diversity and variety not only in technical respects, but also in terms of
personalities. If you are alike, you cannot complement each other.
Clearly defining the task and setting rules: a team leader must not only set targets
and deadlines, but also define the rules of the game. Who will be informed when?
When is what decision made and how? Good teams begin their work by defining
these rules. Members will need a space where they can discover that open conflicts
are not deadly and that it is much better to deal with them creatively and passion-
ately, instead of through intrigue and “underground.” Only if every team member
knows that the joint effort is beneficial not only for the business but also for their
own development, will they really get involved.
A good team leader: in many companies teams fail because they lack a leader. One
of the myths of management says that teamwork and leadership are opposites.
Effective teams need clear leadership, a person who sets the direction and the
framework and who takes responsibility. The task of a good team leader is to
manage the moods of the group members, to control and use them, without letting
go. The building of teams and working groups is not a license to lead in a laissez-
faire style – just the opposite is true.
Managers can only form a working group into a powerful team if they manage to
heed these three success factors, link the task to the personal development of the
team members and simultaneously create an emotional and inspirational social
atmosphere. “Power teams” are characterized by an open and authentic relation-
ship, which involves considerable controversy and regular feedback. Conflicts are
not swept under the carpet, but are the point of departure for further improvements
in the interest of finding the best solution.
4.3 Can Good Leadership Be Measured?
In calm seas, the ship and its outstanding engineering are praised; but when a storm
develops, all eyes turn to the captain in the hopes of receiving instructions and
signals. Leadership is never unimportant, but in times of crisis there is a growing
awareness of its importance. Yet the newly awakened interest in the “leadership
factor” is anything but blind worship.
At the same time, in recent years companies have become increasingly interested
in being able to estimate the value of their own “human capital” and to measure it
more accurately. Management is only one of many components. Initiatives such as
the Human Capital Club (seewww.human-capital-club.de) or approaches such as
the Balanced Scorecard (Kaplan and Norton 1996) reflect this interest (Fig.4.4).
Combining these two trends, the question is whether good leadership can be
measured – and if so, how? Purists would say that good leadership is a prerequisite
and is always measured by the results. However, it is impossible to clearly link good
results to a single cause. So – is good leadership measurable? In closing this work,
I would like to pose this question, and to answer it – within certain limits.
4.3 Can Good Leadership Be Measured? 233