One of the biggest problems that can bring an entire company down, rather quickly, is poor leadership skills. Poor management leads to low morale, lower production and confusion on the part of workers throughout the entire operation.

The issue is so prevalent that when Gallup polled companies it revealed that corporations initially place the wrong person as leadership 82% of the time. Additional Gallup information indicates that great leadership is rare with only 1 in 10 people possessing the necessary skills for top management.

These discouraging figures seem to demonstrate that good leadership may be an uphill battle and you’re just going to have to settle for mediocre, at best.

Not necessarily.

Education

Great leadership is a personality trait and not always a matter of education level. While education may help develop the leadership skills that are already present in a person, it rarely cultivates these traits by itself. In most cases, either a person has an ability to lead or they don’t.

Leadership Traits

What does it take to be a great leader and what traits should you be looking for? Don’t let the rarity of great leadership discourage you into thinking that finding a person with the right traits will be nearly impossible. There are certain personality traits that will help you sift the followers from the leaders.

  • Confident-not arrogant
  • Decisive
  • Ability to think on their feet
  • Speaks with clarity
  • Problem solver
  • Innovative

It’s plain to see that almost every one of these traits are more a matter of personality and given that, you can understand why recruiting a person who possesses all six would be relatively rare. That is why when an Elon Musk comes along they quickly become a household name out of the hundreds of top CEOs out there today.

Good people are out there if you work closely with an executive recruiter who will take the time seeking out the right person with the passion and skills that will help lead your company forward.

Are you looking for top talent in the Specialty Chemical, Plastics, or Animal Health industry?

Contact us to discuss how we can bring top leadership talent to your team. Boaz Partners is a premier executive search firm focused on the direct recruitment of executives and professionals for the specialty chemicals and plastics space. We are your partner, and our focus is on custom recruiting solutions.