For those who are informal leaders
Thinking about improving your skills as an informal leader? Get new tools and practical tips to strengthen your leadership style. Practice different situations and get feedback from other informal leaders. It's an investment that will benefit both you and your organization.
What is informal leadership?
You might already know them. The people others listen to, even if they don't have an official leadership role. The people who can make things happen because they have influence and authority that isn't based on a title, but on relationships, experience, expertise and accomodating behavior. The people who are informal leaders.
Informal leaders are everywhere. They exist in all types of organizations and teams, and they play an important role in driving results and change.
But informal leaders aren't always easy to spot. They don't necessarily have a sign on their door or a name tag on their chest that says they're a leader. They are often the ones that others go to for advice, feedback or support. They are the ones who have a good network, relevant knowledge and a strong personal presence. They are the ones who have the trust and respect of their colleagues.
Informal leadership is about gaining influence without formal power
Imagine you have an idea for how your organization or team can solve a challenge, improve a process or create new opportunities for development and growth. Imagine that you know who needs to be on board to achieve the goal and maybe even how the task and work should be organized. However, you don't have a formal leadership position or title that gives you the right to decide or delegate, formally speaking. So how do you get your colleagues and your boss and perhaps other managers to listen to you, support you and follow you?
The answer is informal leadership.
Informal leadership is the art of leading without formal power. It's about creating influence and authority that's not based on a title, but on relationships, experience, expertise and behaviors that are tailored to the situations you're in - and the people you're with. It's about building trust, respect and followership among those you work with and depend on.
Where do we find the informal leaders?
Informal leaders are found in many places in both public and private organizations, including NGOs.
We typically find them working in finance, quality, HR, lean, marketing, business development and more, but you'll also find many in the business itself, where they typically work as project managers, in a coordinating or supervisory role or with a specific professional responsibility.
They often have titles such as project manager, HR or business partner, x-specialist, team coordinator, product manager, subject matter responsible, coordinator, supervisor and the like. They may also have completely different titles, but what they have in common is that they are responsible for "making things happen", even if they don't have formal management responsibilities.
Networking
Courses
Being an informal leader is demanding but also motivating and inspiring
Informal leadership isn't necessarily easy. It requires you to be able to lead both yourself - upwards and sideways, and to handle the challenges and dilemmas that arise when you lead without formal power. It requires that you can communicate clearly and convincingly, that you can create dialogue and understanding, and that you can motivate and inspire others - even those who are not like you. So, you need to be able to adapt your behavior to different situations and people, and use different methods and approaches to increase your influence.
Where and when can I become a better informal leader?
Everyone can become a better informal leader if they are willing to learn and develop. An informal leadership course can be a great way to do that.
If you want to learn more about informal leadership and how to become a better informal leader, you should sign up for an informal leadership course. You'll gain new insights, tools, tips and tricks to strengthen your informal leadership style. You'll also have the opportunity to practice being an informal leader in different situations - and you'll get feedback from your fellow students who are also informal leaders.
An informal leadership course will help you achieve greater influence, recognition and success in your workplace. Therefore, it's a great investment for both you and your organization.
See upcoming course dates for IDA's "The Informal Leader" course and sign up HERE!
