A Leader’s Role in Organizational Transformation and Growth

Indonesia is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. All industries in Indonesia are rapidly growing. It is safe to say that transformation and growth are included as the main pillars of a successful business. Leaders perform an essential duty to bring their companies toward transformation and growth. Erick Thohir, the former Chairman of Indonesian Asian Games Organizing Committee and the current Minister of State-Owned Enterprises since 2019, shared his insights on how to lead organizations during a ‘CEO Speaks on Leadership’ held by BINUS BUSINESS SCHOOL in 2018. Here is a complete recap.

Embrace All Roles Possible

Would you be surprised to know that a leader’s role is not limited to leading teams? In all actuality, an effective leadership includes several roles at once. Erick shared the four key roles of an effective leader. The first one is the role of analyzer, who takes decisions based on facts and data. Relying on instinct alone is not a good leadership move; one must understand how to bring success to the company as well as how a company can be successful. It is possible to do so by using data, just like a television station plans their broadcasting based on ratings and their audience.

The second role is ‘structuralizer’, which requires a leader to implement the data into action plans and strategies. After all, data is information if not translated and implemented properly. For example, a television station has gathered data that reveals the audience are mostly middle-aged stay-at-home mother, so the station broadcasts soap operas during daytime to increase ratings.

The third role is socializer, a role to connect and engage with their team. A team should not work alone; it is better for the leader to work together with them. A leader must be reachable and respectable and have open communication with their team.

The final role, and arguably the most difficult, is the conceptualizer. A leader should plan ahead with their vision as the guiding map. Most importantly, they must let the team know about their vision and lead them to reach their company’s goal.

Operational Excellence

What does operational excellence mean? Some people may see it as continuous improvement, others may link it to breakthroughs that can make the business operations more seamless. In the purest sense, operational excellence is how leaders, and their teams can improve the value of their goods to the customers.

According to Erick, operational excellence is one part of a three-dimensional structure, alongside regulatory and financial structure. “I tell all my leaders in my companies to always look at these three sides.” Operation excellence includes strategic alignment on all divisions, focusing on the process, and leading with respect as well as humility.

Regulations

Regulations are not an unusual thing in business, nor is it new. When it comes to new innovations, there are bound to be new regulations from the government. As an effective leader, it is important to comply with the legal requirements. “New policy from the government should be supported since it is aimed to aid the masses, though it can be risky for our business”.

Leaders must gather all team members to fully understand the regulations. Therefore, the leaders and teams can implement the appropriate framework. It is important for any leader to not quickly follow competitors before reading and understanding the related regulations.

Financial Structure

If we talk about running a business, we can never neglect the financial aspect of it, as it contains the debt and equity that a company uses to finance its operations. The financial structure must be evaluated regularly to ensure that the company is growing as expected.

Although financial structure may not always be the main component to judge a company’s success, it should be noted that at the very least it maximizes the company’s market value and minimizes the capital costs. **(PID)