Managing Leader Identity at Work: A Practice-Oriented Approach

Abstract

It is important for leaders to have a clear, credible and motivating view of who they are and who they want to become as a leader. Understanding and managing leader identity is a key practice area for leaders. After reviewing some relevant literature, a practice-oriented framework is offered which focuses on some key elements of leader identity and is operationalized through a management cycle. A review of the application value, implications and challenges of this approach is provided. With increasing accountability for organizational outcomes including stakeholder performance, well-being and well-doing, this approach offers practitioners a way to understand and manage key considerations relating to managing leader identity at work for positive impact.

Optimizing Performance, Well-Being and Well-Doing: A Leader Practice-Oriented Approach

“…The framework helps leaders internalize and visualize what being an optimal performing well-being well-doing enhancing leader looks like. I have found leaders to resonate with the notion of having a strong and effective identity and a personalized vision of what they would like to become as they develop their leadership capacity as an optimal performing wellbeing will-doing enhancing leader (Kerns, 2022b). An additional and related benefit of this work is that leaders come to realize that all results are not created equal.…”

“…During Phase II, leaders are facilitated in documenting an integrated well-being well-doing leader identity statement and vision. This process helps them develop identity-based habits that strengthen their identities as optimal leaders in executing their current role and enhancing well-being and well-doing (Clear, 2018;Kerns, 2022b). In addition to an identity statement, a personalized vision is developed around how they see themselves executing their performance profile to help effectively achieve each of the key results that they specified.…”

“…Well-doing as offered in the current work draws upon the applied literature on virtuous behavior (Fowers et al, 2020;Kerns, 2023a). This work also connects with the management of core values, including considering virtuous values (Kerns, 2017). Well-doing is centered around leaders acting in ways that benefit others.…”

“…As part of this work, we regularly reviewed current challenging situations and proactively and intentionally anticipated situations that may challenge him to align with his identity. To further strengthen his identity, Michael worked on seeing his identity being habit-based rather than outcome-based (Clear, 2018;Kerns, 2022b). This habit-based identity helped Michael focus more on who he wanted to become as an optimal performing well-being well doing leader rather than looking at individual achievements in the short run.…”