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Volume 22, Number 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

The Leadership Gap

Building Leadership Capacity
for Competitive Advantage

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

2005 Dr. David S. Weiss and Dr. Vince Molinaro
Adapted by permission of John Wiley & Sons Canada, Ltd.
ISBN: 0-470-83568-0

Reviewed by Lydia Morris Brown

Introduction
Because leaders must shape their organizations, build teams, drive results, and inspire their employees to deliver value,
leadership is a critical source of competitive advantage in todays economy. However, Weiss and Molinaros research has
found that many senior executives have little confidence that their organizations possess this kind of leadership capability.
Despite widespread investments in management and leadership education, there appears to be a wide gap between actual
leadership practices and the results needed to succeed in changing business environments long term.
Drawing on their extensive research and experience in the field, the authors present The Leadership Gap, a practical
strategic road map, which executives, managers, and HR leaders can use to respond to this disparity. This strategic guide
offers a comprehensive approach, the Holistic Leadership Framework, which balances the responsibility of leaders in
developing their leadership capacity with the organizations responsibility to provide leadership development and manage
key leadership talent.
Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

The Leadership Gap

PART I: LEADERSHIP CAPACITY AND THE

LEADERSHIP GAP

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

Their research has found, however, that, despite

widespread investments in management/leadership
education, many companies and public sector
organizations worldwide are falling short in their
attempts to bridge the four interrelated aspects of
leadershiptalent, capability, values, and development.

The speed and complexity of change is escalating

so dramatically that a different kind of organizational
response and a different kind of leadership are needed in
order to keep organizations from becoming irrelevant.
Thus, the consensus among leading
Many senior Human Resources professionals link the effectivebusiness thinkers, say Weiss and
ness of responding to business challenges to the strength of the
Molinaro, is that leadership
leadership capacity that exists in their organizations. They also
capacitythe extent to which
recognize that traditional strategies to build leadership capacity
organizations can optimize their are inadequate to address the leadership gap.
current and future leadership to drive
business results and successfully
And this shortfall (or leadership gap) is preventing them
meet the challenges and opportunities of an ever-changing
from building the leadership capacity they need to ensure
business environmenthas become mission critical.
their long-term survival.

About the Authors

Dr. David Weiss is vice president and chief innovation officer of Knightsbridge, a Canadian human
capital management firm. He has been providing consulting services in the field of leadership
and HR consulting for the past 20 years and has
developed an extensive practice in strategic and
business planning, integrated leadership development, human resources strategy, organizational
consulting, and executive coaching. Dr. Weiss is
a sought-after keynote speaker and also author of
Beyond the Walls of Conflict, In Search of the 18th
Camel, and the HR bestseller, High Performance
HR: Leveraging Human Resources for Competitive
Advantage.
Dr. Vince Molinaro is a Knightsbridge principal and a National Practice Leader in leadership
capacity. He has provided consulting services in
the field of leadership, organizational development,
and executive team development for the past 15
years, and he is a keynote speaker on the topics
of building leadership capacity, holistic leadership,
creating high-performance culture, and executive
team development. Dr. Molinaro has also published
extensively in journals and business magazines.
For more information, please visit:
www.knightsbridge.ca

The pool of young talent, which should be ready to

move into senior leadership roles, is steadily shrinking,
due to ongoing demographic changes in the workforce.
Organizational restructuring has, in addition, eradicated
the hierarchical layers that once provided potential leaders
with the career opportunities needed to develop their
skills, capabilities, and maturity. Thus, extreme pressure
exists to attract, retain, and develop a strong group of
potential leaders both from within and from outside the
organization.
A significant gap also exists in such critical areas of
leadership capability as team building, gaining employee
commitment, making employees feel valued, strategic
thinking, and bringing a holistic perspective to the business.
Given this reality, a clear priority for organizations will
be to ensure that leadership development programs help
leaders acquire the capability to inspire, engage, and align
their employees.
Unfortunately, many leadership development practices
are often fragmented and, thus, lack an overall strategy.
They tend to focus on leadership at the top at the expense
of building leadership capacity at all levels. They often
adopt models and strategies that are generic, outdated, and
too theoretical to connect with the day-to-day realities of
leadership. They seem to stress personal attributes rather
than tangible business results. And, they rely too heavily
on irrelevant classroom training. Weiss and Molinaro also
note that, many HR leaders do not know how to
influence CEOs and boards to assume responsibility and
accountability for this aspect of leadership.

Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

Page 2

The Leadership Gap

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

Finally, a critical gap exists between the work-related

values of current executive leaders and those of younger
middle managers. Studies have shown that current
executives tend to value individualistic leadership and
every-person-for-himself competitiveness. In contrast,
younger managers value collaboration, stakeholder
management, use of influence, and building leadership
throughout the ranks. They believe that many executives
fail to realize their own inadequacies and, thus, do not allow
middle managers to demonstrate their leadership talents
and capabilities. And, they see the extra demands and

In contrast, holistic leaders, because of their whole and

complete way of thinking about organization and leadership,
are able to balance the dynamic interplay between the
integrative and self-assertive tendencies that exist within
themselves, the team, the organization, and the entire
economic landscape. Nonetheless, this kind of leadership
is not the either/or of holistic versus functional; rather, it
emphasizes and/also, validating functional leadership in
the context of holistic leadership. It addresses leadership
capacitys new requirement that both the big picture and
its component parts be understood.
Through their research and
Individual leaders must commit to becoming holistic leaders
experience with hundreds of clients
and integrating the six elements of the Holistic Leadership
over the past two decades, Weiss and
Framework. Organizations must focus on helping their leaders
Molinaro have developed the Holistic
develop each of these six elements because they ... represent
Leadership Framework, which consists
the leadership capacity required in the future.
of six integrated elements: (1) customer
pressures of senior leadership positions as being in direct
leadership, (2) business strategy, (3) culture and values,
conflict with their desire to live balanced lives.
(4) organizational leadership, (5) team leadership, and
Weiss and Molinaro believe a partnership between
(6) personal leadership. These six elements define the
the organization and its leaders is the key to bridging the
kind of leadership capacity needed by organizations in
gap across these four aspects of leadership and building
the new business environment and form the foundation
leadership capacity. They advocate a balanced approach in
for developing the balanced and integrated perspective
which leaders take responsibility for self-development and
required to bridge the talent, capability, development, and
the organization commits to establishing the infrastructure
values aspects of the leadership gap.
that enables leaders to learn.
Customer leadership means that all leaders, no matter
where they work in the organization, align around a
PART II: HOLISTIC LEADERSHIP
common understanding of how to deliver value to the
The inability to bridge the leadership capacity gap
external customer. It forms the centerpiece of the holistic
and, thus, optimize organizational performance can be
framework because it is the focus of all leadership. It
explained, in part, by the inability of leaders to see both
is the launching pad for business strategy, functions
the forest as well as the trees. They may operate
as a core value that shapes organizational culture, and
effectively as functional leaders, able to see individual
aligns all areas, focusing team efforts and personal
trees and bark, but they are less effective as holistic
leadership in the achievement of optimum organizational
leaders who, understanding the interdependencies of what
performance. Thus, customer leadership supports all the
they do, perceive the entire forest and the surrounding
other components of the holistic framework, which, in turn,
environment. Functional leadership (leadership that
contribute collectively to successful customer outcomes.
views the organizations core disciplines as separate from
Effectively demonstrating strong customer leadership
one another) can, of course, be useful in solving technical
requires that all leaders actively listen for the customers
challenges. However, when it develops into an entrenched
voice (i.e., interests, concerns, motivations, etc.) in
mindset, functional leadership can become a source
everything they do: They must build liaisons with sales
of organizational dysfunction, creating intellectual and
and marketing so as to understand what the customer is
structural rigidity, an overemphasis on rigorous analysis in
telling them directly. They must invite other business unit
problem-solving, and the rule of top-down authority and
leaders into their functional arenas so as to gain a holistic
decision-making.
perspective of customer challenges. And, they must ensure
Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

