Shortly after I published my book The Substance of Leadership four years ago, I wrote a blog titled, “What’s Your Leader’s Intent?” Since then, it’s become my most popular monthly blog post. More importantly, it’s one of the topics that’s been most impactful for dozens of leaders I’ve had the privilege of coaching over the past decade, so I thought it would be valuable to revisit the subject.

I learned about the concept of Leader’s Intent during my 25-year military career in the Marines, where new commanding officers typically publish a one-page letter outlining their vision for their unit. To be honest, I was both skeptical and reluctant when I wrote my first Leader’s Intent. I was skeptical because I wasn’t convinced that it would make a meaningful difference. I was reluctant because not only is it hard to synthesize all of your relevant thoughts about leadership into one page, but it also required me to go “on record” about what mattered most to me as a leader. By putting myself “out there” I was now accountable for my words, and that seemed a little intimidating.

Ultimately, my Leader’s Intent ended up being an extremely powerful and valuable leadership tool. And based on feedback from the leaders I’ve worked with in the private sector to develop their own Leader’s Intent over the years, it’s been a powerful tool for them as well. They tell me their Leader’s Intent serves as an internal compass providing direction for them in four key areas:

1. Clarity for themselves and their team regarding their values and priorities as a leader
2. Alignment within their team around goals and objectives
3. Empowerment for team members to use their own initiative to figure out “how” to achieve those objectives
4. Consistency when facing complex challenges and difficult decisions

I hope the article below will inspire you to write your own Leader’s Intent. I’m certain it will be a transformative tool to help you cast vision and lead your team with clarity, alignment, empowerment, and consistency. And if I can help you create your own Leader’s Intent, please reach out.

All the best leading your team to new heights!

Do you ever struggle with clarity about what’s important to you as a leader? Is it sometimes hard to generate alignment on your team around your organizational goals and objectives? Could you use some help empowering your team? And do you ever find it difficult to be consistent when facing challenging, complex leadership decisions?

If your answer to any or all of these questions is “yes,” I have some good news. First, you’re not alone. Second, a Leader’s Intent is a valuable tool that can help you in all of these areas.

By now you’re probably wondering, “What is a Leader’s Intent?” It’s a great question.

Leader’s Intent is simply high-level guidance for your team that creates directional vision. The concept has its roots in military leadership. New commanding officers typically publish a one-page “philosophy of command” which outlines their vision for their unit. Additionally, a “commander’s intent” is an integral part of planning for military operations. In both cases, they provide the person in charge with an opportunity to articulate the “big arrows” that provide high-level organizational direction regarding what the team needs to accomplish and why, while leaving it up to the team to figure out the “how.” I’ve also found that a Leader’s Intent is a powerful way for business executives to cast vision and empower their team.

Although there is no specific format, a Leader’s Intent commonly contains the following themes: mission, vision, values, goals, priorities, and expectations. I recommend starting with an outline that answers a few key questions:

• Mission: task and purpose. Key question: “What does my team need to accomplish, and why?”
• Vision: a picture of a future end-state. Key question: “What does success look like for my team?”
• Values: important beliefs or ideals shared by the members of a group, which serve as broad guidelines in shaping the team’s behaviors, attitudes, and culture. Key question: “What values will we hold ourselves accountable to?”
• Goals: observable and measurable results. Key question: “What are my team’s primary goals over the next six months?”
• Priorities: things that merit the most attention among competing alternatives. Key question: “In order to achieve our goals, where will we need to focus our efforts and resources?”
• Expectations: standards of conduct and performance. Key questions: “What can my team expect from me as a leader, and what do I expect from them?”

Once you complete your outline, draft your thoughts into paragraph form. Try to keep it to one page. I find this helps keep your team on the same page, so to speak, because it forces you to make it clear and concise.

Next, share your Leader’s Intent with people you can trust to provide you candid and quality feedback. This could include selected members of your team, colleagues, and mentors who can provide valuable perspectives to help you refine it. When you’re comfortable with the final draft, ask your boss for feedback to ensure you are aligned with their vision.

Then share the final version with your team. If practical, I recommend sharing it via one-on-one discussions so you can answer questions and emphasize or clarify points of interest. If this isn’t practical because your team is too large, discuss it one-on-one with each of your direct reports and then circulate it to the rest of your team electronically.

Sharing your Leader’s Intent with new members joining your team can also be a great way to set the tone early with regard to your culture and expectations. It can also be an effective way to help you filter potential new hires you may be interviewing, by ensuring they’re aligned with your team’s culture.

Finally, take some time to personally review your Leader’s Intent every six months. You might want to start by asking for input from your team. They will appreciate the fact that you value their opinion. Then ask yourself a few questions. Are there any lessons learned that you need to incorporate? Is there anything you need to change? Do you need to update your goals or priorities? Has anything occurred that might cause you to adjust your standards or expectations? If so, refine your Leader’s Intent and share the update with your team. If not, stay the course until your next review.

Writing out your own Leader’s Intent will help you provide clarity regarding what’s important to you as a leader, which will benefit both you and the members of your team. It will help you generate alignment within your team around your organizational goals and objectives. It will help empower your team members by articulating “what” needs to be accomplished and “why,” while enabling them to use their own initiative to figure out the “how.” And it will establish the foundation for consistency, especially when you are faced with challenging leadership decisions.

To dive deeper, check out my book The Substance of Leadership: A Practical Framework for Effectively Leading a High-Performing Team, where chapter 4 is focused on the subject of how to develop and apply your own Leader’s Intent.