What Makes a Great Leader?

Words of Wisdom from WIT Leadership Awards Finalists –

Government Category 

As we move closer to the annual WIT Leadership Awards on May 17, we are featuring real life stories and insights from the outstanding pool of finalists for the 2018 awards.

Today we recognize the finalists in the Government category:

      Lynnette Madsen, National Science Foundation

      Sierra Sellman, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency

We asked each finalist what characteristics they think make a great leader and why.  Here’s what they had to say:

“To begin, great leaders need to have vision, but this alone is insufficient.  Additionally, a great leader must have other skills and traits, including enthusiasm, patience and tenacity.” Lynette Madsen, Program Director, National Science Foundation

“I believe three traits make a great leader: vision, communication and accountability. Vision is accomplished when you understand your customer’s needs (today and into the future), set clear and tangible goals and radiate enthusiasm about what you’re doing.

At the team level, constant and direct communication is necessary to deliver on goals and manage expectations.  At the individual level…a leader needs to be well informed, passionate, display confidence and strike a balance between listening and talking such that they are both persuasive and impactful.

Great leaders are accountable for the outcomes expected of them and their team.”Sierra Sellman, Data Scientist, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency

Join us for the 19th annual WIT Leadership Awards on May 17th at the Sheraton Tyson’s Corner as we honor each of these women for their outstanding leadership.  Tickets are available here.

Share this post:

Comments on "What Makes a Great Leader? "

Comments 0-5 of 0

Please login to comment