The Seven Transformations of Leadership

Successful leaders know that they
need to develop their leadership
skills on an ongoing basis – this
helps them handle increasingly
challenging situations.
However, many leaders stop learning
at a particular skill level, meaning
that their career progression falters.
So, how can you avoid this, and, so,
realize your full potential?
Researchers David Rooke and William Torbert
argue that there are seven stages that the most
successful leaders go through, and that, by
learning new skills, you can move from one stage
to the next.
In this article, we'll look at these seven leadership
transformations, and we'll discuss how you can
move through each stage.
The Seven Transformations
Rooke and Torbert published their Seven
Transformations of Leadership in the April 2005
Harvard Business Review, following 25 years of
survey-based consultancy.
In their surveys, Rooke and Torbert asked
executives to complete 36 sentences related to
leadership.
They then evaluated the responses from the
survey, and, based on the results, they created
seven categories that describe how leaders
approach the world around them. Essentially, they
defined a series of categories, or "action logics,"
that describe the ways that leaders think.
Rooke and Torbert argued that each action logic
has its benefits, but that some are more effective
than others. Certain action logics are successful in
a greater number of leadership situations, and this
leads to higher overall performance.
Leaders who can understand their current action
logic can make changes to move towards one
that's more effective. By transforming to a more
effective action logic, they can improve their
leadership abilities.
The list below ranks Rooke and Torbert's seven
types of action logic. The further you get down the
list, the more sophisticated and effective your
approach to leadership is likely to be.

Thanks,
M.Sai Ram