Page 3

The Leadership Gap

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

that every leadership team meeting includes a discussion

Weiss and Molinaro argue that both approaches are
about how value is being created for the customer.
valid in a holistic framework, for both are necessary for
Demonstrating strong customer leadership also
building the leadership capacity that most businesses need.
requires that leaders be customer advocates, despite what
They note that strategic planning without the dynamic of
others in the organization are or are not doing. Thus, they
strategic thinking is static. And, strategic thinking, without
need to implement only those changes that are customer
a viable strategic plan, cannot be implemented. Thus,
driven. They must be knowledgeable about how the entire
success with this element means developing excellence in
value chain delivers customer value and ensure that
each phase of the business strategy processarchitecting
interdependencies work efficiently and effectively. And,
the strategy, balancing priorities, creating contingency
they need to articulate all objectives and measures
Achieving customer loyalty functions as a core value
in such a way that there is a clear connection to the
that shapes the culture of the organization. It aligns all
value these objectives create for the customer.
areas to achieve organizational leadership. It focuses
The new arena for customer leadership also efforts for team and personal leadership.
requires achieving customer loyalty in addition
to delivering enhanced value. For, as Weiss
scenarios, deploying plans, and evaluating outcomes.
and Molinaro note, customer loyalty is essential in most
Architecting requires an inductive thought process
business sectors in order to retain customers in the face
(characterized by strategic thinking) to identify innovative
of aggressive competition. Leaders who wish to deliver
ideas for co-creating value with customers and others. It also
this kind of value must work to create an environment
requires deduction as a means of reducing the big picture
and culture characterized by: the agility to adapt and
and core strategies into workable goals, metrics, outcomes,
respond quickly to marketplace opportunities, broad versus
and accountabilities.
business/product-focused thinking, blurred reporting
Because the essence of strategy is choosing what
lines, internal cross-functional team approaches, and
not to do, leaders need to revisit priorities and remove
reward systems that support both team and personal
unnecessary goals and projects in order to free themselves
contributions.
from the extraneous and focus on what really needs
The speed of change in the business environment
to be done. A primary challenge in this arena is how
makes it necessary for all leaders in the organization (not
to balance the forces for growth with the forces for
just senior executives or the strategic planning department)
efficiency and economies of scalea task that many
to understand business strategy; to think strategically
organizations do through such work optimization initiatives
in order to react quickly to change; and to align their
as: reallocating resources through vacancy analyses,
actions, and the direction of their teams, to the business
redeployment of underutilized resources, and FTE (full
strategy. Analyzing the environment, and generating a
time equivalent) realignment; establishing standards
long list of strategies and tactics in response (the shotgun
through benchmarking; using talent upgrades and/or
approach), tends to generate such leadership problems as
shared services to reduce the total FTEs; reducing the
excessive waste, distraction, exhaustion, confusion, and
total FTEs by abandoning, delaying, or streamlining
ineffectiveness as leaders attempt to work on multiple
nonessential work; and/or changing the balance of FTEs
strategies of mixed value.
within and outside the organization through outsourcing.
The alternative laser beam approach requires focus
Whereas balancing priorities focuses on how to grow
and precision and guides leaders at all levels to concentrate
in a climate of constraint, contingency scenario planning
on what is important, to continually make choices that align
involves preparing for the worst and knowing how to
all organizational, team, and personal leadership activities
respond if the worst occurs. The more uncertain the
with the intended strategic outcomes, and to achieve results
environment and the competitive arena, the more essential
with minimal waste and distraction. However, some are of
the contingency scenario planning process becomes.
the opinion that this kind of stable linear process does not
Effective leaders anticipate and respond to these
allow for dynamic strategic thinking.
contingency challenges quickly and professionally.
Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

