Common sense is not so common

“One key attribute that sets successful leaders apart from the crowd is their ability to see things before others do. In other words, to find the sense before it becomes common.” Phil Higson and Anthony Sturgess make this case in the book, Uncommon Leadership.

The authors use the example of Steve Jobs returning to Apple in 1997, when the company was two months away from bankruptcy, to illustrate the point. He simplified Apple’s desktop computer product range from fifteen down to four. Applying the uncommon sense of what not to do and focusing on what they should do, saved the company.

“Common sense is not so common.” Voltaire

Business leaders in the latest Big Kahuna Leadership Survey are trying to make sense of digital disruption.

We asked 47 influential business leaders to focus on their leadership capability at three levels, i.e. board, C-suite and technology leaders. We posed the following questions:

• How could we better develop boards and C-level executives to become activists for technology-driven strategic transformation?
• How could we build greater leadership capability in technology leaders – our CIOs, CTOs, CDOs and other similar positions?

The results provide a wake-up call for businesses to better understand their company specific view of their leadership capability.

The respondents were well tuned to the message they have heard from a myriad of reports that they need a well-considered strategy to address the challenge and opportunity of digital and technology disruption.

But there was broad agreement that the current level of leadership is insufficient for the challenge of developing and executing a successful digital or technology strategy.

The main conclusion of the Big Kahuna Leadership Survey is that those companies that develop game-changing leadership capability will be better equipped to capture the growth opportunities of digital and technology disruption.

It makes good business sense to do so.

But the report also suggests that game-changing leadership capability is required at board and C-suite level and not just with technology leaders.

While it makes sense that game-changing leadership and game-changing strategy go hand in hand, perhaps it is not yet common sense?

Click the link to download your free copy of the Big Kahuna Leadership Survey White Paper 2016.

Best regards,

Brian