Hildegunn Danielsen (47) from Kristiansand has always enjoyed taking the lead. Right from the time she was head of flannelography at Sunday school.
By Rita Tvede Bartolomei
- "Since my parents were Sunday school teachers, I was allowed to be in charge of the flannelograph when I was quite young. I thought that was incredibly cool," Hildegunn recalls with a laugh.
(Good) leaders are key
When Hildegunn (under expert guidance) was allowed to direct the flannelograph, she was only 9-10 years old. For those who are not familiar with the object, a flannelograph is a flannel-covered presentation board. Small felt figures are attached to the board and moved around to tell a story.
- At the time, I didn't think much about it. But I eventually realized that I enjoyed taking on the leadership role early on. Management and leadership development is not something I decided to work with. It just happened," she says.
However, Hildegunn has worked with HR and organizational development throughout her professional career. Until she became a permanent employee as a leadership developer for FRONT Leadership in the summer of 2022 (after working with them for 2 years). Before that, she worked internally with leadership in the organizations Get (now Telia), MacGregor and GARD.
- "I saw early on that if an organization is to succeed with restructuring and major processes, the managers must be on board. That they understood what we were going through and had the right skills to implement it," she says.
Born for the job?
It also became clear to Hildegunn early on that management skills were seen as an expected competence. With all other subjects, however, both knowledge and experience are expected.
- It's actually very bad form to expect managers to have an innate ability to lead. That's why it's positive to see that more and more companies are realizing that leadership development is something they need to develop. Leadership development is not just a mandatory item that needs to be checked off," she says.
Hildegunn has to take the lead as a leadership developer for managers, but she has also been a manager herself. She can attest to the fact that there really is a difference between theory and practice.
- "I tend to put it in a slightly silly way: Management would be so easy if it wasn't for all these people," she says with a smile.
Leadership is about people
Without even getting into the nonsense, leadership is about people. And we humans are not always predictable. Nor are we the same, or have the same life situation or state of mind throughout our lives.
- The human factor is a highly variable factor, which means that what is written in management theory does not always work in practice. It's not as easy to lead us humans. So I've found myself in the symbolic leadership revolving door many times, and I find it strange that I don't walk around with a constantly broken nose," she says.
But having experienced first-hand what it means to be a leader has made Hildegunn humble about the responsibilities and challenges leaders actually face. So how can management theory be put into practice more easily and effectively?
- We need to train and practice good leadership. And we have to accept that we have to train to be good. Just like driving a car, we need to practice driving. Leadership development is not a one-off stunt," she says.
Good managers must practice leadership
Achieving good leadership development takes time. The fact that FRONT Leadership focuses on leadership development that actually takes place over time (9 months) is the main reason why Hildegunn wanted to work for the company.
- It's not enough to just talk and read about how to become a good leader. You have to work on practical issues that feel relevant in everyday work life, over time, in small dribbles," she says.
Results from research (and Hildegunn's own experience) show that this is what has an effect: Bringing about lasting change in the leader. Achieving something that really delivers results definitely gives her the greatest job satisfaction.
- Just being allowed to be with the leaders on the development journey they're going through. It's quite personal for many. Getting that trust from them. To be allowed to be close by. To feel the joy with them when they crack that code. When they say: "Hildegunn, it works!" It's really rewarding," she says enthusiastically.
Managers are not leaders
If leadership cannot be mastered without training, are there still some people who really aren't fit to be leaders?
- There are still some who want to be "bosses". Those who haven't realized that they have to lead people and love people. As a manager, you have to be humble about the fact that management is a people profession. It's also a myth that everyone who progresses in their career wants to be a manager," says Hildegunn.
Great professionals must not become managers
She points out that in many organizations, the only clear career path is to become a manager. The result is that skilled professionals end up as poor leaders, because they continue to be subject matter experts - instead of leading.
- Simply because they have no interest in or knowledge of the management profession. This means that the organization loses good professionals and gets leaders with little interest. As a society, we therefore have a long way to go to find other types of development opportunities for skilled professionals. The same applies to organizations," says Hildegunn.
So, are there personality types that make perfect leaders?
- To be a good leader, you need different qualities in different situations - and when leading different types of people. These qualities are more readily available to some than to others, and no one is equally good at everything," she says.
The myth of the perfect leader is based on the assumption that all leadership situations are the same. But that's not the case, Hildegunn explains.
- The important thing is to be aware of your own strengths and weaknesses, and to believe that it is possible to develop," she says.