Page 4

The Leadership Gap

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

Weiss and Molinaro warn that leaders who do not

give as much attention to deploying strategic plans as they
do to architecting, balancing priorities, and contingency
scenarios are missing the essential purpose of the strategy
development process. Strategy deployment is continuous
and should be considered even as the plan is architected,
announced, and completed.
The probability of effective deployment can also
be increased when leaders: develop mini business-unit
strategies that align with the overall plan; ensure that
employees understand the strategic direction and have
individual performance accountabilities that are directly
linked to the plan; implement a set of metric indicators
to track progress on the strategy; remove any problematic
systems and processes that can limit the plans effectiveness;
and stand prepared to modify the plan as conditions change.
In addition, leaders must take care to spend as much

form a critical component of holistic leadership. They

embody an enduring and integrating ideal that distinguishes
an organization and communicates its unique identity
to employees, customers, and stakeholders. However,
because culture is fragile, leaders must continuously act to
strengthen it by leading culture change, integrating values
into the organization, and using culture and values to drive
employee engagement.
Leading culture change means paying attention to the
three variables of mindset, structure, and rewards. Mindset,
the common understanding throughout the organization
that culture change is urgently needed, is the first step
to generating commitment and engagement. Because
structure helps employees work more effectively together
in bringing about a new culture, leaders need to redesign
reporting relationships, roles, and accountabilities as a
means of enabling a new culture to take a firm hold. And,
rewards (i.e., incentives and consequences) must
The process of strategy development should serve
be in place to reinforce the new culture on an
the dual purpose of producing a deployable plan and
ongoing basis.
further developing the strategic thinking capabilities of
Holistic leaders integrate values into
high-potential leaders.
organizational practices by making values part
time and effort communicating the strategy as they do
of the organizations strategic framework, by using values to
developing it.
develop team behavioral commitments, and by developing
In the evaluating outcomes phase, the challenge is to
recognition award programs to motivate desired behavior.
develop the capacity to rise above the micro measures that
They select, develop, and promote leaders who live the
govern day-to-day performance management objectives,
values. And, they leverage values to create a compelling
understand the big-picture strategy expectations, and heed
workplace by inspiring employees, establishing a sense of
early warning indicators.
community, fostering an open and supportive environment,
Holistic leaders know how to participate in all these
celebrating achievements, and promoting a climate of
phases of business strategy. They ensure that the customercontinuous learning.
focus strategies and business strategies are implemented in
When leaders view culture as a means of getting
a manner that aligns and engages all their employees. And,
the most out of employees, a disengaged and exhausted
because they understand that exposure to strategic issues is
workforce is usually the result. For this reason, holistic
very beneficial for leadership development, they leverage
leaders develop cultures that can get the best from their
the process as another learning-experience opportunity for
people. They continually think about the extent to which
high-potential leaders. This increases the probability that
their employees are personally invested in, and engaged
the organization has the leadership capacity to meet its
with, the organizations culture and values. Moreover, they
future leadership challenges.
understand that being a part of a winning organization,
According to Weiss and Molinaro, culture consists
working for admired leaders, having positive working
of the distinguishing customs and ways of doing things
relationships, doing meaningful work, being recognized
that are unique to one organization over another. And,
and appreciated, and living a balanced life are the critical
values represent what is fundamentally important to the
factors that drive employee engagement.
organizationthey guide behavior and decision-making
Unlike leaders burdened with a functional mindset that
and help employees set priorities. Thus, culture and values
points them toward a vertical organizational perspective,
Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

