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Human Development &

Leadership Division

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Human Development &

Leadership Division

Communication for Leaders

Diane Kulisek, Lukas Cap, Kemi Sorinmade

Copyright ASQ Human Development and Leadership Division, 2017

1

It is all you have

As a leader, communication is the one indispensable tool you really have

available to do your work. Most definitions of leadership involve

influencing others. That is not possible without some transmission of

information. Your communication may be verbal or it may be nonverbal.

For example, Nelson Mandela’s going to prison communicated an important

message to both his adversaries and his followers. While no words were

attached, the meaning was clear. He was not going to give up until he

achieved his mission.

The consequences of ineffective organizational communication are severe.

They include increased employee turnover, project failure, decreased

customer satisfaction and consequent loss of business. Many disasters can

be attributed to communication failures. For example, the inability of NASA

engineers to effectively communicate the dangers of a cold weather launch

to NASA executives led to the Challenger disaster. Note that we said

effectively. They attempted to communicate the danger, but the

communication was not successful. Communication requires a sender and

recipient. In this case recipient rejected the message.

For thousands of years Aristotle’s rhetoric (Hbrorg, 2013) provided the key

concepts of good communication and persuasion. These concepts are

explained as:

Pathos is the appeal to emotional connection: the reason your audience

believes that what you’re saying matters to them. The importance and the

power of making emotional bonds are more critical than ever for present-

day leaders.

Ethos is essentially a leader’s credibility. In simple terms, it’s the reason

people should trust what a leader is saying. Positive ethos is the central

characteristic of a leader’s ability to persuade her audience. It is the basic

sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs, or practices of a group and is

revealed through the language you use.

However, what would pathos and ethos be without reason: logos? Logos is

recommended particularly in circumstances where the audience is likely to

have difficulty understanding the message. Leaders use common sense to

explain and persuade.

2

Effective communication begins with character

Who you are as a person will influence what you communicate and how

well you connect with those you are communicating with. What you are on

the inside comes out eventually. That is why working on your personal

development will improve your ability to communicate in a way that people

will want to listen to what you have to say. According the Bible: “Out of the

abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks,” (Mathew 12:34). When you

work on yourself your communication improves.

In 2006, Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries gave an interview to

Denizet-Lewis (Huffingtonpost.com, 2013a) in which he stated that the

retail chain’s clothes were exclusively for thin, attractive, “cool kids.” Those

comments were brought back to life in the spring of 2013 when re-quoted

in a widely read Business Insider blog post (Businessinsider.com, 2013). The

comments unleashed strong backlash from social media, consumers,

popular bloggers and high-profile individuals. To make matters worse,

Jeffries waited 12 days after the Business Insider blog post was published to

address the comments, but instead of helping to clarify his intent, his words

only attracted more negative attention. Rather than taking ownership of his

statement and apologizing, Jeffries attempted to invalidate the public

reaction by stating that the quote was “taken out of context,” and that he

regretted his words “were interpreted in a manner that has caused offense,” (Huffingtonpost.com, 2013b).

Jeffries contract was renewed, but he continued to receive negative

attention as people cast doubt on his leadership abilities. He eventually

retired in 2014. He had communicated a public image of arrogance and

insensitivity.

Contrast this with the story of the Japanese Airlines pilot who mistakenly

landed a DC8 in the marshy area of San Francisco Bay short of the runway.

Apparently, he and his co-pilot were using a landing procedure they never

attempted before. When asked by the National Transportation Safety Board

what happened he was said to reply, “I screwed up.”

Though temporarily banned from passenger flights and demoted to first

officer, the pilot continued to fly for JAL for a number of years until his

retirement (Wikipedia.org, 2017).

The pilot demonstrated the character to accept responsibility for his error

and persevered. The Abercrombie & Fitch executive did not and faded from

the scene.

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Emotional Intelligence avoids self-destructive communication

One view of Jeffries’ failure is that he demonstrated a lack of emotional

intelligence (EI). Emotional intelligence was originally described by

psychologists Salovey and Mayer (1989), but was popularized later by

Daniel Goleman (1995) in his book: Emotional Intelligence: Why it can

matter more than IQ.

Goleman’s definition of emotional intelligence is: “Understanding one’s own

feelings, empathy for the feelings of others and the regulation of emotion in

a way that enhances living.” Jeffries failed to anticipate the impact of his

communication on the feelings of others. When his own emotions arose as a

result of the criticism, he failed to communicate constructively.

