LEADERSHIP EFFECTIVENESS : SELF-ASSESSMENT TOOL FOR INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
Introduction
This tool is a guide to enable you, as a leader/manager reflect on your overall effectiveness. It will provide you with some pointers for further exploration. It is not a
validated psychometric instrument, but is a tool to help you consider the application of the 4 P’S Leadership Model to your own leadership / management practice and
the wider practice in your team.
Insight through feedback
To improve your effectiveness as a leader you need to have, first of all, a realistic understanding of your own effectiveness. This involves two basic sources of
feedback:

Critical self-reflection that’s balanced – not too hard on yourself and not the ‘rose-tinted glasses’ version either.

Feedback from others – direct reports tend to give you the most accurate feedback, but you peers, line manager, clients, users, suppliers and other stakeholders
can all contribute too, depending on the sort of role you have.
Some of this feedback may come from formal processes such as 360 (multi-rater) feedback, performance review, development opportunities (e.g. coaching) and
selection / assessment feedback. The most helpful form of feedback, however, is informal - getting it ‘live’ - right at the time you’ve made a contribution. Feedback
should follow the thread of your intention (what you were hoping to achieve) - your behaviour (how you went about it) - and your impact (what you actually
achieved) - ‘how did I come across?’ ‘what worked well and why?’ Feedback needs to focus on your behaviour (positive and negative) rather than your value (worth)
e.g. “You kept pursuing issues of detail [the behaviour] at the meeting so we couldn’t focus on agreeing the overall strategic direction” helps you understand what
you did and the impact it had. If the feedback had been “You seem to have difficulty discussing strategy” that attacks your worth and leaves you wondering ‘What
does that mean?’ and ‘what did I actually do?’.
Healthy organisations have a culture that encourages this sort of feedback to reinforce what is working well and why and ‘nips issues in the bud’. Evidence suggests
that this is not commonplace - it can seem threatening. Good leaders, however, see it as an opportunity - a way to learn, improve and make a more effective
contribution and achieve more satisfaction.
This tool needs you to use both you own critical self-reflection and feedback from others (formal and informal), and starts with testing out if you need to get more
feedback from others to inform your self-assessment.
1. FEEDBACK FROM OTHERS
Step 1 : Formal : In the last 4 months have you had meaningful feedback through:
360
YES / NO
Performance Review YES / NO
Selection process YES / NO
Development process YES / NO
Step 2 : Informal : In the past 2 weeks:
times
How many times did you actively seek out and receive honest feedback on your behaviour and impact?
How many times did others actively seek you out and give you honest feedback on your behaviour and impact?
times
Step 3 : Review - there is no magic formula here but if, on reviewing the above questions, you have had little recent formal and informal feedback, you would be advised to
seek this out (preferably informally) over the next few weeks and then come back to this self-assessment. Alternatively, you could complete this self-assessment and then
show it to others (especially your team i.e. direct reports) and ask for their honest perceptions / insights on your self - assessment.
2. YOUR LEADERSHIP PRACTICE
Step 4 : Using your feedback, make an honest assessment of your leadership practice (i.e. the reality of your impact – not your intent).
Creating Purpose…
Never
1. I ask for truth and face facts
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
Never
All the
time
0
2. I understand the context – I read people and
the dynamics accurately
0
1
2
3
4
5
0
Never
3. I create disequilibrium and space to
4. innovate I build alignments and ‘we think’ –
but encourage constructive dissent
0
1
2
3
4
5
Never
1
2
3
4
5
Never
0
1
2
3
4
5
Never
0
6
All the
time
6
All the
time
0
6. I manage paradoxes collaboratively
6
All the
time
0
5. I integrate perspectives and articulate a
compelling shared sense of purpose
6
All the
time
0
0
6
1
2
3
4
0
TOTAL for ‘Creating Purpose’
5
6
Developing People…
Never
1. I develop capacity through exploring new
thinking, and creating wider/deeper
leadership
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
0
Never
2. I search out and develop talent in teams. the
organisation and wider systems
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
0
Never
3. I deploy talent to match priorities (across
partners)
0
1
2
3
4
5
Managing Process…
Never
0
6
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
6
TOTAL for ‘Developing People’
0
Never
1. I make sure all our processes add value to
our / our partners’ performance – and end
those that don’t
6
All the
time
0
4. I develop a culture of thinking, reflecting and
learning together and improving (and not
just doing)
6
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
0
Never
0
6
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
6
2. I let go of power and empower others
0
Never
3. I balance governance and taking risks…
control and flexibility
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
0
Never
4. I resolve uncertainties, giving others clarity
on task and priorities
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
0
Never
5. I find the de-motivators and get them fixed
0
6
6
All the
time
1
2
3
4
0
TOTAL for ‘Managing Process’
5
6
Delivering Performance…
Never
1. I focus on outcomes – constantly seeing
beyond the immediate delivery targets
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
6
0
Never
2. I adopt sustainable approaches to delivery
rather than a ‘quick fix’
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
6
0
Never
3. I account for delivery of my own and my
team’s performance
0
0
All the
time
1
2
3
4
5
6
TOTAL for ‘Delivering Performance’
Step 5 : Review your leadership practice
Using your totals for PURPOSE and PROCESS
mark with an ‘X’ the spot where these scores meet:
Using your totals for PEOPLE and PERFORMANCE
mark with an ‘X’ the spot where these scores meet:
36
P
U
R
P
O
S
E
24
P
E
O
P
L
E
18
0
12
0
0
15
PROCESS
30
0
9
PERFORMANCE
18
Interpretation:
Purpose and Process:
High
You are likely to be more
effective in leading than
managing
P
U
R
P
O
S
E
You need to either develop your
leadership and management
practices or you use your other
strengths in other areas
People and Performance:
You are likely to be
effective in leading and
managing
High
[Very high ‘purpose’ and ‘process’
is uncommon, so re-do your selfassessment through the eyes of
someone you have a difficult
relationship with!]
P
E
O
P
L
E
You are likely to be more
effective in managing
than leading
Low
You are likely to be more
You are likely to be
focused on ‘people’ than balanced in your focus on
‘task’
‘task’ and ‘people’
You need to develop your
ability to deliver performance
through people – or find a role
that lets you use your strengths
You are likely to be more
focused on ‘task’ than
‘people’
Low
Low
High
PROCESS
Low
High
PERFORMANCE
This is not a precise science e.g. ‘leadership’ is not a substitute for ‘Purpose’ – establishing purpose requires management capabilities too (and vice versa for ‘Process’). It
does, however provide some pointers in relation to where you consider you make most impact.
Step 6: Reflection and Further Investigation
What are your reflections from this?
What further feedback do you need to help you understand your practice more clearly?
How can you play more to your strengths?
How can others support you where you or weaker / what do you need to develop?
3. YOUR PERSONAL RESOURCES
As indicated in Appendix 1 of the 4 P’S Model, there is a wide range of :

