On May 10, 2018, Austin Young Chamber Members gathered in the master’s classroom at St. Edward’s University to learn more about a hot topic from Dr. Tom Sechrest, Director of the Master of Science in Leadership & Change Program at St. Eds. The well-attended session shed some light on the difference between a leader and a manager.

In a nutshell, Dr. Sechrest shared that leaders focus on leveraging strengths, building relationships, creating systems, and identifying a vision. In contrast, managers focus on planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controls. Because both of these are very necessary for the success of a business, it is often difficult to separate leaders and managers.

“Sometimes we’re required to be both of these. We have to look at the bottom line, but we also have to see how far we’ll go. So how do we do what we need to do for our company, and our ourselves?”, asked Dr. Sechrest.

The answer is there is no right or wrong way, but rather each business’ unique make-up and needs will play a large role in the approach.

For leaders looking for ways to be more effective in their role, Dr. Sechrest suggests three tips to up your game: (1) lead with authenticity, (2) strive for a customer focus, and (3) maintain personal accountability and self-management.

A big thanks to St. Edward’s University for hosting us and providing great content (and a great lunch) to Austin Young Chamber members.

To learn more, Dr. Sechrest recommended reading The Complete Leader by Ron Price.