Do Consensus and Leadership Mix?

8 July 2015 Read by 2797 persons

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 Margaret Thatcher, former British Prime Minister, commonly known as the Iron Lady, once said that "consensus is the absence of leadership". Business leaders who actively seek consensus waste too much time in unnecessary analysis and fall into the trap of "clever" employees who believe that delaying consensus will delay the inevitable and hinder a decision that harms their personal interests or those of their business unit. So how to solve this?

1- By developing self-confidence
A good leader must feel confident enough to lead the debate, while being ready to act without consensus, so as not to slow down important decision-making for competitiveness. Being able, whether you are managing a small team or a large company, to act and take responsibility without having reached a consensus.
That's leadership! By leading and not "managing" their teams There comes a time when it is necessary to close the debate, make a decision, and where the manager must lead his team or company towards a common goal. This way of acting makes all the difference between leading one's group, team or company and simply managing it, which is easy when there are no obstacles.

2- By assuming the consequences of their decisions
Here, the difficulty of the leader's role takes on its full meaning. A good leader must be able to make the decisions that he deems good for his company and to assume all the consequences if these decisions are not unanimous. It is obvious that the search for consensus should be recommended, but it should not become the priority.
Consensus should be considered more as a result, and leadership in a company is more a matter of trust and good results than a matter of popularity. When trying to reach a consensus as a team, always listen to everyone's opinions, but don't let personal motivations harm the company's interests. As a leader, have the confidence to act without consensus if necessary, and be prepared to accept the consequences of your decisions.

Philippe Montant  CEO ExeKutive.biz