One of the fundamental claims Goleman made about emotional intelligence

was that, unlike general intelligence (IQ), Emotional Intelligence (measured

as the emotional quotient or ‘EQ’) can be improved through learning and

practice of these principles four principles. First, knowing and managing

one’s own emotions; second, motivating oneself; third recognizing and

understanding the emotions of others, and, finally, managing the emotions

of others or managing relationships. While this claim is controversial, there

appears to be continuing agreement among psychologists and within the

professional development community

that the claim has merit (Hbrorg, 2013).

Salovey and Mayer (1990) described the

process of achieving emotional

intelligence in Figure 1. One begins with

recognizing emotions, moves to

understanding them, then to regulating

them, and finally to using them.

Figure 1

4

The parallel between the process approach to improvement and the

process approach to improving emotional intelligence is intriguing.

Combined with the classic PDSA process improvement model, the evidence

that improvement of EI is similar to improvement of any other process

neatly emerges as follows:

This is a good point at which to begin our exploration of recognizing and

understanding emotions. In an overview of the work done by Goleman

(1995), the FME Team (Free-management-ebooks.com, 2017), listed ten

competencies for emotional intelligence relating to self-awareness and self-

management:

1. Emotional self-awareness: Reading one’s own emotions and

recognizing their impact

2. Accurate self-assessment: Knowing one’s strengths and limits

3. Self-confidence: A sound sense of one’s self-worth and capabilities

4. Emotional self-control: Keeping disruptive emotions and impulses

under control

5. Transparency: Displaying honesty and integrity; trustworthiness

6. Adaptability: Flexibility in adapting to changing situations or

overcoming obstacles

7. Achievement: The drive to improve performance to meet inner

standards of excellence

8. Initiative: Readiness to act and seize opportunities

9. Optimism: Seeing the upside in events

10. Being aware of and understanding one’s own personality, behavior

and emotions should be considered a pre-requisite to recognizing

or understanding these things about others.

Figure 2

5

We must understand that two very different brain systems are

involved in communication

The work of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky (Kahneman, 2011), for

which Kahneman became the first psychologist to win the Nobel Prize (the

2002 Prize in Economic Sciences, as there is no prize in Psychology),

described two cognitive systems in each person. System 1 is unconscious,

primitive, operates quickly, jumps to conclusions, is very resistant to

conflicting information once a conclusion is reached, and makes many of

our decisions. We typically ascribe these decisions to System 2, which is

conscious, slow, rational, and capable of overriding System 1, though it

often does not. But persuasion should not be aimed at System 2. Kahneman

argues that:

System 2 is more of an apologist for the emotions of System 1 than a

critic of those emotions—an endorser rather than an enforcer. Its

search for information and arguments is mostly constrained to

information that is consistent with existing beliefs, not with an

intention to examine them.

Thus, persuasion efforts should be directed at System 1. This is best done

under conditions of cognitive ease, meaning System 2 doesn’t have to strain

to understand the message. Such straining would disrupt the function of

System 1. A message will be most effective when it is simple, clear,

emphatic, memorable. Kahneman points out that a rhymed message is more

memorable than a version of the same message that is not rhymed and is

combined with messages that the listener believes to be true. The message

should be repeated frequently, and sound plausible. Complex arguments

alert System 2 and interfere with the function of System 1, making

persuasion less probable.

Body language and tone of voice are most likely assessed by System 1. We

are often unaware of our tone and body language. However, you definitely

process the tone and body language of someone who is speaking to you, and

it impacts our reaction to a communication.

System 1 is almost certainly where the emotions arise. Remember System 1

is not rational, but has considerable ability to determine behavior.

Emotional intelligence would lie in the ability of System 2, the rational

system, to sometimes exercise control over the behavior suggested by

System 1: behaviour which may be satisfying but strongly contrary to our

interest.

6

Your demonstrated commitment makes an important statement

More important than words is the leader’s demonstration of a personal

commitment to an objective. Nelson Mandela’s commitment to ending

apartheid despite the heavy consequences he knew could (and did) occur,

communicated more than words ever could. The construction executive

who walks through a construction area without a hard hat sends a clear

message of his lack of commitment to safety. The old saying that actions

speak louder than words is important to remember if you truly want to

communicate in an authentic manner.