Page 5

The Leadership Gap

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

holistic leaders are able to guide their departmental

to leverage the potential of individual team members as
functions and also direct across functional boundaries,
a means of creating something greater than the sum of
effectively leading the organization as a whole and
its parts. Leaders exercise strong team leadership by:
integrating alignment and engagement. Alignment reflects
aligning and engaging senior management teams with a
the degree to which business units, departments, and teams
common strategic direction; defining success for the whole
are able to work together efficiently, moving the entire
company, and building collective leadership, rather than
organization in the same direction, to implement business
being self-absorbed with their own agendas; creating open
strategy and drive customer leadership. And, engagement
communication through dialogue; and enabling teams to
reflects the degree to which everyone in the organization
deal with ambiguity, uncertainty, and conflict.
is personally and deeply committed to, and invested in, the
Because sustaining these kinds of optimum conditions
success of the entire enterprise.
requires proper maintenance, the authors suggest eight
High-performance organizations take a balanced
tactics that leaders can implement on a daily basis: (1)
approach to achieve both high alignment and high
Enhance the teams knowledge of itself so that members
engagement. In these enterprises, leaders
Leadership is largely about alignment and engagement.
recognize that the path to long-term, sustained
Any manager can get people to do things. But real leadsuccess comes from attending to both business
ers align work and engage people to the companys
results and people. Thus, power and authority take
future direction and energize their people to that direca back seat to influence and the kind of stakeholder tion. ... This is what is at the core of leadership.
management that chooses to collaborate with
fellow leaders, employees, suppliers, advocacy groups, and
understand the teams fundamental task, understand
regulators. And, there is a clear sense of the customer and
their strengths and weaknesses, and understand the
a comprehensible business strategy that drives customer
environmental issues with which they must contend.
leadership.
(2) Allow the team to gel (team relationships are a
High-performance leaders have an enterprisewide
fundamental success factor) before focusing on the results
perspective, they consider the ripple effects of their
it must attain. (3) Measure the team against collective
actions on other functions and departments, and they work
goals instead of against individual performance goals. (4)
in the interests of the whole business. Thus, work processes,
Create team commitments. (5) Establish a clear decisioninformation, and ideas flow smoothly up, down, and across
making process so as to reduce confusion and ensure that
the organization. Shared learning among departments,
decisions get made. (6) Identify mutual expectations and
joint planning and problem solving, common processes,
interdependencies so as to avoid the tendency for team
collaboration on specific cross-functional initiatives, and
members to work at cross purposes. (7) Use coaching to
structural integration are used to increase enterprisewide
drive team performance. (8) Manage team conflict so that
collaboration and integration. Employees are engaged
it acts as a mechanism to strengthen relationships, address
with the culture and values, they understand the big
issues openly, and make better business decisions.
picture, and they know how their work contributes to the
The final element in the Holistic Leadership Framework
organizations success with customers. And, performance
is personal leadership, which Weiss and Molinaro define
measures and rewards are aligned to the business strategy
as the ability ... to lead in a more reflective and conscious
and implemented in an engaging manner.
manner. From their perspective, leaders must build inner
According to the authors, because of the complexity
strength so that customer, organization, and team leadership
of the business environment, organizations can no longer
efforts are effective and so they can create successful
rely on a few minds at the top to resolve complicated
business strategy, culture, and values.
challenges and make effective business decisions. Thus,
However, the authors research found that many
most great organizational accomplishments are the result
leaders fail in this attempt because of personal arrogance,
of the collective intelligence of strong teams, and strong
emotional incompetence, domineering leadership styles,
teams require effective team leadershipthe capacity
conflict avoidance, and/or risk aversion. Thus, they offer
Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

Page 6

The Leadership Gap

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

their CAPABLE Personal Leadership Model, in which the

letters of the acronym CAPABLE represent actions that
allow leaders to better focus and integrate the other elements
of the leadership framework: Cultivate credibility, Achieve
results, Practice humility, Acquire perspective, Build
leaders, Leverage conversations, and Exercise work/life
balance.

