How to Be an Extraordinary Leader

CIOs can take their leadership skills from good to great by focusing on what they do well—and doing it better.

Meet Mr. Average CIO. He is of average height, build and age. He is also, according to his recently completed 360-degree assessment, an average leader. Initially, Mr. Average was disappointed to hear his results. But over time, he became sanguine; after all, what’s the point of getting worked up over survey results that are confusing and don’t jibe with his strong job performance reviews?

Mr. Average’s situation is a common outcome of the 360-review process, in which an individual is evaluated by customers, peers, direct reports, his supervisor and himself. It should be no surprise that when you average the responses of 15 reviewers to 60 or so questions (each testing a different leadership competency), the mathematical process often leads to results that cluster around the norm.

To gain meaningful insights as to his specific leadership strengths and weaknesses, a CIO who has undergone a 360 review must objectively analyze hundreds of feedback points. So it’s easy to miss the forest for the trees.

by Susan Cramm

Full Story: http://www.cio.com/research/leadership/edit/ec090506_average.html?source=nlt_cioleader