Find a way to connect with the audience

Everyone you communicate with is different and in order to inspire action,

and achieve desired results you need to connect with them first. Without

connection, the audience may hear what you’re saying, but your words will

have little impact on their thoughts or actions. What follows are six

principles to help enhance your connection with the audience:

1. Develop relationships – Building and maintaining relationships

with the people we want to communicate with is paramount. It is

hard to connect with anyone you don’t have a relationship with. It

is even harder when you do have a relationship, but the

relationship is strained. According to John Maxwell (2010),

“leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand.” As a leader who

wants to communicate effectively, it is imperative to build and

maintain a relationship with your audience. For example, if every

time you communicate with a subordinate it is only transactional

or work related, a barrier between you and that subordinate can

build up over time and may block off communication or build up

resistance when you communicate with them on non-transactional

matters. Some suggestions to help build relationships include

remembering people’s names, focusing on their interests, talking

about things outside of work, and participating together in non-

work-related activities.

2. Build trust – Trust is a major component in effective

communication. In a study conducted by Interaction Associates,

(Interactionassociates.com, 2017) 82% of respondents affirmed

that trust in both their bosses and direct reports is essential to be

effective in their work. A lack of trust affects communication in

both directions. When a leader cannot be trusted, his or her word

7

fall on deaf ears. In addition, people will not be inclined to share

ideas, information, and opinions with a leader they don’t trust.

Trust is a by-product of integrity and competence. As a leader who

wants to communicate effectively, maintaining good character and

demonstrating results is required. For example, if you have not

kept promises in the past, if you don’t model what you are asking

others to do, or if you lack competence, it will be hard to establish

trust (Covey & Merrill, 2006). In a high trust relationship, you can

say the wrong thing and people will assume the best.

3. Make it about the audience – Are you communicating a new

initiative? Are you sharing a new idea with your boss or your team?

What is in it for them? What is the purpose behind what you are

saying? When we communicate with others, it is often to inspire

action. Even if what you are communicating may have no direct

impact on the listener, establishing what their perspective is will

make your communication more effective. When you hear your

name in a conversation, your ears perk up. You tell yourself, “this is

about me.” How can you make your communication about your

audience? How can you instil a sense of purpose in what you are

asking for?

If you are implementing a new procedure and you are

communicating it to your team you could share first why the new

procedure is needed and how it affects or benefits everyone

involved. If you are asking for information from a subordinate or

supplier or if you are asking for information, prefacing your

request with “why” will make your communication clear and more

effective. Incidentally, if you are introducing a new objective that

will actually not benefit your audience, do not try to convince them

it will benefit them. This will erode trust.

4. Find common ground – Establishing common ground is a way we

build relationships with others. It helps to break down any

resistance, build rapport, and makes you and your audience more

comfortable with each other. Furthermore, when you think of

building common ground as a prerequisite for communication, it

will help you become more effective. In fact, the word

communication comes from Latin word communis meaning

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common. Before we can communicate we must establish

commonality. Madeline Albright portrays this concept well: “No

matter what message you are about to deliver somewhere, whether it

is holding out a hand of friendship, or making clear that you

disapprove of something, is the fact that the person sitting across the

table is a human being, so the goal is to always establish common

ground,” (Huffingtonpost.com, 2010).

Before you communicate ask yourself what is the common goal or

problem? Are you trying to talk with a difficult employee? Have you

established common ground? For example, you could find

something you have in common with that employee and build a

relationship based on that. Then in terms of what you’re trying to

communicate with the employee, what is the common goal or

problem? Can you identify a past experience common to both of

you that you could lead with in your conversation? For example:

“Bob, you know last time we were audited, there were so many

findings and we had to work extra hours for many weeks to keep

our certification. I remember how this affected things at home for

you. Don’t forget to use the procedure next time you perform that

test.” From this example, you can see that connecting with others

takes time and a lot of energy, and is something that should be

done an on-going basis to make sure that our communication with

others continues to be effective.

5. Go to where they are – This is meant literally and figuratively.

Proximity affects communication in a positive way. Engaging in

acts such as not showing up, having a closed-door policy, or not

facing your audience when you communicate create barriers over

time that affect the way people respond to you. The thirty minutes

you spend on the floor connecting with subordinates will pay more

dividends than the thirty minutes you spend in your office. As a

leader, to communicate effectively, you have to consider the other

person’s perspective. How do they think? How are they likely to

react? What is their background? What are they going through, and

what do they know that you don’t know? This requires you to care

about your audience, understand them, ask questions and have a

good listening ear, always.

