can not
  lead through someone elses values and voice.
• Determine your personal values and list these
• Ask yourself What does leadership mean to me?
• Write this down
• Determine how your personal values and leadership
  ideals connect?

20
b. Find your voice

• First, look out Who do I admire? What do I
  like and dislike about other leaders?
• Then look in How would I like to be lead?
• And move on I will adhere to my principles and
  convey them to those around me. Although my tone
  may change moderately depending on my audience,
  my values, and my comfort with these values, will
  remain constant.

21
c. Four leadership styles the Focuser
Manages by Directing Prefers to Take charge and
work independently Wants to be
Productive Values Experience Works well with
Clear goals Wants to have Authority Look out
for Not integrating creativity
Excerpted from Managing Multiple Projects,
Objectives, and Deadlines
22
c. Four leadership styles the Relater
Manages by Organizing Prefers to Coordinate and
facilitate Wants to be Flexible Values
Participation Works well with Broad goals Wants
to have Influence Look out for problems
managing details
Excerpted from Managing Multiple Projects,
Objectives, and Deadlines
23
c. Four leadership styles the Integrator
Manages by Planning Prefers to Problem solve
and diagnose Wants to be Self-reliant Values
Questioning Works well with Ideas and
input Wants to have Time to assess Look out for
Making decisions quickly enough
Excerpted from Managing Multiple Projects,
Objectives, and Deadlines
24
c. Four leadership styles the Operator
Manages by Controlling Prefers to Monitor and
analyze Wants to be Accountable Values
Compliance Works well with Systems Wants to
have Boundaries Look out for incorporating
creativity / new approaches
Excerpted from Managing Multiple Projects,
Objectives, and Deadlines
25
Module 2
Organization leadership
26
What is organization leadership?

• Organization leadership is applying leadership
  qualities and skills that
• Give long-term direction to the organization
• Protect the organization from risk or threat
• Support policies and processes that enhance
  performance
• Promote ethically sound practices
• Achieve and sustain an optimal level of financial
  sustainability, efficiency and effectiveness

27
Challenges to organization leadership

• Goal setting identify steps to accomplish
  objectives
• Organizing pooling people, equipment, resources
• Staffing right people, balanced team, strong
  culture
• Directing give VERY clear instructions and
  receive feedback
• Controlling monitor results, on time, within
  budget, and with high performance

Excerpted from Managing Multiple Projects,
Objectives, and Deadlines
28
Challenges unique to leading an ECBO

• Lack of staff familiarity with Western social
  service standards
• Cultural misunderstandings and pressures from
  clients who believe organization should provide
  more or different services
• Limited or no experience building partnerships in
  the social service community
• Difficulty building professional legitimacy in
  the wider social service community

Adapted from Research on Barriers and
Opportunities for Increasing Leadership in
Immigrant and Refugee Communities Public Report
29
Remedies to ECBO leadership challenges

• Identifying and utilizing a community leadership
  mentor either in business or in social services
• Networking relationships with diverse
  stakeholders who can provide various in-kind
  management guidance, external advocacy, and
  funding connections
• Sharing best practice experience with colleagues
  at other ECBOs in the same region or around the
  country
• Utilizing technical assistance providers

Adapted from Research on Barriers and
Opportunities for Increasing Leadership in
Immigrant and Refugee Communities Public Report
30
Leadership transition

• What to do when essential leadership leaves.
• Allow time for knowledge transfer between old and
  new leader encourage direct contact
• Keep staff informed of why, when, and how of
  changes
• Communicate organizational confidence to external
  constituents during periods of change

The Sylvester Jones Leadership and Career
Resource Center, University of Alabama,
Leadership Transition
31
Module 3
Staff leadership
32
What is staff leadership?

• Staff leadership is applying the qualities of a
  leader to the management of a department or team
  to develop and capitalize upon the knowledge and
  skill of staff to complete tasks.

33
Help your staff identify and set priorities
Balance what is important with what is
urgent Important x Urgent Success
Excerpted from Managing Multiple Projects,
Objectives, and Deadlines
34
Basic principles of staff leadership

• Clear guidance
• Supportive recognition
• Effective delegation
• Deft interpersonal communication
• Ethics

Adopted from Everyone A Leader A Grassroots
Model for the New Workplace
35
a. Clear guidance

• Understand the limits of your staff time,
  skills, workload
• Explain why a task must be completed, if possible
• Always abide by previously established rules and
  processes to encourage these practices by others
• Be courteous, respectful, and fair
• Always lead by example.

36
b. Supportive recognition

• Give sincere verbal and written praise to staff
• When the job is done, recognize accomplishment
• Be specific and timely when praising performance

37
c. Effective delegation How to delegate

• Provide clear instructions
• Give authority
• Offer adequate resources
• Establish accountability
• Reward success

Excerpted from Managing Multiple Projects,
Objectives, and Deadlines
38
c. Effective delegation When to delegate

• Someone else can do the job
• Job is highly technical
• When delegation results in cost efficiencies
• Opportunity for employee development

Excerpted from Managing Multiple Projects,
Objectives, and Deadlines
39
d. Deft interpersonal skills

• Be decisive, polite, calm, and firm
• Have an open door policy
• Resolve conflicts dont make them

40
e. Ethics

• You are responsible not just for your actions but
  also those of your staff
• You establish the standard of what is ok and what
  is not by your behavior be a model
• If in doubt, consult your peers at other ECBOs
  and other social service organizations err on
  the side of caution

41
Module 4
Community leadership
42
What is community leadership
Community leadership is being responsive to a
community by inspiring, engaging, and empowering
community members to take actions that promote
the communitys well-being.
Literacy Projects Community Leaders Program,
Leadership Revised
43
Communities have expectations of leaders

• Consistently, these four characteristics are
  expected from community leaders across cultures
• Honesty
• Forward-looking
• Competent
• Inspiring
• The combination of these characteristics
  credibility!

