South Africa is calling for leaders who can share, develop and create the change they want to see, but people seldom know exactly which qualities their leaders should have.

A standard for leadership journey will therefore start in September 2017 to create a framework with a clear standard on what is acceptable and unacceptable leadership behaviour, says Marius Meyer, CEO of the SA Board for People Practices (SABPP).

“Leadership fulfills a pivotal role in the economic future of the country and the right leadership in all spheres of society can create the kind of country we want. If we want to change leadership, we must create dynamic leaders who can unlock and develop South Africa’s talent to improve performance in all economic and social areas,” Meyer says.

The SABPP in partnership with Talent Talks and Wits Enterprise will hold two National Leadership Standard Journey events, with the aim to draft a leadership standard framework that can be used to guide and develop South African leaders.

As part of the journey, stakeholders will debate their role in the leadership landscape, while it will also create a powerful platform to motivate people in business and government to take action. The first event will take place in Johannesburg on 14 September 2017, where participants will discuss the five elements of leadership.
“The standard will create a picture of the key elements of leadership to guide leaders in their thinking and actions as they lead their organisations and people.

It will show leaders in simple terms what is expected of them and form the basis of understanding current failures of leadership in many sectors. We want to move away from appointing leaders without leadership skills to encouraging good leadership behaviour and practices,” Meyer explains.

The issues of vision, ethics, governance, responsibility, accountability, purpose, trust, decision-making and influence will be included in the standard. The leadership standard journey will continue until pockets of excellence are replicated to multiply leadership success stories. A leadership network will also be formed to ensure that leaders are supported by their peers and leadership experts.

The standard will be developed in a collaborative manner on 14 September and formally launched at the 5th Annual HR Standards conference on 26 October.

Further people management standards will be developed in 2018 to support the leadership standard and guide all managers to become better managers of people and unlock the potential of their people and organisations.

·The first full-day event will be held at the Theatre on the Track, Kyalami, on 14 September 2017 followed by a second on 26 October 2017. The event will feature powerful speakers and a special leadership panel representing top professional bodies.
 
·For more details and to register for the event visit www.talenttalks.net