Second, organizations need a compelling story that

communicates its leadership philosophy and approach. This
story, which should be built around compelling challenges,
related to the personal actions of individual leaders, and
carefully crafted and communicated, must become part
of the organizations folklore. And, it should create an
expectation that leaders will behave consistently with the
story and its message.
PART III: LEADERSHIP CAPACITY
Third, organizations need to find the most entrenched
IMPLEMENTATION
organizational process (e.g., the employee survey, the
Weiss and Molinaro believe that, collectively, the six
quality audit, or performance management) and anchor
elements of the holistic leadership framework will focus
leadership capacity to it.
leaders on driving business results; create the conditions for
The long-range benefits of using these strategies in
the organization to achieve sustainable business alignment,
combination are substantial: Leaders have a clear and usable
approach to leading their organizations. And,
The struggles in the implementation of leadership
they can move more easily between functional
capacity stem from a lack of a comprehensive organizaareas and adjust more quickly to their new roles.
tional approach. Some organizations do not even have
Employees can also move more easily between
a strategy. Other organizations have a series of pracfunctional areas and adjust more quickly to a
tices ... that exist in isolation from one another.
new leadership approach. Senior executives can
be more confident that all the leaders within the
employee engagement, and customer loyalty; and bridge the
organization can understand and utilize all the leadership
leadership gap. However, organizations must concentrate
messages executives communicate. And, HR professionals
on helping their leaders develop each of these elements by
can develop formal and informal learning experiences
putting in place the systems, processes, and development
and processes, which can be applied throughout the
needed to implement holistic leadership. Building this
organization.
kind of leadership capacity requires a comprehensive
Although many view succession planning as a process
enterprisewide strategy that integrates four critical success
to identify successors for every senior position in the
factors: (1) embedding a common leadership approach
organization, Weiss and Molinaro believe this approach
into the organization, (2) focusing on critical positions and
results in valueless lists ... a vanilla solution that
key talent, (3) applying an integrated-solution approach to
overprotects some leadership positions that are not at great
leadership development, and (4) having clear accountabilities
risk, and ... underprotects some critical positions. These
that ensure leadership capacity remains as a top priority for
positions, which are key to the organizations achievement
executives, line managers, and HR professionals.
of sustainable competitive advantage or parity, include:
Weiss and Molinaro define embedded leadership as
jobs that are important to the businesss short- and longthe process of ensuring that leadership capacity is seen
term strategic direction, those that consist of multiple vital
and becomes an integral part of the very fabric of the
roles, those with extensive and deep networks that influence
organization. In their research, the authors have found
key stakeholders, those that have a major impact on the
three overlapping foundational strategies that contribute
organization if they are not filled, and those that will be
to this kind of process. The first, ensuring a secure supply
required in the future because of the evolving business.
of leadership talent, can be accomplished by developing
Because organizations need to give extra attention
leadership talent from within the organization, at any level
to these critical areas, the authors advocate a fivein the hierarchy; focusing on high-potential leaders;
step, focused approach to developing leadership capacity
recruiting from external sources; and conducting executive,
through succession management (the overall planning and
as well as board of director, leadership-talent reviews.

Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

Page 7

The Leadership Gap

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

development of ready now successors for targeted critical

is to identify critical positions and put key talent in them as
positions).
a means of maximizing the potential of these roles.
1. Identify critical positions by analyzing what creates
Traditionally, organizations have relied primarily on
the organizations business and its customer and stakeholder
what the authors call the single-solution approach, or the
value.
multiple-solution approach, when building their leadership
2. Assess the current incumbents occupying the
capacity. The single solution (in which over-reliance on
critical positions to determine their vulnerability in these
the classroom is the primary development method) is easy
positions (i.e., to determine if the incumbent is near
retirement; if he or she is dissatisfied in the current Executives need to make choices about which areas
role and, thus, a retention risk; if there are plans to of the business are at the greatest risk because of the
promote the incumbent to a more senior position; potential of either a current or future leadership capacity
gap. The organization needs to give extra attention to
or if the incumbent suboptimizing the critical
those critical areas.
position because he or she is not key talent).
3. Identify the development pathways to
to implement and ensures a certain level of consistency.
building this competence to determine if people in
However, leaders cannot be developed solely in a classroom,
critical positions require specialized knowledge, technical
classroom training is too time-consuming, and the training
capabilities, and influence skills in order to succeed. These
games used are seen as silly and irrelevant. Moreover, this
pathways may include: one-on-one internal mentoring;
method has a tendency to overemphasize generic leadership
external coaching for strategic, leadership, and professional
models that focus on personal traits and individual leadership
development; placement in critical feeder positions; leading
characteristicsa focus that is often perceived as being too
cross-functional assignments; leading customer value and/
theoretical and disconnected from practical reality and other
or stakeholder value research; and exposure to internal and
important elements of leadership.
external executive programs.
The multiple-solution approach, which can include
4. Identify potential candidates for critical positions.
assessment, coaching, learning, and experience, exposes
5. Implement development plans and evaluate
leaders to a greater number of development options.
outcomes.
However, the authors have observed that these options are
Weiss and Molinaro are careful to note that they
often implemented in a fragmented manner that lacks an
consider succession management for targeted critical
overall strategy, causes confusion among leaders and, thus,
positions to be distinct from retention strategies, which
fails to generate much value for the organization. Given
focus on key leadership talent. A critical position is often
these results, they advocate a comprehensive, rigorous
purposely designed into the organizational structure, and
integrated-solution approach that brings together and
there is strategic intent in the design. By contrast, a key
unites an array of development options over the long term
talent comes about by accident, in most cases, and refers
so that they add value to one another. This technique
to individuals in possession of a unique combination of
must be strategic, concentrating all development options
skills and abilities.
on helping the organization gain competitive advantage.
These individuals are consistently able to deliver
It must be synergistic, in that the options are selected
remarkable results, which others cannot easily duplicate.
and implemented in a seamless manner. And, it must be
Because it is unlikely that organizations can develop
sustainable, recognizing that leadership development is an
such an individual, strategies can be employed to retain
iterative process in need of constant attention, focus, and
those who do possess this gift. The authors found that the
resources.
driving factors of engagementbeing part of a winning
Finally, one of the key reasons the leadership gap
organization, working for admired leaders, having positive
continues to exist is the confusion about whether executives/
working relationships, doing meaningful work, recognition
senior leaders, or HR professionals, should be accountable
and appreciation, and living a balanced lifealso drive
for leadership capacity. Weiss and Molinaro suggest
retention of key talent. Essentially, the ultimate challenge
that both groups must share the responsibilitythat
Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

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The Leadership Gap

only organizations with the right balance of executive

and HR accountability will be in a position to succeed.
When this kind of balance is in place, executives are
accountable for overall leadership capacity. They position
leadership capacity as a strategic priority and conduct
annual talent reviews that explore retention strategies
and succession management. They continually develop
their own capabilities and model holistic leadership.
And, they provide the needed time and resources to build
capacity, make development a priority for their direct
reports, and develop other leaders. Essentially it is about
visibly championing the importance of leadership capacity
throughout the organization and developing leaders through
modeling, coaching, and mentoring of high potential talent,
and also through developmental experiences.
Human Resources professionals need to act as strategic
co-creative partners with the executive team and be
accountable for technical leadership capacity. Their role
is to develop the tools and processes that can be leveraged
across the organization to enhance overall leadership
capacity, including succession management, leadership
development, finding the best talent, lateral transfers and
promotion programs, formalized coaching, performance
management, etc. They must ensure that all HR initiatives
are aligned and that they deliver value to the external
customer. And, they must create the conditions for line
managers and executives to take responsibility for building
leadership capacity.
*
* *
Footnotes and a subject index is provided.

Remarks
The Leadership Gap is a result of the authors
combined 40 years of consulting and managerial experience
within organizations, and it addresses what they have
found to be one of the most mission critical business
issues facing organizations todaybuilding leadership
capacity. However, some executives make the mistake
of assuming that leadership development and learning