Behaviours

Mental models

Skills

Knowledge
that you need to draw on as you practice. Context is critical and so this generic model is not the place to provide lists of these resources. Many sectors and organisations
have this information in place – you will need to access it.
Some of the behaviours and mental models were shown as dualisms in Appendix 1 of the 4 P’S Leadership Model – whereby certain situations need a particular approach but
a very different situation needs a different approach. A manager / leader need to judge what the most effective behaviour is going to be – in this situation – taking account of
‘followers’ preferences, the task to be done and the wider context. Here is a brief example:
Situation: Service quality is less than optimal and a significant complaint about quality has been upheld recently. Should the leader/manager behave in a way which controls
or in a way which gives freedom to the followers to determine what needs to be done?
3
CONTROL
(‘Tight’)
FREEDOM
‘Loose’
Leader’s preferred behavioural style
1
Followers’ preferred behaviour of leader
Task requirements
Context requirements
2
There are 3 key issues:
1
The bandwidth of the most
effective behaviour in the
situation
Understanding and developing your own bandwidth across different spectrums of behaviours / mental models
2
Judging the most effective behaviour /mental model to use in any given situation
3
Understanding what this behaviour looks like – this comes through experience and specific feedback from others
Step 7 : Behaviours and Mental Models – your bandwidth
Identify (from Appendix 1 of the 4 P’S Leadership Model) and your own organisations key leadership behaviours, what the key dualisms are in your context, and then mark
your own ‘bandwidth’ to reflect your preferred behaviours:
Behaviours – dualisms:
E.g. Control
Mental models – dualisms:
Freedom
E.g. Rational
Emergent
Step 8 : Reflections on your behaviours / mental models
What areas do you need to develop / use a wider range of behaviours and mental models?
What are your reflections on how well you judge using the most appropriate behaviour / mental model in the context? (Think of 3-4 recent experiences (+ve and –ve!) to help
you assess your effectiveness in different situations.)
Step 9 : Knowledge and Skills
Using your organisation’s / sector’s Framework of key leadership and management knowledge and skills (or if this doesn’t exist – use the broad areas in Appendix 1 of the 4 P’S
Leadership Model to guide), identify you 6 key strengths and 6 key development areas:
Strengths:
Development Areas:
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
5
5
6.
6.
Step 10 : Personal Resources – Summary
What are your key actions to become more ‘resourceful’ and use your personal resources to greater effect?
3. YOUR QUALITIES
Step 11 : Rank your qualities as a leader (1 to 8 in left-hand column):
Insight - to see what is right (and what is wrong)
Courage - to create new approaches and do what must be done
Awareness – to recognise personal and others’ values, qualities, intelligence (intellect, emotional, social), personal resources and experience
Relational – to involve, support, develop and learn from others
Wisdom - to choose the most effective course of action and deploy the most effective personal resources in the context
Passion to give your best and demand it of others
Resilience - to stay focused on the results
Discipline - to follow through and learn
What does this tell you?
How does this have an impact on your leadership /management practice?
4. YOUR VALUES
Step 12 : Review your values as a leader:






Personal sense of purpose and responsibility
Ethics - do the right thing
Serving others in place of self
Caring for the whole person
Integrity - to seek out and tell the truth
Authenticity - to be and do what you say
Are there other values you view as important as a leader?
Which do you find most difficult to be consistent on?
What gets in the way of living by the values you hold?
What can you do to act according to these values more consistently?
5. STEP 13 : SUMMARY
What 3 things have struck you most in reviewing your own leadership effectiveness?
1
What 3 things you are going to do as a result of this self-assessment?
1
2
2
3
3