FAQs

Q1. What exactly is leadership?

A: There are perhaps as many definitions of leadership as there are management theory books on Leadership. At Canning Professional, we find it more useful to ask the question: What do leaders do? Or, put slightly differently – What does someone need to do in order to be seen as a leader? We believe that leaders need to achieve the following four things: 1) A leader communicates the future state of things that we are all moving towards – the vision; 2) They also show how we are going to get there (strategy) and help navigate the choppy waters of reality to ensure that the whole enterprise stays on course (making the right decisions at the right time and communicating these in real time); 3) They ensure those who are following actually want to go there – that they are fully and personally engaged in the enterprise; and 4) They give those followers the tools and resources they need and entrust and empower them. The idea is that a leader needs to be continuously showing these four behavioral areas all the time.

Furthermore, leadership is not simply something that is found at the top of the organization: we believe that the successful company or enterprise requires leaders at every level.

Q2. Can you teach leadership?

A: No…! Leadership is not something that can be taught. What we do at Canning is enable people to become better leaders through exposure and experience – coupled with long-term learning and development. If all leaders have to show the bahaviours outlined in the answer above, the way that they actually undertake those behaviours (and what determines if they are ultimately successful or not) depends on two things: their underlying personality and preferred style; and the strategic context. At Canning, we enable individuals to understand themselves – their personality – so that they can learn, improve and maximize their habits and behaviours as shown to others – what we refer to as character. This requires leaders to “flex” into behaviours and habits, which might – at least initially – be difficult for them because of underlying personality traits. Self awareness and self management – two essential components of emotional intelligence – are crucial to this.

Q3. Are leaders born or made? Is it nature or nurture?

A: At Canning, we believe this to be a false dichotomy – and one that requires more subtle thinking. Whilst, of course, our personality, cognitive ability and talents are to an important degree influenced by our genetics, our early environment – particularly the first two decades – is also crucial. This interaction of nature and nurture is how humans develop. But early development is not destiny. We believe that, by understanding oneself, it is possible to learn, to develop and to adopt new behaviours, habits, skills and competencies. Furthermore, if a lot of leadership success is contextual, most people can show some leadership ability at some time in their lives. Our task at Canning is to take this raw material and to develop and burnish it so that an individual can reach their fullest possible potential.

Q4. How can Canning Professional help me become a better leader?

A: We create a long term partnership with both the individual (and cohorts of individuals) and the organization within which those individuals are capable of reaching and expressing their full potential. We ensure that there is alignment between the values, culture and vision of the organization and the personal values and ambitions of the individual. We then create a long term development process – based on the core tool of the Personal Development Plan (PDP) – that creates a roadmap for individuals to identify, plan and execute the optimal development track within the organizational context to ensure optimal success.