Report on Authentic Leadership - Western Australian Police Union of Workers
K See
General Manager
Western Australian Police Union of Workers
Through the generosity of the ASI “SMART Company†Scholarship Fund I afforded attendance at the three day course presented by the AIM-UWA Business School alliance.
Among the emergent perspectives of Leadership Studies, authentic leadership is gaining increasing attention in the scholarly and practitioner communities. The fundamental premise behind this course is that spirituality and spiritual identity are at the core of authentic leadership. Sarah Ban Breathnach said…â€The authentic self is the soul made visible.â€
Prelude to the course was a self description and peer group 360 degree review of K See’s core values, sense of self and how that manifests in leadership style. The professionally structured yet informal atmosphere encouraged trust, confidence and considerable exposure among the small syndicate of current and future leaders from commerce, mining, agriculture and construction. I was the conventional if altruistic representative of the not-for-profit sector.
In terms of style, I am very red in Task Orientation balanced with a green Security Need and People Focus. For my own sake, I need to be more blue and constructive towards Satisfaction Needs of achievement, self-actualisation, humanistic encouragement and affiliation.
Through a well crafted mix of academic tuition, role plays and story telling, individuals within the group revealed their value sets and personal strengths, which, present in our leadership success … or not. As our community matures and new generations emerge through education and opportunity, leadership style and individual effectiveness increase in importance to establish and retain functional teams with high motivation and productivity.
In the Western Australian labour market, corporate investment in people is as critical as technology and other resources and quality leadership is essential. As a wise man said … if your staff are demotivated some will leave and worse still, some will stay.
Participation in this course of introspection reminded me to stay genuine but step back to review, loosen up and communicate with fewer barbs in the tail of my message. I need to move my focus from Strategist to Visionary and Storyteller. As an Authentic Leader I need to be more emotional than analytical and focus on touching hearts not just minds.
I enjoyed the event and again acknowledge the support of ASI who made it possible.
