Defining Impact Leadership
These theoretical and practical resources in this section will help you understand what leadership as a general concept, to explore the specific demands of impact leadership and to explore different models of leadership style.
Theory
Whilst leadership and management are distinct activities, they also overlap. Explore the differences and similarities in this article:
READ Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2013/08/tests-of-a-leadership-transiti#:~:text=Management%20consists%20of%20controlling%20a,managers%2C%20not%20power%20and%20control
WATCH Big Think: https://www.businessballs.com/leadership-styles/mistaking-leadership-for-management/
TASK: To what extent do you think you are an impact leader or impact manager? How much time do you spend engaged in each of these activities?
Impact leadership is a term that covers a range of different roles, including monitoring, evaluation, and impact measurement activities. Take a look at some of the job descriptions below:
READ: https://www.smartrecruiters.com/SocialImpact/84322163-impact-evaluation
TASK: Compare your job description to these – where are the similarities and differences? What are the common areas of responsibilities and what skills will you need to deliver them?
There are many different leadership styles and leaders all need to be able to flex between them to meet the needs of the people they are supporting and to achieve their strategic goals. Take a look at these two models of leadership styles and see which one resonates with you the most.
SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP: WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pykuvuA-QFU
EMOTIONALLY INTELLIGENT LEADERSHIP: WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-7mTpkM6PE
TASK: how skilled are you at flexing your leadership style in these ways? Which leadership styles do you prefer and which do you avoid? What impact might that have for you?
And here is a reassuring resource that supports us to think of leadership as a flow of small acts that together can achieve great things – rather than thinking of leadership as one single heroic enterprise.
LISTEN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoO2zaF3ZT4
TASK: What small acts of leadership do you engage in yesterday? What could you do tomorrow to edge impact evaluation forward in your organization?
Tools and tips
This free downloadable handbook gives you tips to develop situational leadership styles when working remotely:
DOWNLOAD: https://situational.com/articles/remote-manager-handbook/
TASK: Assess the people you work with most regularly and the situation do you find yourself managing the most. Do you have the skills to manage in this style? How could you develop those people so they needed less support from you?
This website is full of tips on how to develop each aspect of emotionally intelligent leadership:
READ: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_45.htm
TASK: Which tip stood out for you? Why do you think that is? When can you use it in practice? What do you hope it will help you achieve?
This website is full of diagnostics, tools, activities and other resources to support you and your colleagues emotional intelligence:
EXPLORE: https://positivepsychology.com/emotional-intelligence-exercises/
TASK: Select one tool or activity from this website and plan how to use it with your team to increase their awareness and capacity to be emotionally intelligent.
The NHS Leadership Academy has a leadership self-assessment tool which might be a useful reflective tool for you.
This focuses on different areas of leadership activity rather than on leadership style, but will provide you with plenty of food for thought. It is very applicable to youth provision contexts.
TRY OUT: https://www.leadershipacademy.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/NHSLeadership-Framework-LeadershipFrameworkSelfAssessmentTool.pdf
TASK: Where were your areas of strength, and how could you leverage them further? Where were your areas of weakness and what could you do to develop them?