Jim Collins and the Five Levels of Leadership White Paper

Level Five Leadership

Introduction: What is Level Five Leadership?

Level Five Leadership is a concept developed by Jim Collins in the book Good to Great. Level Five Leaders are top notch leaders: they are the greats who make big things happen. They are ones about whom books are written. They are the ones who leave the biggest shoes to fill when they are gone.

Collins describes five levels of leadership. This paper will briefly discuss the four levels that precede the top level. Then it will define what it means to be a Level Five Leader and will provide some examples of Level Five Leadership that can be found in the world today.

The First Four Levels of Leadership

The first four levels of leadership range from capable leaders to effective leaders: these are not bad levels of leadership by any means—but they are not what can be called great. While great may be considered a subjective term to some, Collins simply defines great in terms of leadership as a leader who possesses the abilities required at each of the first four levels of leadership and who also possesses the humility and will to go above and beyond. But to understand what that means, one first has to understand each level and what is needed there first.

Level One: Highly Capable Individual

The level one leader is not a bad leader. As Collins says, “At this level, you make high quality contributions with your work. You possess useful levels of knowledge; and you have the talent and skills needed to do a good job.” This kind of leader meets expectations but never rises above them and never does anything to truly transform an organization into something better than anyone imagined. Level one leaders can fill the role—but they are not out there inspiring others to excel or to exceed their potential; they are not creating a new culture through their own authentic style of leadership or through their own charismatic or transformational leadership styles. They are not likely to be the kind of servant leaders who change the course of history. They are simply individuals who possess the skills and knowledge needed to fill the role assigned them. They show up, punch in, do what is expected, and punch out. They do not underperform or underwhelm, but if they left tomorrow they could be replaced by the next in line, assuming the next in line possesses the same skills and knowledge. In short, they demonstrate the bare bones of leadership—the basic vitals—the foundation of leadership: know-how, talent and skills to do a good job.

Level Two: Contributing Team Member

The level two leader is a team player and moves beyond merely himself and his own need to perform by considering the roles of others as well and how he can support them. Collins states that “at Level 2, you use your knowledge and skills to help your team succeed. You work effectively, productively and successfully with other people in your group.” Communication is one of the most important tools of a level two leader, and that involves both being a good listener and being able to use social and emotional intelligence to deliver important information and support to others. Self-concept is the other important factor here. The concept of self-concept simply refers to who a person thinks he is. It shapes one’s communication style and impacts how one forms relationships. Self-concept will also affect how other people relate to you. It is important in the group dynamic because so much of the group dynamic is impacted by how individuals see themselves, communicate and form relationships. If some members are communicating in both verbal and non-verbal ways that negatively impacts others in the group it can create tension and more challenges for the group to overcome. A good self-concept will facilitate discussion and communication whereas a bad self-concept will prevent communication from happening and relationships from forming.

Level Three: Competent Manager

The level three manager takes his communication skills and combines them with the ability to manage others in meaningful ways. Collins notes that “here, you're able to organize a group effectively to achieve specific goals and objectives.” In other words, here is where the managing principle of leadership comes into play. The leader has to be able to make decisions about what direction the group, team, department or organization should take. At the same time, the leader has to manage resources effectively—otherwise, the team will never reach the destination that the leader has envisioned. Level three leadership is about understanding the alignment between resources, mission and vision.

Morale and motivation are often impacted by the behaviors of managers. If managers are not leading the way in a positive and effective manner,…

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…are not convinced by it initially can drop their resistance once it is explained to them using logic. Leaders should be emotionally and socially intelligent so that they can empathize with others and communicate most effectively. They should have a number of leadership styles that they can draw upon depending on the environment and situation with which they are faced. They must also have an indomitable will—a fierce resolve to never stop until they have achieved the mission goal set out for them.

Present Day Examples

Two leaders who have the fierce resolve and humility required of great leaders are Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, and President Donald Trump. Both men receive a lot of criticism for being arrogant and ego-centric, but there is a great deal of humility about each one in that they are willing to put themselves out there in order to achieve the vision they have for their organization or country. Moreover, their wills are indomitable. President Trump has withstood one firestorm of controversy after another ever since his campaign to be president. Elon Musk has overcome great odds to change the auto industry forever. Each leader is committed to the vision he has put forward for stakeholders, and each pursues that vision selflessly.

The Level Five Leader is one who is humble, not afraid to ask for help, able to take responsibility, able to develop discipline, able to find the right people for the jobs that need to be done, and capable of leading with passion. He must be a manager and a leader, a capable individual and a communicator. He must have the skills required of all the other four levels of leadership. Both Musk and Trump have evinced those skills and characteristics, which is why they continue to have millions of supporters all over the country—supporters who continue to believe in them, follow them, and cling to the vision they present.

Conclusion

Level Five Leadership combines the characteristics and capabilities of the other four levels of leadership and adds to them selfless humility and fierce resolve. The Level Five Leader is like the level four leader except the Level Five Leader does it all for others, for the good of the organization and for the good of stakeholders, whereas a level four leader does it all primarily for himself because he imagines that glory that will be his for leading well.…