Leadership presence: Making an impression

By John Baldoni

The question; “Will anyone follow my lead?” is one that that many managers ask themselves from time to time, but it holds particular resonance with those being considered for the most senior positions in their company. Such executives know they are competent otherwise they never would have been promoted. They have a track record that demonstrates their capabilities. But they wonder: do I have what it takes to inspire followership?

And it is not only senior executives who ask themselves such questions; succession planners do the very same thing. Be it boards of directors, or human resource managers, these folks are looking for leaders who can address the issues of the day but also do more. They want leaders who can touch the minds as well as the hearts of employees.

A common term used to sum up what a leader needs, especially one aiming for the very top, is leadership presence. Often you hear the term, ‘executive presence’. It is an apt term for the radiance certain executives project, but leadership require more than sheen. It demands interior conviction, the willingness to lead others, not simply in good times but when the heat is on and the future of organization is at stake. That requires leadership presence that I define as ‘earned authority’.

It is earned by example and by experience. A good leader who leads from the front, is one who asks nothing of his team that he would not do himself. In a corporate context that means a leader is willing to sacrifice part of themselves for the greater good. Sacrifice in tough times may require a cut in pay or an investment in more time on the job. Experience is example over time. It is a sense of accumulated wisdom gained through managing through tough situations. We learned sadly as the recession was unfolding that many senior leaders were in over their heads because they have never experienced such accumulation of challenging circumstances. For some leaders, this was not an issue; they reverted to form, marshalling knowledge and resources to right their sinking ships. But some corporate leaders were overwhelmed and lost their jobs, not because of hard times but because they proved unworthy to the crisis.

Authority is the second word in leadership presence. While authority is granted by the institution, it must be authorized by followers. Yes, people will go along with their boss for one reason because it is easier to go along than fight. But if the boss’s authority is imposed in ways that are arbitrary and unconvincing, followers simply go along to get along. Compliance ensues but never commitment. In today’s challenging times, or frankly any time, commitment is essential to leadership. And so when we think about leadership presence we must accept the notion of reciprocity. That is, a leader is only as good as his followers will allow him to be.

Genuine followership is gained by connecting with another person in ways that answer the question of why they should follow you. Leadership presence plays a critical role in gaining followership and for that reason it is worthy of exploration.

Instill purpose

The ability to instill purpose is essential when considering those eligible for promotion to senior ranks. To illustrate let me share something that happened to me. My mobile is an iPhone and one day while in the Apple store I asked one of the clerks in the store when Apple might be coming out with a wireless keyboard. The young man eyed me and said, “We are committed to the onscreen keyboard.” He then explained the reason why. While some might have taken the explanation as arrogance, I took it at face value. The young man said, “we,” not Apple, not the company, and best of all, not “they.” He took ownership. He resonated with pride as he touted the Apple philosophy. That in a nutshell is pride in purpose.

Every leader needs to ensure that every employee feels a similar pride in purpose. That is a huge challenge and so it falls to leaders to leverage their ability to connect authentically with others so that they feel the pride and purpose the leader has for the organization. This is where presence helps. Leaders use it to communicate with more than words but through their personal example. When considering an executive for senior leadership the ability to instill pride in the job so that others believe it, too, is critical.

Looks matter

Those who aspire to lead must look the part. You have to dress the part of a leader. For some that is a suit, for others that is casual smart. Good appearance leads to command presence. From the cop on the beat to the CEO on the top floor, command presence is essential to delivering on your authority, wielding power appropriately and acting as a leaders should with character and conviction. Command presence is the ability to demand attention through a look or glance. Those with command presence are those who are seldom seen to exert force but you know they have it and can use. Again, the good cop on the beat is a classic example. They can use force appropriately but seldom have to because they exert presence their command of the situation.

That does not mean stern looks that scare people way. Approachability is essential to building followership. After all you want people to come to you because they believe in you and want to follow your lead. A wise leader knows this and so carries themself with a manner that invites dialogue. Such leaders also know, most importantly, that their leadership is not about them. It is about what they do. As historian and leadership philosopher James McGregor Burns has written: followers follow the leader because they feel the leader represents their values, their beliefs. Leadership then becomes a shared experience.

