Technology leadership development has worked in making Silicon Valley what it is. A number of founders of technology-producing companies have emerged from there based on a trial and error strategy. They implement one strategy, if it fails, they try another. With Silicon Valley professionals, you'd be amazed at their tenacity, their dedication and their occasional quirkiness.
Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak are just some of the people we have come to associate with technology leadership. Yet, there are also a number of sites all over the world with emerging technology leadership development potential. Think of India, the Philippines and even Dubai! Technology is booming even outside the United States. As such, leadership development in technology will continue to grow.
In technology leadership development, the general principles of leadership still apply. You need to understand the vision, mission and goals of the organization that you want to lead. You have to understand and manage the people you work with. Manage the competition. Deal with risk. And work in such a way to make the competition irrelevant. These are difficult matters and will require intensive investment on the part of the organization. But the dividends will pay off and will certainly be worth the time and resources spent.
Product development and innovation management. Technology relies so much on product development and innovation. As such, a leader in this field should keep track of recent developments and know the right time to strike at the market. If you are slow in taking or making opportunities, your competitors who may be working on the same thing will beat you to it. In the same sense, technology leadership requires an unyielding commitment to innovation.
People management. Wherever you may be, you still have to deal with people. They work with you, report to you, challenge you and even make you lose your appetite! So success in any organization, technology or not, still requires effective people management.
Knowing the industry. You should also know your industry. When you understand the industry players, their strengths and their weaknesses, you will understand your unique role in the world and will fulfill that role more effectively.
Taking and managing risks. Technology always involves risks. It has been said that the success of today's technologies are based upon the failure of thousands of ideas. So take risks. Don't be afraid to fail. But don't be hesitant to succeed either!
Understanding the competition. Beat the competition. Or if you can manage it, make them irrelevant with the innovations and products that you release. That is the only way to deal with them.
Technology leadership development is an art that can be mastered.
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