9

6. Prepare for communication - The physical set up is important. If

you want to give instructions to a subordinate, sitting behind a

desk facing your subordinate who is seated in a modest chair will

work. If you want to converse with a colleague, sitting in equal

chairs with no desk is appropriate. If you sit at the head of a

meeting table, that puts you symbolically in charge of the meeting.

You should always think about what is being communicated by

your physical set up. If you want to be king, obtain a throne and

place it on a raised platform. Other hints for preparation include

prevent or minimize interference or distractions. Move to a private

area, close the door, put down anything that is being held, and

silence phones and pagers. Face the person you wish to

communicate with. Engage; look the person in the eyes. Pay

attention; lean slightly forward to show attentiveness; let the

person know you are hearing her by providing frequent feedback,

but do not interrupt. Ask questions only after she has stopped

speaking.

Some insights about constructing your message

Yale psychologist Carl Hovland, inspired by Aristotle’s principles, studied

persuasion. The work of his group for the War Department in World War II,

led to a book, Experiments on Mass Communication (Hovland, Lumsdaine,

and Sheffield, 1949) which is still important nearly 70 years since it was

written. One of the issues they faced was, that after the defeat of Germany,

there was general belief that the war was pretty much over. In fact the

military leadership, unaware of the nuclear bomb, believed that it would be

a long and difficult fight to subdue Japan. The leadership had to decide the

best way to persuade the troops that the war would be long. They modelled

two arguments: 1) a one-sided presentation offering only the arguments for

a long war or 2) a two-sided presentation offering both the arguments for a

short war and the arguments for a long war with the message that the

arguments for a long war should prevail.

The results were surprising. For the less educated troops the one-sided

argument was most effective in changing opinions. For the troops with

more education the two-sided argument was most effective.

For an effective two-sided message, the main opposing arguments should

be mentioned at the very outset. An attempt to disprove opposing

arguments should be made only when a clear, compelling, and strictly

factual contradiction is available. The opposing argument should be

10

followed by an uncontroversial positive argument. Furthermore, “the

timing in presenting counter arguments should be: positive argument,

counter argument, and then refutation of the counter argument,” (Hovland,

et al., 1949).

A possible explanation of this comes from Carder (Asqhdandl.org, 2017)

who says in his article, Effective Persuasion, One Side vs Two Sides:

I know that whenever I hear an aggressive, one-sided argument, I

rehearse counterarguments vigorously and I know that I am more

likely to change my opinion when confronted with a more balanced

two-sided presentation. When I am in a dialogue with someone who

refuses to acknowledge counterarguments, I am very resistant to

change.

Following Hovland's death, his attitude change program was characterised

as “the largest single contribution [to the field of social communication] any

man has made,” (Schramm, 1963). Furthermore, Carder (Asqhdandl.org,

2017) commented that it is amazing that this research is still influential

nealy 70 years later.

Professional communication on Social Media

In the past ten years, Social Media has gained a lot of ground and is the

platform through which a large portion of the world population interacts

with one another.

A number of social media platforms, e.g., Twitter, Facebook, intranets,

LinkedIn, etc. are now used professionally. Most businesses, individuals and

organizations use social media as a way to connect with customers and

communicate with employees. Professional associations like ASQ use social

media for marketing and education.

For the quality leader, social media can be used as a means to connect with

other professionals, share valuable information, or search for a job.

Publishing an article on LinkedIn, for instance, is a way for professionals to

be seen as experts. This affords you the opportunity to show your value,

which may in turn create opportunities to communicate to a diverse

audience.

Principles of communication described above generally apply to

communication with social media, although sometimes in different ways.

Pathos is very important in making a message stand out. Ethos, or

credibility cannot be gained through the recipient’s personal knowledge of

11

the communicator. To establish your credibility requires frequent credible

communications. Logos is important of course. The logic of your posts will

be tested by many possible respondents.

While character is important in communication, the lack of personal contact

in social media means that character will be deduced from the content of

one’s posts. When making a post it is important to think about what this

post says about you. Are you generous or selfish? Are you empathetic? Are

you idealistic or cynical? These are just some of the dimensions of your

communication that need to be considered.

Communicating with emotional intelligence is a way to demonstrate

character.

Many of the ways that leaders connect with their audience are unavailable

on social media. The key here is to understand your audience and gear your

communication accordingly.

Two problems with social media you should be aware of are Noise and

Inappropriate communication.

Noise

Studies reveal that there are millions of users on social media today.

