Directors Need Leadership Awareness

Hello, I’m Peter Towers, Managing Director of ESS Small Business and ESS BIZTOOLS.  Welcome to Empowering SMEs.

Directors/committee members need an understanding of the strategic planning process that will assist the development of their company/organisation.  Few directors are able to make the journey from an SME company director to chairman of a listed public company.

We invited Andrew Geddes, the inaugural chairman of Greencross Limited, a veterinary group that was listed in 2005 and is now in the Top 200 ASX companies, to identify the key items to be considered in understanding how the strategic planning process is a key component of the leadership awareness required by directors/committee members for any type of company/organisation.  The key items, identified by Andrew Geddes, for directors/committee members to have an awareness of relating to strategic planning/leadership were:

• Business vision and development direction:
  • revenue, profit, cashflow
  • services, products and clients
  • team and technology
  • governance and leadership

• Keys to excellent business leadership:
  • direction
  • purpose
  • focus
  • culture
  • strategies
  • governance

• Business purpose:
  • What does your company/organisation do?
  • What do you do to enhance the strategic planning process and leadership within the company/organisation?

• Business focus:
  • what outcomes are desired by:
    • shareholders/members
    • directors/committee members
    • team
    • clients/customers/patients

• Business strategic initiatives:
  • projects
  • reporting each quarter/half year?

• Business governance:
  • What pattern of meetings will drive communication and action implementation within your company/organisation?
  • Annual Strategic Review?
  • Board Meetings – Monthly/Quarterly?
  • Monthly Operational Meetings?
  • Weekly Project Meetings?
  • Weekly Job Review Meetings?
  • Weekly Sales Meetings?
  • Daily 10 minutes stand up with direct reports?