Entrepreneurs are ‘most admired leaders’

Sir Richard Branson is considered a great leader by six times more people than the prime minister, Gordon Brown - a stark sign of the varying popularity of political and business figures.

Six in 10 respondents to a survey for leadership development company Impact International said they rated Sir Richard as one of their most inspirational leaders while four in 10 said the same of Sir Alan Sugar (soon to be Lord Sugar).

Restaurateur Gordon Ramsay and football chief executive Karen Brady grabbed 15 per cent and 11 per cent of the vote respectively, while Sir Alex Ferguson, Joanna Lumley and Stuart Rose also featured prominently.

But it wasn’t such good news for politicians, who after a string of damaging media revelations about inflated expenses are now less popular than at any time in living memory.    

David Cameron was seen to be the best political leader, pointed to by 18 per cent of voters, but just 10 per cent of respondents said the same about the prime minister and Labour Party leader Gordon Brown.

“It’s clear that bosses and business leaders have a lot of work to do and need to raise their game during this testing economic crisis,” said David Williams, chief executive of Impact International.

“While the survey reveals that communication is the most important leadership quality, for organisations to survive and grow, it’s also crucial to positively engage with employees,” he added.

According to the figures, respondents said that communication, motivation and the ability to embrace innovation and change were the top values looked for in great leaders.

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By LaunchLab.co.uk  on   Jun 10,2009

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Keywords

Sir Richard Branson    entrepreneurs    politicians    leaders    Lord Sugar    Sir Alan Sugar   

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