According to (Smart Insights, 2017), there are over 1,870 million active

users on Facebook, 1,000 million on What’s App, and 106 million users on

Linked In, plus millions on countless other platforms. Thus social media,

though potentially very useful, has become saturated. It takes implementing

the effective communication methods mentioned prior to stand out and

make your message heard.

Inappropriate communication

Social media with its short posts and quick responses are ideal platforms

for impulsive behaviour, which is associated with System 1. Furthermore,

Goleman and other psychologists (2007) talk about flaming (the online

disinhibition effect) which applies to the many ways people behave without

restraint online. Because personal contact is not necessary and social clues

are absent (e.g. no facial expressions, change in voice from you or person

that you are communicating with), social media has become a place where

misunderstanding and lack of empathy can easily propagate. More serious

is that inappropriate communication on social media can damage your

reputation as a leader. People have lost jobs, trust has been betrayed and

12

influence has been lost because of an inappropriate tweet or post. The same

rules that apply to communicating face to face should be followed.

On any social media platform, in order to stand out and get your message

heard, you need to use more than ever your System 2 where emotional

intelligence lies. Follow the communication principles we have discussed

earlier in this primer and use common sense to explain and persuade. You

must connect with your audience so that you can catch their attention.

Authenticity remains key. Since there’s no face-to-face interaction there is a

temptation to portray yourself as someone you are not. Those who tell their

true story are the ones who will stand out. If you publish an article on

LinkedIn, sharing a related personal story allows your audience to identify

with you.

Consistency still matters. In order to be effective you must use the platform

systematically and consistently. Because there are millions of posts each

day on the various platforms, the effective life span of any post is very short.

Depending on the kind of response you get in terms of likes, shares and

comments by your audience, the maximum effectiveness of a post can range

from a only few minutes on Twitter to a couple of hours on Facebook

(Mtomconsulting.com, 2016). This means your post will only be seen by a

small fraction of followers.

To maximize your impact on social media try interacting with your

audience. The simplest forms of interaction are liking, sharing, and

commenting on other people’s posts, and of course, acknowledging those

who do the same for you. Forming that connection and being consistent,

along with providing interesting and useful content are keys to standing out

and rising above the inappropriate communication and noise of social

media.

Conclusion

We hope that this primer will assist you in learning to be a better

communicator. Whether you are an experienced professional or just

starting on your journey, when you lead others, you must be mindful,

confident, and you must be clear. Thus, you can manage expectations of

others around you. As you improve your leadership communication and

continue to seek challenges, be aware that difficult situations may find you.

If you don’t maintain your leadership communication continuously through

study and practice, your abilities may deteriorate. Make a commitment to

improve and believe that you can be successful in that commitment.

13

1. Get honest feedback on your efforts to communicate.

2. Find a coach who is an excellent communicator.

3. Relate the principles in this primer to your successes and failures

as a communicator. This should help you target the areas where

you need the most improvement.

4. Practice. Seek out opportunities to communicate rather than trying

to avoid them.

5. Celebrate your successes and view your failures as learning

opportunities.

There is no limit to your success if you continue to engage in your

improvement efforts.

References

Asqhdandlorg. (2017). ASQ Human Development and Leadership Division.

Retrieved 5 September, 2017, from http://asqhdandl.org/blog/effective-

persuasion-one-side-vs-two-sides-by-brooks-carder-phd

Aristotle (2012) The Art of Rhetoric London: Harper Press

Danielgolemaninfo. (2007). Daniel Goleman. Retrieved 20 September, 2017,

from http://www.danielgoleman.info/flame-first-think-later-new-clues-to-

e-mail-misbehavior/

Businessinsidercom. (2013). Abercrombie & Fitch Refuses To Make Clothes

For Large Women. Retrieved 5 September, 2017, from

http://www.businessinsider.com/abercrombie-wants-thin-customers-

2013-5

Covey, S. M. R., & Merrill, R. R. (2006). The speed of trust: The one thing that

changes everything. New York NY: Free Press

Hbrorg. (2013). Harvard Business Review. Retrieved 5 September, 2017,

from https://hbr.org/2013/01/three-elements-of-great-communication-

according

Free-management-ebookscom. (2017). Free-management-ebookscom.

Retrieved 5 September, 2017, from http://www.free-management-

ebooks.com/dldebk-pdf/fme-understanding-emotional-intelligence.pdf

14

Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ.

New York: Bantam Books.

