Intentional Leadership
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What is Intentional Leadership?
Upon first glance, defining intentional leadership seems easy. It’s someone who has a clear purpose in mind who builds the resource and capacity to bring it into fruition. In its purest form, true intentional leadership is actually invisible because the leader’s agenda is carried out not only by them, but by a host of people they have effectively and nurturingly led.” [1]
People are Important!
When fulfilling that “purpose” involves others, those people become a part of that “resource and capacity” of the business. However, that business cannot thrive unless those ‘human resources’ do. The people who actually do the work within the business are very important, and necessary to fulfill the mission of the organization. However, to achieve the results that matter to the business, the organization must first nurture and/or prepare the workforce to do so.
Leadership Responsibility
Intentional leadership requires business leaders to have responsibly developed and prepared the good people who work within the business to efficiently execute the work that is required of the business to succeed. That ‘standard work’ should also have been carefully developed to be efficiently effective in creating the results that are required for the business to profitably succeed.
1) Establish the standard work.
2) Prepare the workforce to execute that work, as planned.
Leadership Accountability
Intentional leadership additionally requires business leaders to be accountable, by routinely verifying that the business is actually achieving the results that are required for the business to succeed and to take action to address any results that otherwise fall short of the required results.
3) Verify the outcome of the work.
4) Improve any systemic constraint(s) that prohibit good and hardworking people from achieving the results that matter to the business.
Intentional leadership requires a mindset of flexibility and growth. “In order to be intentional, you must be willing to learn, unlearn, and re-learn.” [2]
Predictive Quality Management (PQM) is a strategic framework that enables and supports leaders to become intentional in their leadership journey.
[1] David O’Connor (29 August 2023), self-published article: “Leaders who are truly intentional tend to be invisible. Here’s how to recognize it.”; https://commonpurpose.org/resources/blog/what-is-intentional-leadership.
[2] ibid
