Integrity

So I had a question this week -- do exceptional leaders have a higher level of integrity than their followers?

Let's begin with this thought -- the fact is that intergrity has many dimensions. It is not a simple factor of leadership.

I think all readers would agree that high integrity is a given for exceptional leaders. BUT, what about their followers?

Two issues surface here - the first is - what type of followers are required for highly effective leadership? The second is related to the opening question - does it matter what characteristics or traits or competencies the followers have when it comes to the efficacy of leadership?

I think the answer is academic - it really does not matter what followers have. While having highly skilled followers and having followers who may have high integrity may actually make it easier for a leader to be more effective, I would argue that the skills and competencies of leaders and followers can be mutually exclusive.

Give this one some thought.