Hbrorg. (2013). Harvard Business Review. Retrieved 5 September, 2017,

from https://hbr.org/2013/05/can-you-really-improve-your-em

Hovland, C. I., Lumsdaine A. A., Sheffield, F. D. (1949). Experiments on Mass

Communication. London: Princeton University Press

Huffingtonpostcom. (2010). HuffPost. Retrieved 5 September, 2017, from

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marianne-schnall/madeleine-albright-an-

exc_b_604418.html

Huffingtonpostcom. (2013a). Abercrombie & Fitch Refuses To Make Clothes

For Large Women. Retrieved 5 September, 2017, from

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/16/abercrombie-fitch-ceo-

controversy_n_3286502.html

Huffingtonpostcom. (2013b). Abercrombie And Fitch’s Semi-Apology Didn’t

Go Over Too Well (PHOTOS). Retrieved 5 September, 2017, from

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/16/abercrombie-fitch-ceo-

controversy_n_3286502.html

Interactionassociates.com. (2017). Interaction Associates. Retrieved 5

September, 2017, from

http://interactionassociates.com/insights/research/building-workplace-

trust-201415

Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. New York: Farrar, Straus and

Giroux.

Maxwell, J. C. (2010) Everyone Communicates Few Connect: What the Most

Effective People Do Differently. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Mtomconsultingcom. (2016). MtoM Consulting. Retrieved 3 October, 2017,

from http://mtomconsulting.com/lifespan-social-media-post/

Salovey, P & Mayer, A. .J. (1989). Emotional intelligence. Imagination,

Cognition, and Personality, 9(3), 185-211.

Schramm, W. (1963) Communication research in the United States. In The

Science of Human Communication, ed. W. Schramm, pp. 1-16. New York:

Basic Books.

Smartinsightscom. (2017, 27 April 2017). Global Social Media Statistics

Summary 2017. [Weblog]. Retrieved 29 September 2017, from

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http://www.smartinsights.com/social-media-marketing/social-media-

strategy/new-global-social-media-research/

Wikipediaorg. (2017). Wikipediaorg. Retrieved 5 September, 2017, from

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Airlines_Flight_2

Acknowledgments The team would like to thank Dr. Brooks Carder for his help in creation of this primer.

16

About the Authors

Diane Kulisek is quality assurance professional who has

enabled measurable improvement &for start-ups,

turnarounds, small, medium, large and huge

organizations, across multiple industries, markets and

technologies. Diane has a collaborative leadership style;

cross-functional team approach and emphasizes long-

term strategic vision with near term focus upon tangible

deliverables. She holds a BA in Biology and MS in Engineering from

California State University-Northridge. Diane is a certified Quality Engineer,

Manager of Quality and Organizational Excellence and is a senior member

of American Society for Quality.

Lukas Cap has a BA (honours) in Psychology from Dublin

Business School. He is a certified six-sigma green belt and

a member leader of the American Society for Quality

(Human Development and Leadership Division). Lukas

has worked in the telecommunications and information

industry for over a decade and is passionate about

communication and process improvement. He particularly

values the application of the principles of psychology and

communication to the technology and services industry. He maintains a

fervent interest in the benefits of continuous improvement, leadership and

human development.

Kemi Sorinmade is a certified leadership trainer,

speaker, and coach currently serving organizations and

individuals in the area of performance improvement and

leadership development. She brings over twenty years of

combined engineering, project and quality management

experience successfully leading projects, running

business operations, managing quality systems, and

championing new initiatives. Kemi has conducted and facilitated a number

of her signature leadership talks and training programs at various ASQ

sections and conferences. She is the CEO and founder of The Growth Studio,

a leadership development firm that equips science, technology, quality and

engineering organizations with the strategies to improve team performance

and retain happy and engaged employees. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in

Chemical Engineering and a Master’s degree in Engineering Management

from Northeastern University, Boston.

17

ABOUT THE PRIMER

This primer is brought to you by ASQ's Human

Development & Leadership Division. Our mission

is ‘To enrich the personal and professional lives of

our membership, and the global community, to

triumph over current and future challenges. ‘

We serve the community by providing

publications like this, education, webinars,

conferences and other resources for personal and

professional growth and for leadership skills development.

To learn more about us, and to see our entire library of primers and

webinars you can visit us at http://asqhdandl.org/

Wanda Sturm, Chair, HD&L Division, ASQ

ASQ Human Development and Leadership Division www.ASQHDANDL.ORG