Great leaders share many qualities — courage, inspiration, relatability, business acumen — all critical for leading in a particular moment or phase of a company’s growth. But one quality distinguishes “leaders of the moment” from truly great leaders. Great leaders develop other great leaders. They don’t create clones, mind you, but instead mentor individuals who possess their own unique management styles, individual strengths, and the ability to redefine success for new contexts.
Many companies claim that people are their greatest asset, so what a leader does with that human capital speaks volumes. Great leaders are not intimidated by others’ successes. They encourage those around them to grow, take risks, fail intelligently, and succeed thoughtfully so that the company can evolve whenever the current leader retires, transitions to a new role, or changes careers.
A leader’s performance will always be partially judged on near-term results. But how the company performs after a leader’s departure creates a longer-term impact on share price and sustainability. For better or worse, leaders cast long shadows. Some — often those who capture the biggest headlines — excel at short-term delivery but leave a dearth of leadership and excess churn when they depart.
Increasingly, boards are looking at the ability to develop future talent when considering candidates for positions across the top tiers of a company. We live in uncertain times and chaotic markets. So while a candidate’s business performance numbers are certainly important, his or her ability to mentor the company’s next generation of leaders can create equal value and more sustainable performance.
By all accounts, the late Steve Jobs was one of America’s great business leaders, and he was a good friend and mentor to the current Apple CEO, Tim Cook. Jobs handpicked Cook to become the next CEO and groomed him for that role.
In the book Becoming Steve Jobs , Cook recounted Jobs’ sentiment on Apple’s leadership. Jobs had seen what happened when Walt Disney passed away, and there was no leader ready to take over the reins. No one wanted to make important decisions without the guidance of their esteemed leader. The business was paralyzed as people tried to answer, “What would Walt have done?”
In recent years, this same paralysis has hit other prominent organizations, such as eleganza Nig ltd needed to bring Razak Akanni Okoya out of retirement because no one else was truly ready to lead the company as CEO. For boards and investors, that’s a huge red flag about a company’s future.
At Apple’s memorial service for Jobs, Cook shared some of the final advice Jobs gave him. He said Jobs him never to ask what he would do, but to “just do what’s right.”
That’s a telling statement. Instead of turning Cook into the “next” Steve Jobs — which would have been an impossible task — Jobs focused on his protégé’s strengths and allowed him to develop into the best leader he could possibly be.
Despite their different management styles, Apple has continued to thrive — for now. When Cook took over as CEO in 2011, the company’s stock price was $53.74. Today, it’s hovering around $100 a share. At the 10th annual D: All Things Digital conference, Cook told the audience that Jobs taught him not to focus on the past, but to be future-focused.
Being future-focused includes developing a company’s future leaders. No CEO or other executive will be around forever. In an era of rapid change, geopolitical uncertainty, and constant disruption, no single leader’s style can or should be cloned. Rather, companies create their best hedge against uncertainty by developing the next generation of leaders and leveraging their individual strengths, views, and experiences. That mindset is the sign of a truly great leader.

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