Strategy and leadership are intertwined
In a series of interviews, I explore the approaches of different business leaders (all of them chartered accountants) to strategy. This month I was in conversation with Sharonne Adams, Business Executive at the Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA), who heads up their Western Cape region
Sharonne started the conversation by reflecting on her passion for leadership: ‘I believe everything rises and falls with leadership.’ She is proud to be part of a Chapter 9 institution in this country. ‘The AGSA as a Chapter 9 institution has a significant role to play in the current spheres of government. As a country, we face challenges about good governance and therefore I am proud to be part of the AGSA to deliver on the mandate as a supreme audit institution. Strategy is therefore an integral part of our work and our deliverables. Strategy execution and leadership are interlinked and require the following attributes:
- Authenticity ‘One thing that comes to mind when I think of strategy is authenticity. As a leader, you have to genuinely believe in the vision and the goals that you are going to set for yourself and your company − showing that you are part and parcel of the vision and then staying true to yourself.’ The translation of vision into reality will ultimately impact on the organisation and lives of people in general. She continued by referencing a quote by Winston Churchill: ‘The key to a leader’s impact is sincerity. Before he can inspire with emotion, he must be swayed by it himself. Before he can move their tears, his own must flow. To convince them he must himself believe,’ and added: ‘You then take people along the path with you, by showing your true self, how you feel about it, and they can then feel that same emotion and be inspired by it.’
- Clarity ‘You need to be clear in terms of the vision that is set and how that vision will be accomplished.’ She continued by mentioning the enormous impact and uncertainty that came with Covid-19; that it again highlighted the importance of clarity. ‘If people are very clear what the end game is, the vision, as well as the steps in-between, then everybody will be on the same page on how we will be able to move from building block A to building block B.’ She also highlighted the important role of communication: ‘First crystallise your own understanding of the expectation, then engage your team by making it clear for them. Have continuous conversations around it, so when people walk out everybody is on the same page.’
- Energy Energy is contagious. Something Sharonne feels very strongly about – she even mentioned that she will one day write a book about it – is the energy of the leader. ‘For you to be able to execute your strategy successfully, to drive it successfully, you need to have the right energy. Your energy, the passion that you have, other people can see it and tap into it.’ She continued within the leadership ambit: ‘The energy you display will reflect in the people that follow you; they will and can demonstrate that same energy.’ To transform and change an organisation requires effort and energy.
- Removing stumbling blocks: ‘When you think of the execution of strategy within an organisation − what will get you to the end game? One of the key roles and responsibilities of a leader is to make sure you remove stumbling blocks and hazards that could block people from getting to their destination − as a leader you need to make the path much easier for those that follow you.’
- Being decisive ‘Often when it comes to strategy, we as leaders are hesitant to make decisive decisions, especially when we need to relook or realigning our strategy − sometimes it is difficult to get to the heart of the problem.’ She continued by explaining that if decisive decisions are not made, it can lead to chaos in the organisation. ‘People look up at leaders for strategic direction and decision-making; leaders need to make those decisive decisions.’
- Optimism Sharonne stated that she is ‘an overly optimistic person’. She clarified: ‘It is not about ignoring problems: when I speak about optimism, it is all about seeing the problem and anticipating a solution − look the problem in the eye and start anticipating a solution. And mostly I am optimistic about the great future of this country. It’s in our hands to create a better society for all people.’
- People centricity Strategy is about a People First Approach. ‘People need to execute the strategy; if people don’t believe in the strategy, it means absolutely nothing.’ She elaborated on this attribute by emphasising feedback: ‘Know what is happening on the ground, know what people are grappling with and tap into the initiatives that you do have in the organisation for people to say what they are feeling.’ She continued: ‘Buy-in is critical if you want to achieve your strategy. It makes a huge difference when people feel part and parcel of decision-making, when they feel the success of the company depends on how successful they articulate themselves and how successful they drive things within the organisation. Linked to people centricity is making sure that at all times you inspire people, ignite a fire in them and create excitement.’
Making it practical, she added: ‘Our vision as the AGSA is to be recognised by all our stakeholders as a relevant, supreme audit institution and to enhance public sector accountability. This needs to be distilled right down to the impact that an individual can have, the value that one can add to the lives of citizens in the work we do − when people feel a deeper connection to the work that they do, making a difference to people’s lives in this country. It is not just about merely executing our strategy, but when we look at our vision, it reflects the overall impact that we make; not just the impact in the organisation, but the broader impact on the rest of South Africa.’
Our conversation moved from strategy and the importance of leadership to innovation and sustainability. ‘No strategy should stifle innovation. Innovation and creativity can and should encompass not just new ideas, but also your approach to effectiveness, efficiency and value add. It is amazing to see how, during COVID-19, even though our overarching strategy stayed exactly the same, with the same goals, our teams found innovative ways to become effective and efficient.’
On sustainability, she again emphasised the importance of authenticity, truly embracing what an organisation stands for. ‘It is important to know what you stand for as an organisation because that needs to be inculcated in everything you do. For instance, take social justice in terms of gender – our understanding and the way we approach it need to come from a place of authenticity. As leaders, we need to think about generations to come and our legacy.’
We ended our conversation with me asking one piece of advice for young professionals interested in strategy. From her response, it was clear that Sharonne is just as passionate about personal development. ‘All the ingredients are already inside you. To unlock that potential you need to gain more and more knowledge and experience. One way of gaining that knowledge is through reading. When I qualified, I immediately started reading about leadership strategy, and I still do today! Love what you do, and you will be able to go places.’
We ended the conversation with Sharonne reiterating the importance of being passionate, quoting Steve Jobs: ‘If you are working on something that you care about, you don’t have to be pushed. The vision pulls you.’ She concluded: ‘The work at the Auditor-General is something that I really care about, and the vision pulls me!’
Author
Christiaan Vorster CA(SA), SAICA Regional Executive
