THE ESSENCE OF LEADERSHIP IN BUSINESS THE PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES OF LEADERS Top three Passion Strategic vision External stakeholders exerting the greatest influence on business leaders: Consumers Mentorships are a reciprocal relationship, as business leaders can share their experience as well as get a fresh perspective from junior colleagues Kathryn Parsons, co-founder, Decoded Over in 10 attributes for business leaders Regulators Institutional investors THE IMPACT OF LEADERSHIP ON PERFORMANCE Interpersonal skills respondents think personality plays a crucial role for business leaders Over half say technology has shaped business leaders’ profile in the past years SOURCES OF INFLUENCE 69% say being hands-on is as crucial for leaders as leading from above Everybody knows who’s the boss You don’t need to be isolated or in a corner – all that does is remove you from your own business Doug Richard, founder, School for Startups Over in 10 executives think companies’ performance is linked to managerial excellence Only 27% rate their firm’s chief executive as exceptionally good If leaders want their company to thrive, then their firm must serve a social purpose the customer believes in Firms have to stand for something more than profitability alone Pippa Malmgren, founder, DRPM Group SPO N SO R E D B Y: Unless otherwise stated, this infographic depicts the results of a survey of 601 business executives conducted by The Economist Intelligence Unit in October 2014