Charting Progress: Self-Assessment to Improve Leadership Effectiveness

It is axiomatic that a key to leadership effectiveness is self-understanding.  Longitudinal self-assessment is a critical component of the leadership development and career-mapping model of the GNLA program.  Using the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI), a 30 item evidence-based, validated instrument based upon the five leadership practices of Kouzes and Posner, 26 Fellows in two cohorts completed the LPI at 0, 10, and 18 months.  Results were used for coaching by mentor and faculty consultant.  Aggregate results over time revealed a quadratic trend, with initial decline attributed to enhanced self-awareness and subsequent increase correlated with qualitative indicators of leadership effectiveness.  Initial group strengths were in the area of vision (e.g., "speak with conviction about meaning and purpose of work"), while the weakest areas in feedback to self and others (e.g., "find ways to celebrate accomplishments", "ask for feedback on how my actions affect other's performance") consistently improved over time.