GAIN OR DRAIN - HOW TO CREATE ENERGY AS A LEADER

The leadership program R4A helps Stena’s leaders develop the skills necessary to tackle future challenges. One of these important skills is the ability to take advantage of energy.

“The impact one has as a leader is often much greater than we think, in terms of both gaining and draining energy. If you can get a grasp on the factors at play, you can easily take advantage of the power and resources that energy contains and entails, which contributes to long-term sustainable leadership”, says Linda Mickelson, Head of HR Stena Rederi who developed the module with Janine Sjöö, Head of Employee Experience Stena Line.

To inspire, motivate and channel energy you have to take advantage of your strengths as a leader, whether these are based on a more introverted or extroverted style of leadership.

“Both are equally good. An inspirational leadership style is all about passion and authenticity”, says Linda Mickelson.

The positive and negative energy one generates relative to other people in different situations is largely based on the needs, talents and goals one carries with them. All participants in the module must therefore begin by taking a test that reveals their own motivation factors based on these needs and talents. Before the training session you also listen to three TED Talks that talk about different leadership styles.

One leader who has already completed the module is Pernilla Frödén, Business Development Manager, Stena Fastigheter.

“I’m working on project changes in the whole organisation, and for my part, the training has provided both useful insights about myself and great tools I can use when working with other people. I’m impressed that an education like this could be created, where one can learn – over the course of just one day – so much about what drives you, what creates energy drainages, and how you can use this to become a better leader”, says Pernilla Frödén.

The positive experiences from the education have led her to take on the Gain or Drain team day.

“The hope is that they will come away with the same I got and that it will strengthen the group even more”, says Pernilla Frödén. 

Gain or Drain is closely linked to one of the other modules included in R4A, Exploring the Golden Minds, which highlights the importance of diversity when it comes to ideas and perspectives. Since these modules are naturally linked, it is good to take them in sequence in order to see all the pieces of the puzzle. 

The Ready 4 Anything program sharpens specific capabilities that we need for effective leadership in an increasingly dynamic and fast-paced world. The more efficiently we can develop these abilities, the more advantage we gain compared to other players in the market. Good leaders who have the ability to develop their business, their employees and themselves provide a clear competitive advantage!, says Eva Hansdotter, HR Director People and Organizational Excellence.

THE NEW LEADERSHIP PROGRAM READY 4 ANYTHING DEVELOPS STENA’S FUTURE LEADERS

Leaders at Stena are responsible for developing their employees, the business and themselves, which requires new skills as the outside world changes. The new Leadership Program Ready 4 Anything (R4A) is another step along the path towards positioning Stena’s leaders to capture the opportunities of the future. The program is divided into six modules, which are given on an ongoing basis and which are aimed at all leaders within Stena.

To become a really good leader you need to understand how you create your own energy, how you use that energy and how you transfer that energy to other people. We only have one life and life is short. We need to do a lot of good business but we also need to take care of ourselves. Have fun, do good things and inspire, that’s what this course is about, says Carl-Johan Hagman, CEO, Stena Rederi AB.

4 VOICES FROM GAIN OR DRAIN FEBRUARY 26

Therese Jällbrink, Business Interaction Manager, Stena Bulk
What has been the best about today?

” It has been an opportunity to reflect on what motivates me and how this can be perceived by others. Something I will also bring with me is to try to spend more time on the behaviors that are my strengths and on what gives me energy.”

Helena Cronholm, Technical Lead, Stena Line
Have you had any new insights during the day?

“Yes, especially when we talked about talents or strengths and how it makes you feel when using them. I can feel euphoric and in the future I will make sure to stop and reflect on what made me feel like this – so I can maximise the energy it gives and benefit from it.”

Mikael Stenvaller, Group Chief Accountant, Stena AB
What are you bringing with you from today?  

“When working in teams, it’s important to understand different people and perspectives and today has provided a good opportunity to reflect on different driving forces and motivations. It has also been exciting to have the opportunity to network with people within Stena who you have not met before and to learn from the open and good discussions we had during the day.”

Sumit Trikha, Marine Resource Manager, Northern Marine, Indien
What are you bringing from today that you and your team can use?

“It has been useful to have a closer look at what it means to be extroverted versus introverted. One thing that I will work more with in the future is to create an atmosphere that takes advantage of the strengths and differences of each personality type. We did really great group work and had good discussions throughout the day. I can really recommend everyone to attend this module!” 

DON’T MISS OUT!

Modules in Ready 4 Anything that you can sign up for right now:

2 April & 7 May: Envisioning the future

10-11 April and 21-22 May: Exploring the golden minds

24 April: Gain or Drain

Read more about Ready 4 Anything in SfärNytt no. 84, October 2018 and at https://r4a.stena.life