How Can You Find the Hidden Leaders in Your Organisation?

Leadership skills training is an important part of preparing future company leaders for the role, but how do you identify who those leaders are? Sometimes an employee's leadership qualities are obvious, but that's not always the case.

Defining the Hidden Leader

According to Scott Edinger and Laurie Sain, authors of The Hidden Leader: Discover and Develop Greatness within your Company, hidden leaders are people who believe that their actions contribute to the company's success. A simple definition that speaks volumes, because people who believe in the importance of what they do tend to be highly motivated. By this definition, the leaders in your organisation aren't always who you think they are: it might be the customer service representative who goes above and beyond to solve problems, or the personal assistant with a talent for preventing problems even before they arise.

In most organisations, selecting candidates for the leadership track tends to result in promoting those candidates who are the most outspoken or the most adept at self-promotion, but aren't necessarily the best leadership candidates. Hidden leaders, however, are often less inclined to promote themselves and their talents.

Identifying your Hidden Leaders

So how can you identify these people? According to The Hidden Leader, there are four key traits to look out for. Hidden leaders are people who:

• Demonstrate personal integrity by consistently speaking and behaving according to a strong code of ethical conduct regardless of with whom they are interacting. Their inclination towards consistently ethical behaviour makes them reliable and trustworthy.
• Lead through their relationships with others, because they consistently act in ways that inspire respect and trust, rather than using their position to influence people.
• Are results-oriented, independent workers who can take initiative and work outside the box to complete a task.
• Are also customer-oriented, with an awareness of how an organisation's actions and promises influence customers’ buying decisions.

Hidden leaders are highly effective employees, and given the chance, can make significant positive impact within an organisation. Being able to identify the hidden leaders, to develop and nurture their talents, can help them and the company flourish.

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