Hello Ron, thank you for your feedback. In my industry,I have watched different types of leader--positional, transformational, transactional, etc.,. I have seen their differences in values, behaviors, tactical orientations, and many appeared to be good, and I have seen others who weren't but made the necessary adjustments to be the best leaders that they can be. I respect your viewpoint;I am, though, a firm believer that anyone can lead, when there is a desire and purpose to lead, when there is a leadership opportunity to be had, and when there is a team or organization to lead. Present leadership skills, it would be easier to fulfill the leadership role and responsibilities; Absent leadership skills, as well as resources to well-equip oneself to be a leader,it would be a battle to lead and/or it can cost the company potentially unsalvageable risks. You asserted 'Only skills can be learned.' In my opinion, leadership per se is a skill that can be learned. Some do it effectively; Some do need to re-examine their capacities and explore other careers.
Grace,
Hello Grace, I appreciate your response. You make a good case. I firmly believe there is a big difference between managing and leading. Management skills can be learned and are often used interchangeably with leadership.In my opinion, a great leader is a visionary that can inspire those around them to embrace their vision and then are able implement. A great leader is not necessarily a good manager. They may tend not to be detail oriented. It is then up to the managers to ensure implementation. We need both! Of course, there are always exceptions. Thank you for your point of view and response.
Ron Obstfeld
Anyone can be trained to be a Team Leader - but will they be effective in that role? And will they be comfortable in that role? We all have different talents/abilities/preferences/motivations. It would be better to cast people in the role that they will excel in and will most benefit the team, whether as leader or follower.
I believe that a good team leader wants to be a team leader. One who has passion for the topic being worked on. So yes, anyone can, but they must want it.
Shelly,
A good team leader needs more than just desire. They must also possess requisite skills to lead the team and manage the project.
Ron Obstfeld
I enjoyed reading some of the other responses - very thoughtful and well-written. My answer is "No". Very specifically, I do not think a random person can be picked out of a crowd and trained, 100% of the time, to effectively lead a team. Certainly many of the skills needed to effectively lead a team can be taught/trained. Once can be taught planning, how to communicate effectively, and even how to coach. But other traits of effective leaders must be learned over many years and some are innate characteristics, like a positive attitude, ability to motivate and even inspire, empathy, and humility to name a few. In my experience, truly effective leaders are people that others want to follow!
SOme people are not born to be leaders; others choose not to be a part of a team. So, no not anyone can be trained to be a team leader.
Melissa,
I don't think leaders are "born". I would say Leadership can be a learned skill up to a point. The blend of leadership skill and intuition are required to make a great leader....but anyone can learn the required skills.
Ron Obstfeld
You do have to want to be a leader, but you also need to be a good manager also. It can be difficult at times to balance out the two. You have to inspire people to want to follow you, your ideas, and the goals that have been put forth. Some of the most effective leaders had a very charismatic energy that had people wanting to follow them.
Anyone can be trained to lead if they have the desire to want to lead.
Troy,
I disagree. You can train to manange...but leasership is more than just foloowing policies and procedures. Leadership includes vision and the ability to inspire.
Ron Obstfeld
Ron, I agree that leadership can be learned, and is in part a developed skill over time. Courses such at this one definitely help managers lead, and leaders improve. However, I do believe that within most great leaders exists some personality traits that help them inspire others. Many of these traits I believe are given at birth, while others are developed at a young age. The ability to inspire others is still something that is practiced over time, but I believe those that are exceptional at it were in fact given a gift that could not obtained through any training.
Actually yes and no. You may not always find an effective leader who could motivate a team and mentor individuals within the team, but you may be able to train a leader hence the most important part of leadership is communication.
I do not believe every individual can be trained to be a good Team Leader. Some personality types find the characterics that make a team leader good to be out of their comfort zone. Even after being exposed to techniques and coaching they can not intergrate the leadership qualities that inspire a team. I do believe that everyone can make a good team member if you match their skills to the issue at hand.
I do not believe every individual can be trained to be a good Team Leader. Some personality types find the characterics that make a team leader good to be out of their comfort zone. Even after being exposed to techniques and coaching they can not intergrate the leadership qualities that inspire a team. I do believe that everyone can make a good team member if you match their skills to the issue at hand.
I don't believe just anyone can be trained to be a team leader. They need a variety of qualities which would include interest, drive, positive-team oriented personality, supportive of the organization and enthusiastic about its goals as well as the desire to help others grow, not just looking for their own accolades. A good team leader looks for benefit for all involved-the members, the project, the organization. I do believe that it does take training and mentoring to create a team leader. they are not born 'knowing'how to do it well. In my career we have had hits and misses with leaders due to the desire to grow them from within so they understand and embrace the philosophy of the company. However, being a small company sometimes that has ended up in choosing people by seniority rather than skill at effective leadership and organization. When that has happened and the skill and enthusiasm is not there it often bombs. Due to good leadership our organization has embarked on really focusing on providing more opportunities for leadership and communication training and it has improved our success with leadership roles.
I do not believe that to be true. We are all given individual talents and gifts, but that does not make us all leaders. There are some that no matter how much training they receive can effectively lead a team to a goal.
I feel that there are distinct attributes that make an individual likely to be a good team leader, just as there are attributes associated with successful managers/directors. A good team leader not only has the ability to inspire and motivate, but needs to have good facilitation skills and the capacity to oversight and manage aspects of team progress.
No. There are qualities and experiences associated with a team leader that make a difference in the success of the leader and the success of the team.
Betty,
Can you be more specific? What qualities and experiences would make a difference?
Ron Obstfeld
