Demonstrating Leadership

Service Description

Learning Objectives: ■ to identify leadership skills in action ■ to give practice in leading a team ■ to know what a team looks for in a leader ■ to recognize and develop the attributes of a good leader More about the activity: This activity allows participants to observe leadership attributes in action - in a fun and competitive task. Leaders and team members alike can all focus on what it takes to be an effective leader. Each team chooses a leader who is then given a Leader's Brief (away from their teams). Leaders have 15 minutes to consider their leadership task and are given a set of resources; colored card, scissors, ruler, sticky tape and color pens (all supplied in the pack). Meanwhile, team members complete a Questionnaire about the attributes and skills they expect from a leader (including what they expect from themselves when performing a leadership role). The questionnaires are then put away and kept for later when teams review their leader's - and their own - performance. Leaders now re-join their teams and have 45 minutes for the task. Have they planned everything in their own minds and simply TELL their team exactly what to do? Or do they ask for the team’s ideas? Do they listen to their teams? How do they motivate the team to get the best from them? What is their overall leadership style? And what about the teams - do they fully support their leaders? Does he/she deserve their support? During the task there are Observation Forms with a checklist of skills to look out for in the leaders AND in the team members. The form, for the Facilitator, makes the Debrief easier but you can have participants designated as ‘observers’ which is useful for big groups. At the end, the models are photographed and a group vote decides the winner. At the debrief the skills and attributes demonstrated are discussed. What were the differences in approach? Did the best photo come from the ‘best’ leader? Did the ‘best’ leader have the ‘happiest’ team? Plenty to discuss!