INTENTIONAL LEADERS are equipped for and comfortable navigating themselves and their enterprises in today’s accelerated, technology enabled complex and sometimes hostile context.

‘Good’ leaders achieve impact, have high followership, successfully navigate challenges, and seize opportunities. These leaders are intentional in what they do and how they act. They are distinguished from ‘the rest’ by having mastered four disciplines (Aspire, Ally, Adapt, Accelerate), in addition to the ‘ever-green’ fundamentals of leadership. 

"If I were asked to define leadership, I should say it is the 'projection of personality'. It is the most intensely personal thing in the world because it is just plain you."
— Field Marshall Viscount Slim

• Aspire: Being firmly anchored on self-understanding, motivated by a sense of purpose and courageously standing on values.  Able to make decisions whilst aware that they ‘can’t please everyone on everything all the time’ and criticism may well be disproportionately intense.  ‘Aspire’ is about having personal conviction and values, while ‘inspire’ is about motivating and influencing others. If you don’t aspire, how will you inspire others?

"Leadership is like a person walking across a tightrope – balancing carefully in a blizzard of factors that are constantly buffeting them. The key is the bar they hold–which is labelled ‘values’. They must be obvious, authentic, clear, and prepared to be held to account – then, perhaps you can lead successfully."
- Oliver L., CEO of UK based Not-for-Profit

"Leaders who are confident in themselves are more comfortable allowing themselves to be challenged and, therefore, freer to let their thinking evolve"
- Colin M. SVP Asia, Europe, MEA of Global Tech Co.

• Ally: With a mindset and behaviours that enable them to connect and collaborate widely whilst helping others to thrive. Enhancing followership through the experiences that they provide for others. Leaving a positive impact that endures beyond the tenure of their direct collaboration. Alliances involve cooperative collaboration between independent entities for mutual benefit, while a hierarchy denotes an authority-based structure where one entity holds a position of higher power or control over another. If ‘Leadership is lonely’, you’re doing it wrong.

"As a leader, you must realise that everyone’s view of the world is inherently biased – be big enough to say, ‘These guys have a worldview that is legitimate for them – and I need to understand them – and then work out how I adapt: how I interact with them'"
- Patrick C. Managing Director, Europe. Digital Talent Marketplace

"We have to have the mindset that we are all equal, but we are each playing different roles at this point in time, in this particular setting.... and these roles and relationships will be forever shifting"
​Sian B. Country Manager, Global Bank

• Adapt: Working ‘on’ rather than only ‘in’ the enterprise. Navigating the unfolding, unknown future; able to update vision and revisit decisions whilst continuing to inspire and motivate a broad array of direct and indirect stakeholders. ‘Adaptable’ emphasises the capacity to adjust and change as needed, even if the adjustments are substantial, while ‘agile’ places more emphasis on speed, flexibility, and the ability to navigate change through iterative processes.

"The world that was – for which we were schooled – is no longer here. Leaders need to rethink risk. All decisions have risks; moving too slowly and cautiously is perhaps a greater risk than a wrong decision. We must embrace and understand that risk is required, we must be being adaptive, agile, responsive, and resilient."
- Peter C. CEO, UK-based Professional Association

"Flow–create the sense of flow; how do we drive mobility and adaptability in the organisation? Companies that win are those that move fastest. Efficiency is a foundational requirement; it is not a differentiator any longer."
​- Nick H, CEO Global Nutrition-focused Company

• Accelerate: Time is short, and your energies are finite; learn faster. ‘Accelerate’ emphasises increasing the pace of progress, while ‘continuous’ communicates the need for ongoing, consistent development; both are important mindsets for leaders today. Always be learning and evolving to remain effective. Assemble a portfolio of stimuli, maintain an outlook of humble curiosity, and have the discipline and ambition of self-improvement.   

"There are two types of people – those waiting for the situation to end when ‘things will go back to normal’ vs those managing in the new reality; they are pushing to be better given the changes that have happened and are happening. This is the difference between managers and leaders."
- David H. Asia-Pacific Managing Partner, Executive Search 

"Let go – delegate to your team until you are uncomfortable – and then delegate some more. In doing so, they will rise to the opportunity. ‘Fail fast, fail early’. Trust your people."
​- Mark H. European Practice Lead, Management Consulting

Insight - Applied
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We provide tailored support to existing Individual Leaders, Executive Teams, and Boards, as well as development programmes for emergent talent.  

Our support is modular, enabling a focus on specific aspects or holistic coverage of the capabilities that most differentiate leadership performance and impact in the contemporary context.  

Contact us for a discussion of how we can support you. 

Intentional Leadership is explored in depth in the book "Antidote to the Crisis of Leadership", published in April 2024 by Degruyter. Which is available via Amazon and many other channels and retailers. The QR code displayed will take you to Amazon.