Simon Sinek, a management theorist and author of Leaders Eat Last, described the difference between a boss and a leader by the way they motivate people. Top-down bosses use the fear of punishment or promise of reward, he says, while leaders develop relationships with their teams that “build their self-confidence, give them the opportunity to try and fail, all so that they could achieve more than we could ever imagine for ourselves.”
While Sinek’s TED Talk, Why Good Leaders Make You Feel Safe, starts by describing the transactional vs. relational leadership styles in a military context, he connects the principles to corporate leadership and decision-making.
The change agents who lead companies’ digital transformation initiatives integrate people skills with technical expertise to innovate and optimize processes, workplace cultures and customer experiences.
Professors Don A. Moore and Max H. Bazerman, co-authors of Decision Leadership: Empowering Others to Make Better Choices, echo Sinek’s formulation of excellence in leadership, according to a Harvard Law School interview with them.
“Great leaders create the norms, structures, incentives, and systems that allow their direct reports, organizations, and the broader stakeholders to make decisions that maximize collective benefit through value creation,” Moore and Bazerman write.
These skills and responsibilities are just as relevant to information science (IS) as any field. Those interested in earning an advanced IS degree and pursuing a career in this area should consider the expectations and duties of IS professionals in leadership positions.
The Leadership and Decision-Making Skills of Effective IS Project Managers
The demand for IS managers far outstrips supply, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which predicts career growth of 16% (much higher than the average of other career paths) as companies throughout the economy plan to add 509,000 positions through 2031.
Candidates with the non-technical skills to lead companies through innovative digital change will contend for positions that paid an average of $159,000 in 2021. CIO describes some of the skills of effective digital leaders, including:
- Ethics: Consistently demonstrating principles that create an environment of trust encourages individuals and the team to make decisions without fear of reprisal.
- Relationships: Building interpersonal connections opens channels of communication that keep projects on track by eliminating outdated notions of digital change.
- Compassion: Sensitivity to members’ social and cultural needs and differences encourages self-confidence, motivation and value creation.
“Authentic leaders place their emphasis on people, values, and ethics, creating a culture of authenticity, transparency, and honesty that ensures all employees are empowered and heard,” the article notes.
How Do IS Leaders Acquire Non-Technical Skills?
Effective IS leaders do not necessarily have to be data scientists but must be interested in how technological innovation creates market advantages. Jeff Bezos, for instance, was a hedge fund manager before starting Amazon as an online bookstore and growing it into a $2 billion online retailer.
IS-literate professionals often bridge the gap between a company’s business strategies and digital assets to ensure its technology innovation supports its goals.
In addition to leadership, the online Master of Science (M.S.) in Information Science program at Texas A&M International University includes a Seminar in Management Concepts course that addresses organizational behavior and theory, ethics and human resource management.
The program’s Leadership and Decision Making elective course provides the analytical and technical tools and soft skills to make them effective change agents. Students learn to analyze and navigate:
- The dynamics of individual-, group- and team decision-making
- The social and cultural influences on decision-making and team building
- The myths, such as change is a top-down process, and realities — culture change can start anywhere in the organization — of digital transformation
Texas A&M International University’s online M.S. in Information Science program equips graduates with the technical skills and leadership expertise to become effective project managers capable of planning, staffing, organizing and controlling the development of computer-based information systems.
Learn more about Texas A&M International University’s online M.S. in Information Science program.
