Key Differences from Conventional Leadership Approaches

Most leadership development programs and leadership strategies are designed to hone the cognitive and behavioral skills of leaders with the implicit assumption that this would ultimately translate into high performance. Blue ocean leadership, in contrast, taps into the field of strategy by focusing on actions tied to market realities to rapidly bring about a step change in leadership strength. It’s distinct from traditional leadership development approaches in several overarching ways. Here Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne outline the most salient ones:

Blue Ocean vs. Conventional Leadership Approaches

Conventional Leadership Development Approaches	Blue Ocean Leadership
Focus on the values, qualities and behavioral styles	Focus on acts and activities leaders need to undertake
Detached from market results people are expected to achieve	Leaders’ actions closely connected to market realities
Focus mostly on the executive and senior levels	Distribute leadership across three management levels
Extra time required for leadership practices	High impact leadership acts and activities at low cost

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