WHY YOUR BIZ NEEDS VISIONARY LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

Category: SME toolkit Published on Saturday, 09 July 2011 01:00 Written by with Bridget Olotu Hits: 981

When we talk about visionary leadership, what readily comes to mind is charisma or what I call “Personal Charm.” But that is far from what I have in mind.

My argument for SME owners is, to succeed in the competitive marketplace today and survive the sultry business atmosphere, SME owners/managers cannot afford a slip in leadership. So I argue that even if you don’t have charisma as a person, become inspirational! Be a role model for those that work with/for you. Earn the respect of your competitors. Command the reverence and loyalty of your customers. Earn the support of the community where your business is located. This, in a brief, is what I mean by visionary leadership.

When we talk about business leaders whose visionary insights have remained a guiding post for standard business practices in the global business community today, names like Bill Gates, Richard Branson, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, Dr. Mike Adenuga, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Mrs. Ibukun Awosika, the GT Bank czars, and many others I can’t mention here come to mind. And the question is, can SMEs develop visionary leadership? The answer is yes. And in fact, SMEs cannot afford to be weak in leadership if they intend remaining competitive and relevant.

THE NEED FOR VISIONARY LEADERSHIP FOR SMES

1. Business today is becoming increasingly competitive.

2. Business education is becoming cheaper and more accessible, thus raising the bar for existing and intending businesses.

3. The need for survival will force SME leaderships to be visionary, purposeful, committed and dogged.

4. The business community now wears a global posturing, forcing small businesses to either conform or liquidate.

5. Visionary leadership keeps small businesses focused for specific niche markets.

WHAT IS VISIONARY LEADERSHIP?

Visionary leadership is that leadership that is pregnant with a certain picture of the future and is guided by the demands of that picture. Put differently, it is a leadership that is not stopped by the constraints of the present but has developed a picture of a desired future and structures its business operations to capture and be guided by that picture. Such leaders are not moved by the economic meltdown, are not deterred by bad economic news wafting in the air or the lack of infrastructure; they are committed to plans, procedures and methodologies on how to survive in hostile business environments like we have in Nigeria. They don’t take a “no” for an answer. They are self-motivated to believe that where there’s a will, there’s a way.

Take for instance, a visionary leadership does not play with ideas because ideas rule the world. Hugo Victor puts it well, “No army in the world can stop an idea whose time has come.” These entrepreneurs have a cache of ideas that guides their business operations. When they are in a meeting discussing and everyone is saying “no, no, it can’t be done,” they, the entrepreneurs, are just looking out for that lone voice and soul that would say it can be done. For them, impossibility only exists in the dictionary of fools.

HOW CAN SMES DEVELOP VISIONARY LEADERSHIP QUALITIES?

1. Believe in yourself. The business entity will survive in an atmosphere where the owners/managers believe they cannot fail, come what may.

2. Invest in yourself. Whatever business you’re into, aim for the top. And to get to the top, be willing to pay the price nobody else has paid.

3. Be committed to a lifestyle of learning. Read all you can read. Buy books. Be tutored. Learn how things are done easier, better and smarter.

4. Consult with professionals but take your own decision and stand by it.

5. Work with the best hands available and that are affordable for your business. Work with the best brains, hands, hearts and minds. Sometimes, these people might earn more than you earn just for you to be able to keep them in your employ until the business grows.

6. Be competitive. Learn how your competitors do it and improve on their methodology.

Never believe that visionary leaders are born; essentially and matter-of-factly, they are made.