Many Routes to the Top

Countless self-improvement books and seminars have been built on the premise that business leadership can be analyzed and imitated. But can leadership be reduced to a formula?

Recently, GMJ asked five business leaders in diverse industries to take Gallup's Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment, a Web-based tool that identifies an individual's top five strengths, from the 34 that Gallup has found to be the most prevalent themes of human talent. There are several common strengths among these executives -- three were dominant in the Strategic theme, indicating talent for finding the best path to meeting an objective. But each person expresses his or her strengths in different ways. When comparing leaders high in the Activator theme, for example, one can imagine the range of possible management styles -- from dictatorial to persuasive. The flavor of a particular strength, in short, may manifest itself in many ways.

Thus, the model for leadership becomes less a question of which traits are requisite than an issue of how an individual can leverage his or her unique talents to move an organization. To learn more, visit the Now, Discover Your Strengths Book Center in the "See Also" area on this page.

Bill Pardue President and CEO of U.S. Corporate and Federal Markets for the Lexis Nexis Group, a provider of data and information for the legal, corporate, government and academic markets via the Web and other media.

TOP FIVE STRENGTHS

• IDEATION
• STRATEGIC
• ACHIEVER
• SELF-ASSURANCE
• INPUT

PARDUE'S TAKE: It doesn't surprise me to see that Achiever is one of my top strengths. The whisper of discontent that comes from having that strength rings true with me, as does the jolt to work long hours and not burn out. My team and I had an intense year in 2000. We were in a turnaround for our business that ultimately proved successful. During that time, a fair amount of stamina was required of me and my team.

My Input strength manifests itself in my work -- in my insatiable desire for market research -- but also in my personal life. My family and I rarely visit the same vacation spot twice. We just got back from two weeks in Sicily, and last year we went to the Galapagos. We've also done white-water rafting in Costa Rica. My children want to return to some of those destinations, but my wife and I are looking for new excitement, new cultures.

Carrie Tolstedt President of Wells Fargo Bank-California, which has $66.1 billion in assets, 900 locations and over 13,000 employees.

TOP FIVE STRENGTHS

• ACHIEVER
• RELATOR
• RESPONSIBILITY
• LEARNER
• ANALYTICAL

TOLSTEDT'S TAKE: My team worries that I work too late and that I might burn out. Many don't understand, though, that my work energizes me. I focus on starting new tasks and taking on new challenges. That's who I am. Even when I was in high school, I did 20 things at once. I have to be careful because I never want anyone to think what I demand of myself I demand of others as well.

I still find the time to develop strong relationships, though. That's the Relator piece of me. I have to get to know the people on my team: what drives them, what's important to them, how they are feeling. I need that connection.

You won't find Ideation on my list of top five strengths. So, I need real creative people around me to make up for that. They throw around the ideas, and I'm good at building and analyzing a plan and making sure it gets executed.

James "Denny" Shelton Chairman and CEO of Triad Hospitals, a chain of hospitals and surgery centers in the southwestern, western, and south central United States.

TOP FIVE STRENGTHS

• WOO
• IDEATION
• STRATEGIC
• SELF-ASSURANCE
• RESPONSIBILITY

SHELTON'S TAKE: Woo is definitely me. I think it's a family trait: my father is a retired minister. Because I grew up in a lower-middle income family, I can break through the normal social hierarchy. I was recently riding in a car service from downtown New York to the airport and I was talking with the driver; I like to think I can talk to anyone.

I wasn't surprised to see Responsibility. I am responsible to a fault. I worry about letting people down or not doing what I've committed myself to do. I take my relationships very, very personally; I feel the people I've befriended are family.

It humbles me that people have stayed committed to me despite any mistakes I have made. I would not have enjoyed doing what I have been doing if they had not stuck around.

Robert Gioella President and COO of Education Management Corporation, which owns and operates more than 20 colleges and career schools in the United States.

TOP FIVE STRENGTHS

• COMPETITION
• MAXIMIZER
• RELATOR
• ACHIEVER
• ACTIVATOR

GIOELLA'S TAKE: My Competition goes back to childhood. I'm not satisfied unless my company is at the top. I want every operating unit to be better than the next. I'm competitive on the golf course, and even on the driveway when I'm playing basketball with my son.

I recognize, too, that I'm an Achiever. It comes from my parents, who always reminded me that I could do anything I wanted. If I don't feel I have accomplished something meaningful each day, I'm dissatisfied. Even when I go on vacation with my family, my wife may get a little upset with me because there's something I always want to accomplish. It is my power supply.

I am very empathetic: thus, my Relator strength. I believe in the members of my management team, and I'm particularly attracted to those who have a lot of energy.

Activation is not as dominant throughout the organization as I would like it to be. I see it as my strength and I would like to see it more in the company. I do get impatient. We miss opportunities. If we moved with more of a sense of urgency, we could accomplish more.

Jeanne Pellegren Jackson CEO of Walmart.com. Formerly, CEO of Gap's upscale Banana Republic chain and head of the parent company's Internet and catalog unit.

TOP FIVE STRENGTHS

• STRATEGIC
• RESPONSIBILITY
• ACTIVATOR
• ACHIEVER
• BELIEF

JACKSON'S TAKE: The Activator in me is all about getting things done. I've changed jobs as often as I have because once I see things are working, I feel I'm not really needed anymore. It's time to find something really broken and go and fix it. I'd fail in a business where bureaucracy was the order of the day, where playing golf with folks to get them to see my point of view was the metric of success. The Responsibility in me has me speaking my mind. Honesty is easier: I've left jobs where I didn't believe in the corporate culture. I stick to my commitments. I once promised my daughter I'd take her to Disney World for her birthday. I had to attend a meeting on the West Coast the night before. But I was riding a roller coaster on Space Mountain at 10:00, after the red eye landed.