Outline
This essay discusses brand leadership. The importance of brand leadership and how to develop brand leadership are mentioned in this essay. It also discusses the leading brand which I wish to develop in the future.
Introduction
Leadership is very good quality. A good leader has his leadership style. Like product brand leadership also can be branded. The success of a leader mainly depends on the leadership style he/she uses and how his followers accept the style. A person can develop a good leadership style by learning from the books, watching the circumstances, and from previous experiences.
Leadership Brand
A firm or product brand indicates its culture and quality. Brand name influences the market values of the organization and its products. This branding is possible in the case of leadership also. A leadership brand is a kind of organization brand. A branded leadership can be defined as the “outcome of both attributes and results explains some of the causes of ineffective leadership and the challenges faced by effective leaders.” (Ulrich, Smallwood & Zenger 2000).
A branded leadership needs leaders who have the ability to effectively possess attributes and successfully deliver the result. A branded leader should have a clear understanding of the outcome of the desired work. Such a leader knows where he and his followers give moiré attention and how to assign the resource in the market and what type of method to be used for the success of the product or service in the market and how to use the followers for the success of the desired goal. A branded leader should focus on four major areas. They are employee results, organization results, customer results, and financial results. Here the employee result simply means the depth of commitment and competency of the employee. Organization result means how much time the organization takes to launch a product, how much time they take to collect ideas about a particular product or service etc. Customer result means identifying the critical clients, understand their needs and fulfilling those needs, and finding the method to keep a good relationship with those customers. The financial result means revenue growth, and how to reduce the expenses in an effective way. It also includes ways to keep a good value of the product or services and the organization before the shareholders. (Ulrich, Smallwood & Zenger 2000).
Developing a leadership brand:
- Develop a case for the significance of leadership.
- Define what leadership is or what the theory of leadership is. This definition or theory should clearly mention the expectations of leadership based on different aspects like customer point of view and investor expectations.
- Evaluate the current situation of the leadership based on the customer’s point of view and other external viewpoints.
- Conduct various programs like training for developing leadership.
- Evaluate the efficiency of the leaders in different phases like the ability in meeting the strategy and the investments as a leader.
- Determine the status of the leadership by analyzing the internal and external stakeholders. (Developing your leadership brand 2007).
The above-mentioned points deal with developing an organizational leadership brand. A personal leadership brand “bridges the firm’s identity in the mind of that outside (customers and outsiders) with the behavior of its employees.” (Your leadership brand 2007).
I am sure that I have a leadership style. But that has some limitations. My age and personal experience are some reasons for that. In this age itself, I am collaborative and deliberate. But I have some weaknesses. Fro creating a leadership brand I will focus on some areas. For developing a leadership brand in the future I will take care of the following things.
Some key points for developing a personal leadership brand are given below.
- Identify what is the desired outcome in the next year:-For considering the interest a branded leader should consider the above-mentioned four areas that are employees, customers, organization, and financial are or investors. For developing a personal leadership brand one should identify the methods to improve the values for the customers. A leader should identify the ways to meet the expectations of the investors. Identify the needs of the employees and how to increases the productivity of the employees. A branded leader should try to execute the strategy of the organization.
- Decide how you would be like to be screened by others:- There are six descriptions to improve or indicate one in his or her personal leadership brand. They are: a leader should be collaborative, deliberate, independent, innovative, result-oriented, and strategic. (Five steps to building your personal leadership brand 2009).
- Set a personal identity: – To develop a leadership brand a person should create a good identity. Good identity includes the above-mentioned six descriptions in a combined form, that is, to develop a leadership brand one should be “independently innovative, deliberately collaborative and strategically result-oriented.” (Five steps to building your personal leadership brand 2009).
- Develop a leadership brand statement: – This brand statement is prepared based on the interest of the organization and the stakeholders. The responsibilities taken by the leader should be based on the need of the organization and a leader should live within or based on this brand statement. So a person who wishes to develop a leadership brand must conform to these things.
- Formulate the brand identity as a reality:-After creating the brand identity a leader should make it real through his leadership. For that a self-evaluation is essential. (Five steps to building your personal leadership brand 2009).
Conclusion
From the above discussion it is clear that as companies, brand leadership is also an important factor. A branded leader has the ability to understand and work based on the need of the customers and the stakeholders. Also, they can produce the outcome based on the strategy of the company or team or another thing which he/she leads. From the words of Anu Shukla, we can understand how a branded leader works or what is the qualification of a branded leader. According to her words, her style is “I am tenacious and optimistic, and like any good entrepreneur, I am fueled by the thrill of picking off the impossible and making it happen.” (You are your brand: defining a personal leadership style 2005).
Her words and leadership brand have influenced me very much. I wish to develop this kind of leadership brand for me.
References
Developing your leadership brand 2007, Business Week, Web.
Five steps to building your personal leadership brand: you have a personal leadership brand. But do you have the right one 2009, Aiim, Web.
Five steps to building your personal leadership brand: you have a personal leadership brand. But do you have the right one: define your identity, Aiim, Web.
Ulrich, Dave, Smallwood, Norm & Zenger, Jack 2000, Leadership brand: internal brand, Articles.
Ulrich, Dave, Smallwood, Norm & Zenger, Jack 2000, Leadership brand, Articles, Web.
Your leadership brand 2007, Leading Blog: Building a Community of Leaders.
You are your brand: defining a personal leadership style: brand you: does it change the way you work 2005, Knowledge Wharton.