What Japan needs now is leadership, not management skills (1/4) | JBpress

(Ichiro Asahina: Aoyama Shachu Head Representative/CEO)

Leadership is the “starting force”

April is the season for entrance ceremonies and entrance ceremonies. Over the past few years, I have been increasingly invited to teach leadership training and give leadership lectures around this time of year.

This year, I gave a lecture on leadership to new students at the entrance ceremony of Fukui Prefectural University, where I am also a visiting professor. Kobe City has also been requested to provide leadership training for all new employees. This is the third consecutive year of training.

Leadership is often translated as “leadership” in Japanese. Therefore, some may wonder, “Why is leadership training necessary for new university students and new employees at city hall?” When thinking of leaders as instructors, it is generally thought that university students receive this type of training after they become upperclassmen in club activities or seminars, and working adults receive this type of training after they are in a position to have subordinates.

In fact, when I was conducting training in Kobe City, I asked people who had recently become city employees, “If you have just joined City Hall, but don’t feel comfortable taking leadership training.” Many people raised their hands. .

Actually, it’s because you misunderstand the meaning of the word “leadership.” I always say, “Leadership is not just the ability to lead, but actually the ability to start.” The translation is actually different.

The essence of this is not the ability to lead an organization together, but the ability to take initiative and take on new challenges. Since it’s “starting power,” it doesn’t matter whether you’re a newcomer, veteran, executive, or otherwise. No matter what position you are in, you need a certain amount of starting power, sometimes intensely.

What is originally required in the sense of leading a group is not “leadership” but “management.” They may both be “Shidouryoku”, but they are essentially completely different concepts.