The Leadership Challenge p. 25
44
Does your ECBO have credibility?

• Are constituents proud to say they are a part of
  the organization?
• Is there a strong sense of team spirit?
• Do constituents see their own personal values as
  consistent with those of the organization?
• Do constituents have a sense of ownership in the
  organization?

The Leadership Challenge
45
How to mobilize other leaders in your community

• Use a message that addresses common needs
• Establish forums which promote group discussion
• Develop a community action plan with tasks and
  deadlines

Adopted from Everyone A Leader A Grassroots
Model for the New Workplace
46
Community leadership challenges

• Divisive cross-cultural misunderstandings
• Loss of respect for leaders
• Language and other communication barriers
• Disagreement about the needs and priorities of
  the community

47
Module 5
Building partnerships
48
What are partnerships?
A relationship between individuals or groups that
is characterized by mutual cooperation and
responsibility.
49
(No Transcript)
50
Why are partnerships important?

• Allow individuals to work together to address
  common interests and concerns
• Promote mutual strength and credibility of
  organizations
• Enable the sharing of resources between
  organizations

51
How to build effective partnerships

• Identify critical needs
• Identify shared interests and concerns
• Create and agree upon a workplan
• Identify leadership and staff roles
• Agree upon budgetary and reporting issues
• Monitor and evaluate the activity and the
  partnership

Adapted from Volunteer Sector Knowledge Network
(Community and Government Relations
Collaboration and Partnering)
52
Networking

• Builds contacts and professional relationships
• Facilitates the exchange of new ideas
• Informs others of your organization
• Identifies potential partners and stakeholders

53
Tips for effective networking

• Always carry business cards
• Prepare your questions and responses as much as
  possible
• Research mutual interests as much as possible
  before networking
• Attend diverse community meetings, join
  associations, and participate in civic events and
  discussion boards
• Listen attentively
• Follow-up!

54
Collaborations
Collaborations are long-term relationships
between two or more organizations.
Collaborations grow out of shared interests.
55
Why collaborate?

• Gain strength in numbers collaboration broadens
  reach and capacity of services and outreach
• Share resources and information
• Gain credibility among other providers and the
  served community

Excerpted from Developing Effective Coalitions
An Eight-Step Guide
56
Exercise Get Results!

• Identify a need in your community or organization
• Identify an organization that might face a
  similar need
• Would you collaborate with this organization?
  Why or why not?
• How would a collaboration with this organization
  best achieve your objectives? Would the other
  organization likely pursue this model?

Adapted from Campaign Consultation, Inc.
Corporation for National Community Service,
2003.
57
How to develop a collaboration in 8 steps

• Determine mutual interests
• Recruit the right people
• Establish preliminary objectives
• Convene the collaborators
• Identify necessary resources
• Define success
• Regularly evaluation effectiveness with partners
• Incorporate best practice and make any
  modifications

Adapted from Developing Effective Coalitions An
Eight-Step Guide
58
Sources

• Bergmann, H. et al. Everyone a Leader A
  Grassroots Model for the New Workplace. New York
  John Wiley Sons, 1999.
• Community Leadership Development A Framework,
  available at www.mosica.org
• Effective Community Decision Making, available
  at http//www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/rural/fact
  s/93-043.htm
• Kouzes, J.M. and B.Z. Posner. The Leadership
  Challenge, 3rd ed. San Francisco Jossey-Bass,
  2002.
• Manage a Culturally Diverse Staff, available at
  http//management.monster.com/articles/managing_di
  versity/
• SkillPath Seminars. Managing Multiple Projects,
  Objectives, and Deadlines. Mission, KS SkillPath
  Seminars, 2003.
• Maxwell, J.C. The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a
  Leader. Nashville Thomas Nelson Publishers,
  1999.
• Overcoming Barriers That Destroy Team, available
  at http//hbswk.hbs.edu/item.jhtml?id5068tlead
  ership
• Qualities of Good Leadership, available at
  http//www.adtimes.nstp.com..my/jobs/jan20b.htm
• The Human Factor, available at
  http//www.see.ed.ac.uk/gerard/Management
  /art6.html
• Types of Community Leaders, available at Pew
  Center for Civic Journalism
• What Makes a Good Leader, available at
  http//www.alumni.hbs.edu/bulletin/2001/february/l
  eader/html
• What Makes a Great Manager, available at
  http//www.see.ed.ac.uk/gerard/Management/art9.ht
  ml
• Yousie, K.E. Building a high performance
  organizational culture, online at The Banff
  Leadership Centre Online Library, at
  http//www.banffcentre.ca/departments/leadership/l
  ibrary/

59
For more information, contact
Ethiopian Community Development Council,
Inc. george.wright_at_ecdcinternational.org Southeas
t Asia Resource Action Center bach_at_searac.org