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

is primarily the responsibility of the individual. If a gap

exists, their challenge is to find someone who already
has the necessary skills. Human Resources is forced to
fight for leadership dollars, and executives often have no
understanding of what those dollars are buying or how
the purchase benefits the organization. In other cases,
organizations view development as an entitlement of
employment; however, this development is not focused on
building specific leadership capacity to respond to the new
business environment.
Unfortunately, neither of these approaches has had
much success, and as a result, building leadership capacity
has become one of the most challenging business issues
today. The short-term and long-term viability of todays
organizations will depend on how well organizations
recognize and respond to the vast challenges and risks
inherent in an ever-changing business environmentone
that necessitates a very different kind of leadership.
Of course, many original thinkers have addressed
this need, providing a body of literature, containing many
excellent works, which stand as valuable contributions
to the evolution and development of leadership theory
and practice. The Leadership Gap provides distinct
value, however, in its acknowledgement that leadership,
by definition, is comprised of more than one dimension.
And, by offering a very thorough analysis, which gives
equal prominence to each dimension (talent, capability,
development, and values), the book clearly illustrates the
interdependent nature of these various aspects and how
this interdependency is critical in forming the leaderorganization partnership required to build leadership
capacity. This integration represents a dynamic process
one that forms a comprehensive, holistic foundational
template for leadership development. Relevant, real-life
examples show that when organizations operate within this
framework, they are able to build out leadership capacity
along multidimensional tracks that leave no critical success
factor of leadership untapped.
Thus, this seminal work provides many valuable
insights and guidelines that professionals in many different
roles can use to advance leadership both conceptually
and practically: Executives, managers, and consultant
will have a better understanding of the new value that
leadership must provide. Boards of directors, responsible
for recruiting leaders and reviewing their performance, can

Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

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The Leadership Gap

fulfill that responsibility more effectively. Those in internal

and external human resources, talent management, and
leadership development can gain a more refined perspective
on the new role for leaders so they can attract, cultivate, and
retain those best suited for that role. Associations, concerned
with leadership, strategy, and organizational issues related
to leadership capacity, have more relevant information
concerning successful implementation in these arenas.
Members of academia have access to a well-researched
and practical teaching tool for their MBA, organizational
psychology, and human resources development programs.
And, legislators, regulators, political leaders, and academic
institutions can begin to understand the emerging critical
link between leadership capacity and the broader society.

Reading Suggestions
Reading Time: 19-21 Hours, 349 Pages in Book
Because Weiss and Molinaro believe their integrated
approach to building leadership capacity is a unique
response to the leadership crisis that many organizations
are currently experiencing, they recommend reading the
The Leadership Gap in its entirety in order to understand
this integrated perspective fully. Although most of you will
benefit from this strategy, the authors acknowledge that
others may have different needs: some may want to use the
book as a study guide, some may be primarily interested
in the leading-edge elements of holistic leadership, some
may want to understand how to create a leadership culture
and build leadership capacity, and others may simply wish
to focus on the many leadership stories. If this is indeed
the case, A Description of the Book and How to Read
This Book, which are both found in the preface, will guide
you in determining what sections will address your needs
most effectively.
For those readers, who may want to explore a topic
not mentioned in these guidelines, a detailed index is
available to guide your search. This index also references
the resource material found in the footnotes (there are
no bibliographic endnotes, bibliography, or suggested
reading list). We suggest that you take note of these
resources (reviews for several of them can be found at

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

www.BusinessBookReview.com), for they provide a

conceptual foundation of substantial educational value.

CONTENTS
PART 1: THE BUSINESS IMPERATIVE
Chapter 1: Mission Critical
Chapter 2: Bridging the Leadership Gap
PART 2: THE LEADERS RESPONSE
Chapter 3: Holistic Leadershipan Overview
Chapter 4: Customer Leadership
Chapter 5: Business Strategy
Chapter 6: Culture and Values
Chapter 7: Organizational Leadership
Chapter 8: Team Leadership
Chapter 9: Personal Leadership
PART 3: THE ORGANIZATIONS RESPONSE
Chapter 10: Leadership Capacity Implementation
Chapter 11: Embedding Leadership in the Organization
Chapter 12: focus on Critical Positions and Key Talent
Chapter 13: Integrated Leadership Development
Chapter 14: Accountability for Leadership Capacity
Chapter 15: The Leadership Economy

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The Leadership Gap

David S. Weiss and Vince Molinaro

A Note to Our Readers

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a service to busy professionals, as we recommend only those books that are worth your time to read in their
entirety. We apply stringent criteria in selecting only the best business books, and in that selection process,
strive to help you make informed book-purchasing decisions.

This book is available at bookstores and online booksellers.

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Business Book Review Vol. 22, No. 22 Copyright 2005 Business Book Review, LLC All Rights Reserved

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