Related to appearance is charisma. Do you need it to lead? No, but it helps. Think of charisma is leadership veneer. And like veneer it casts a reflection. Those who are handsome or beautiful as well as self-confident may project some form of charisma, that ability to draw people to them. But it is important to realize that charisma is ephemeral. That is, people read into it what they want to. That is we project our aspirations onto leaders and if we catch a reflection of that aspiration it adds to the leader’s appeal. Keep in mind that charisma does not depend upon movie star looks. While Ronald Reagan projected charisma so too did Mother Theresa. One was a movie star; the other was very plain. Yet both radiated a degree of confidence about themselves that was rooted in their ability to bring people together for common cause. Charisma adds to presence but leadership presence is authentic, that is, it emanates from the heart of a leader.

Leadership presence therefore is more than a nice to have. More than an exterior sheen, presence is a reflection of deeply held values and a belief in one’s ability to do the job well enough so that people will want to follow.

John Baldoni is an internationally-recognized thought leader in leadership and communications as well as a popular leadership speaker, executive coach and executive educator.

Using authority

Authority is what holds leadership promise together. With it, you can lead; without it, you might as well do something else. Many leaders come to authority naturally; they embrace it totally and wield it like a sword to demonstrate their power. Others adopt it reluctantly, seeming shirking from the responsibility. In truth, neither approach is wholly right or wholly wrong. Leaders must embrace command, but they must do so cognizant that their power stems from the people they lead. One attribute of authority that holds particular importance is persuasiveness.

Operating in vacuum – or in a closed office – does not a leader make. No leader of an enterprise larger than a three person operation can do much by himself. Sometimes autocratic executives will get into trouble because their heavy-handed management style turns people off. So when the heat is on and they need the support of others they will often find no one standing behind them. All leaders, need the cooperation and collaboration of others. Therefore, leaders must bring others to the cause; that’s a key measure of leadership. Essential to that mantra is an ability to communicate the objectives in ways that encourage people to buy into the process. You need to make the objective not only tangible but possible as well as good for the enterprise. Fulfilling some objectives is onerous – layoffs, closures, and terminations – but if they are done for the good of the organization, and ultimately the people in it, then they must be done. It is up to the leader to make the case.

Leveraging power

Power is intrinsic to leadership presence and so it is important to discover ways to use it positively. You must learn to apply it in the workplace in order to create allies, lead others, and achieve results that are sustainable.

When you have power you, must demonstrate it. In the heyday of the Roman Empire, its disciplined legions were the manifestation of Roman power. Military prowess alone, however, did not hold the empire together. It ensured the peace so that the Roman system that fostered commerce, trade, building and education could proliferate. The lesson is that power is more than force of might. It is the authority to make good things happen. When you have power use it to further the aims of the organization not simply your own agenda.  For managers, it means using power to achieve results. Marshall resources to develop a new project and bring it home on time and on budget.

Those who are comfortable with power, share it. All good managers know that power without the support of others is useless. The irony of power is that it can never be wholly centralized. Certainly in dictatorships, power emanates from the person at the top, but he is supported by legions of minions who are only too happy to carry out his whims. Why?  Because they receive some kind of benefit either personally or for their families. Within the corporate sector, the CEO is the person in charge, but successful business leaders delegate, delegate, delegate. And with authority, too.

Decide and stick with it

Authority and power are essential to the leadership equation but unless it is leveraged with good decision-making a leader will not succeed. The criteria for making decision within a business environment should be the effect the decision has the company’s value equation as it relates to customers, employees and shareholders. The value equation includes more than good financials, although good returns are essential. Value encompasses more of what many refer to as the “triple bottom line,” which defines how well a company delivers on its economic, social, and environmental commitments. 

The decisions a leader makes today will define her legacy for tomorrow. But if such a leader is taught to make good decisions in a way that facilitates two-way communication, she will have a proper framework for making good decisions. She will have the communication skills necessary to ask for input and assistance as well as the confidence to know that she can make the right decision. After all, as Winston Churchill put it, “The price of greatness is responsibility.”

Authority, power, and decisiveness ground the concept of leadership presence with an internal reality that goes beyond the externals. These are the drivers that allow a leader to use authority and power for good in ways that are essential to encouraging followership. These attributes describe what followers expect their leaders to do.