REFLECTIONS ON CHARACTER AND LEADERSHIP

THE NEW EUROPEAN BUSINESS LEADER 277

the diverse cultural and family backgrounds found in the member - states.
During my consulting, coaching, and executive education work with
thousands of European executives in various parts of Europe I found
that different aspects of leadership behavior are more or less important.
However, there are some universal elements that make for highly effec-
tive leadership. They include:

• taking time to listen to your subordinates and making their
  opinions count;


• caring about the people who work for you and being ready to help
  them when they have personal problems or doubts;


• setting a good example of what is expected of the people in the
  organization by ‘ walking the talk ’ ;


• creating stretch opportunities for staff and supporting their personal
  growth and development;


• encouraging employees by giving them praise and recognition when
  warranted;


• keeping people informed by creating transparent organizations;


• setting clear expectations by providing regular feedback;


• promoting a culture that helps your people obtain a feeling of
  collective identity, encouraging people to move from ‘ I ’ to ‘ we ’ ;


• making work meaningful for employees.

Leadership in Europe and beyond

Interestingly, a number of global companies have discovered that the
time spent in Europe by their senior international executives often
serves as the best possible preparation for taking on a global role. In
a signifi cant way, Europe represents challenges that are typical for
global businesses at large. Mastering leadership in Europe, therefore,
can be see as a nursery for any leader aspiring to global leadership
responsibility.
Leaders fulfi ll many different roles in their employees ’ imaginations.
They are catalysts of change, symbols, objects of identifi cation, and
scapegoats when things go wrong. The most effective leaders are those
who know how to balance action with refl ection by using self - insight
as a restraining force when the sirens of power are calling. Leaders who
keep their curiosity about other ways of doing things will be the best
equipped to retain their sanity in what can seem insane places, the
European Union being one of them.