‘Tender on people, tough on results’ – the radical approach to leadership development your business growth plans are looking for?

Internationally renowned speaker, author, peacekeeper and coach Urs Koenig introduced us to the phrase in his first conversation with Phil Rose.

In his second round on the Sparks by Ignium Podcast, Urs uses stories and experiences to show what this principle looks like in real life and how you can embed it into your leadership development.

We learn about:

1. His secret to getting the ear of decision-makers within an organisation regardless of their position relative to you.
2. The element that’s even more important than strategy and flow charts in crisis management (here’s a hint: the work starts before the proverbial hits the fan).
3. Why the most effective leaders work to make themselves obsolete.
4. The best predictor for a team's performance (and it’s not the size of the team, its talents or its tenure) – and how to cultivate this.
5. How failures can strengthen a team and raise standards through the positive influence of vulnerability.
6. The three levels of listening and how to be more intentional.
7. How Urs chooses to give back to the world and how this fits in so well with his approach to leadership and radical humility.

Full of storytelling: from his peacekeeping missions to his life as a coach and father, this upbeat conversation is full of ‘pause and grab a notepad’ ideas for leadership development sure to inspire anyone.

We hope you enjoy the conversation as much as we did.

Texts mentioned:

Radical Humility – Be a Badass Leader and a Good Human – Urs Koenig.

Shackleton’s Way – Lessons in Leadership from the Great Antarctic Explorer – Stephanie Capparell and Margot Morrell.

JA Africa