The Roles of a Leader

The roles of a leader are many. A leader is not bound to one role. A leader must adapt to any need and circumstances, and the circumstances are always different. The BCG Henderson Institute has outlined eight approaches called the “strategy collage.†

1. Diagnostician – The role of the diagnostician approach is to continuously take an external viewpoint to ascertain the right level of predictability, malleability, and harshness of the environment. Consequently, implementing a sound strategic system.
2. Segmenter – Segmenting implements a strategic approach to match the given circumstances at the proper level of granularity, balancing the trade-off between precision and granularity. 
3. Disruptor – Disrupting reviews the diagnosis and circumstances ongoing, in line with shifts in the environment and protecting itself in the future from becoming too rigid and changing its approach when necessary. 
4. Team coach – Team coaching selects the right people to manage each aspect of the job in line with their capabilities, helping them develop their understanding of the strategy, both intellectually and in practice. 
5. Salesperson – This role advocates and communicates strategic choices to investors and followers in a clear and coherent narrative. Communicating vision, needs, and wants. 
6. Inquisitor – The inquisitor approach sets and retunes the correct context for each strategy through questioning and probing – not dictating answers – to aid in the flow of critical thought, which is adequate for the given circumstances. 
7. Antenna – The antenna approach continuously looks outward and amplifies signals to ensure that each unit stays in tune with the changing external environment. 
8. Accelerator – This final role puts weight behind select critical initiatives to bolder this implementation. Significantly when the integral approach has changed, shifts, or becomes unfamiliar. The accelerator lends support and resources to ensure follow-through. 

These roles require constant energy to function and good leaders know how to maintain their power and motivation. Each role has a level of knowledge and mastery that can only be obtained through practice. Leadership roles are skills and can be mastered as with any skill. Leadership has many elements and represents many things to many people. 

Made up of numerous elements, styles, and approaches, leadership skills can be developed to suit one’s character, and there is no single perfect leadership style. After assessing the desire to become a leader, each person must decide how they want to lead, picking and choosing from the various types and skills discussed that feel comfortable and natural to them.

References

Advanced Controller and CFO Skills: Leadership Styles; Change Management. e-book, Durham, NC, Association of International Certified Public Accountants, 2021.