CLF LE 5 - Resources

Welcome to this CLF PD platform post on the importance of resources and how they contribute to effective leadership. The sections below will progressively immerse you deeper into the different areas and guide you to reflect on your current practice and any areas for development.

Introduction

R1- Make strategic use of resources

In order to be effective leaders must Make strategic use of resources. Financial management is a key skill and leaders need to have a working knowledge of budgetary techniques, financial documents, performance indicators and financial forecasting. Time management is another key skill for leaders and contributes to reductions in stress and improvements in efficiency. Leaders must learn to prioritise their actions and be able to focus intensely when required. Encompassing these skills is the ability to manage projects effectively and leaders need to take a systematic approach to steering projects through their respective life cycles.

R2- Analyse and minimise risk

Any innovation or change within an organisation carries with it some element of risk and failure and leaders therefore need to be able to Analyse and minimise that risk. Effective leaders are able to use recognised techniques such as SWOT and PESTLE analysis to identify risk and analyse it through forecasting and scenario thinking. The effective management of risk seeks to in turn minimise it and typically moves through the stages of identify, assess, evaluate, mitigate and monitor. Leaders must also become skilful at contingency planning in the event of exceptional risk.

R3- Exercise informed decision making

Managing resources effectively requires leaders to Exercise informed decision-making in order to generate optimal results. Successful decision-making is about selecting the best choice from the available alternatives and covers routine, non-routine, adaptive and innovation decisions. Effective leaders base their decisions on reasoning that flows from the incorporation of all available data and additional perspectives. These leaders seek first to understand the purpose, evaluate alternatives and then make a decisive choice.

Key Takeaways

Leaders must have a working knowledge of a range of financial concepts and processes that supplement in-house financial expertise.
Leaders must be able to manage their time effectively by planning, prioritising and generating focus when required.
Leaders must systematically steer projects through their respective life cycles, ensuring that barriers are avoided and tools fully utilised.
Risk is inevitable during change or innovation but effective leaders successfully employ strategies and tools to manage it.
Effective decision-making is the systematic process of selecting the best choice from the available alternatives. Leaders must base their decisions on data and reasoning.

Reflective Questions