Page 17 - CCCA 226419 Magazine Fall 2014

{ leadersHiP } Do More room for others to exercise initiative or take personal responsibility for achieving With less. results. It tends to be all about the charis- matic leader and his or her role in creating the success. As Peter Drucker said, “Cha- We have assembled a team of great lawyers who augment your risma becomes the undoing of leaders.” In in‑house legal department when you most need it. They work shoulder‑to‑shoulder with your staff to tackle the agreements, other words, charismatic leaders are rare- projects and regulatory imperatives that need attention now. ly successful in the long term because of their unwillingness to give up power and Three things make our group unique: authority, and as a result their failure to • Flexibility – our lawyers can be engaged for a share the credit for accomplishments with day, week, month or just by the project. others on their team. Leaders are responsible not for doing • Predictability – We bill by the day, half‑day the work but for getting the work done or simply bid the project. through others. And the true challenges • Value – We work at your offce or virtually. This low of leadership involve getting people to do overhead model translates directly to our rates. things that they otherwise would be un- willing or unable to accomplish on their If your legal department is constrained by headcount own. Real leadership is exercised not by restrictions, budgetary pressures or just a call to do more with less, then we are an option you need to know giving orders and directions backed up by more about. threats or intimidation. Real leadership is exercised by articulating an exciting vision of the future, getting people effectively aligned with that vision, and then inspir- ing them to work harder and accomplish more than they ever imagined they could. That only happens when leaders give up some of their formal authority and truly empower their people to take initiative and experience the challenges and rewards of putting themselves personally on the line to accomplish great things. ❚ toll 1 (888) 568 4119 email emailus@simplexlegal.ca Hugh Arnold is adjunct professor and former dean Web WWW.simplexlegal.ca at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Services available in French and English Management, where he teaches leadership in the in Civil and Common Law. Business Leadership Program for In-House Counsel as well as a number of the school’s MBA and executive programs. Canadian Corporate Counsel assoCiation | CCCa-aCCje.org 17