Leadership is a hot topic for organisations the world over. However, Australia has often been behind the leadership eight ball compared to other developed countries. Avril Henry seeks to address this in Leadership Revelations – An Australian Perspective.
The book is a compilation of stories on leadership from more than 100 Australian leaders such as General Peter Cosgrove, chief of the Defence Force and Ann Sherry, CEO of Westpac New Zealand.
Through each of the stories, the book aims to identify the unique essence of leadership in Australia. It identifies nine key characteristics of such leadership, such as an appetite for learning and developing others, change enablement, courage, integrity and the ability to motivate and inspire others.
Importantly, Henry also identifies a number of cultural traits which hinder Australians in their quest for leadership, such as an unwillingness to praise good performance for fear of promoting tall poppy syndrome.
Leadership Revelations – An Australian Perspective is an insightful and refreshing addition to the large body of research on leadership, and worthwhile reading for any Australian wanting to make a serious go of leadership in any field.
