The Importance Of Integrity In Leadership

In 2012, Center for Creative Leadership conducted research on performance success among business executives, investigating strength qualities and focusing on four character elements that have repeatedly been shown to be important: integrity, bravery, perspective, and social intelligence (Gentry, Cullen, & Altman, 2012). All four traits are related positively to performance success; however, on probing further to determine the relative importance of these four strengths– integrity and bravery emerged as more important among those business executives at the top of organizational leadership hierarchy. The study highlighted the interactional dynamics between integrity and bravery that is integrity is essential in doing the right thing, and bravery is required to do the right thing particularly when the right thing to do is unpopular. The study concluded that integrity was the most important strength trait to possess at the top of any organizational leadership.

Christian leadership can be referred as a ministry

In other words, integrity is not situation-defined or situation-specific. There are two critical components of integrity. The first is the adherence to a moral or ethical principle. The second is the pursuit of an undiminished state or condition, which is acquiring the strength character to learn from one’s past ‘mistakes’ and to continually seek self-improvement. Beyond doing the right thing, a leader with integrity is also not afraid of telling or speaking the truth in all circumstances. This is known as the reality principle, which is the ability to “see the world as it really is, not as one wish it to be.” A person of integrity is always inclined to be honest and never to delude others, because when you delude others, you are probably deluding yourself too. Integrity, therefore seeks to tell the truth even if the truth is