The Ontario Broker - Volume 22, Issue 2 - 22

HOW DID YOU DEVELOP YOUR LEADERSHIP SKILLS?
SB: It has taken time and experience and continues to be a work
in progress. Failure, success, winning and losing-I've had my fair
share of each of these and have learned something every time.
I've also had the good fortune of observing traits of other great
leaders around me, including colleagues in my own organization,
competitors and mentors.
SK: I developed my leadership skills by practicing the three S's:
self-discipline, self-motivation and self-improvement. I believe
in continuous learning and improving myself every single day. I
choose to listen more than share and believe in a lead-by-exampleattitude.
I consistently read the stories of failure and hardship
amongst prominent leaders and takeaway the lessons, applying it
to my business, this makes one more aware, wise and teaches us
more than the success stories. I admitted my mistakes and worked
hard to improve on them. I developed effective communication
skills and improved my technical skills to match the changing trends
in the industry.
RJ: Developing the tools for success in a leadership role is a lifelong
process. I have been privileged to work with some of the industry's
most elite talents both within and outside our organization. One
simple rule has always remained consistent and most relevant-
learning is forever. One must look for every avenue to learn from
their peers, superiors and even junior associates to remain vigilant
in the pursuit of tomorrow. I would encourage all aspiring leaders
to continue their education. Organizations such as the IBAO
have made it even easier today to achieve success toward these
designations. There's so much information available to allow one to
achieve greater heights as an insurance professional.
WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ARE THE TOP ATTRIBUTES AND
SKILLS TO BE A SUCCESSFUL LEADER?
SB: Vision, communication and execution are the key attributes of
a successful leader. It's a leader's responsibility to see the entire
playing field, all the possible opportunities and threats, and pull
together a clear strategy to move the organization forward. Leaders
must then communicate that vision effectively, leading with clarity,
flexibility and inspiration. When the vision is understood, empower
your teams, remove obstacles and provide the tools and guidance
needed for effective execution.
SK: Top attributes of a great leader are prioritizing personal
development and focusing on developing your team. A compelling
vision and timely execution with full involvement of the team can
contribute a lot to success. A leader's ethical approach and utmost
professionalism must be two leading traits. In addition, innovation
and embracing technology are key.
RJ: I would find it easiest to categorize it by these three
fundamental pillars to success: vision, perseverance and
compassion. Vision is instrumental to knowing where you are going.
A leader must not only identify goals and ambitions but those
that synergize with the organization's resources. Perseverance
and being ready to stay the course takes an immense amount of
strength. There will always be challenges and obstacles that will
test your ability to remain dedicated to your work. Compassion
is what humanizes our journeys together. We must understand
that everyone-customers, staff and associates, partners and
otherwise-all have their own challenges and ambitions for their
own lives and finding a way to align those goals together within an
organization yields the best and most harmonious results.
WHAT DO YOU DO TO FOSTER LEADERSHIP SKILLS WITHIN
YOUR TEAM?
SB: Believe in your team and trust their abilities. Successful leaders
and entrepreneurs naturally tend to feel like they always know best
and can have a hard time letting go of key projects. A company
can't scale this way, if you've done your work as a leader and
communicated your vision well, hand the keys over to your people
and let them do the driving.
SK: One of the benefits of being a small/medium-sized business
is that we can afford to be a flat organization. We don't follow
hierarchies when it comes to problem-solving for customer
outcomes or planning for our own growth. Every team member is
aware of Armour's vision and what we stand for, which enables and
empowers everyone to act and decide like how I would do. Making
mistakes is embodied as a part of the learning process-and that's
exactly what pushes us to be better than yesterday.
RJ: Our organization leverages the opinions and decisions of our
leadership team. However, without experience and understanding,
it's difficult to contribute. MIB encourages all its leaders to
accelerate their potential in any and all impactful investments in
growth. Some of our team members have taken on leadership
courses, continued education in fields of marketing, and even gone
back to take on their MBAs. MIB makes an investment in its team
investing in themselves, as we know their growth and pursuits
become future values for the organization itself.
WHAT UNIQUE CHALLENGES ARE FACING LEADERSHIP IN
THE INDUSTRY RIGHT NOW?
SB: Most organizations are decentralizing; employees are working
from home or across multiple locations. This creates unique
challenges for leadership as we have lost the interpersonal office
communication that is so critical to successful leadership. The
responsibility of the leader to be an effective communicator is
especially important now, and leaders must learn to use the
technology at our disposal to reach our people and shape our
communication style, so our vision doesn't get lost in all the digital
noise.
SK: From a business standpoint, the single largest challenge to the
wider industry is climate change and related fallouts. I think there
is a collective underestimation of the immediacy and the quantum
of impact. All stakeholders would be required to transcend the
frontiers of traditional insurance of risk transfer, and address risk
mitigation. The very existence of many players would be stress
tested.
22
THE ONTARIO BROKER
The Ontario Broker - Volume 22, Issue 2

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Ontario Broker - Volume 22, Issue 2
