I was asked the other day what I considered to be the attributes of effective leadership. Here are some of the attributes I considered important.

1. Walk the talk.

2. Respect and acknowledge good ideas, regardless of where they come from.

3. Don't blame - seek to improve or change. Recognise that most poor performances and mistakes have multiple parents.

4. Don't assume that everyone is motivated by the same stimulus - take the time and effort to find out what it is.

5. Never 'put down' a peer or subordinate in front of others or in private - identify the issue, identify the better path, and give the 'culprit' a chance to redeem themselves (within reason).

6. Be prepared to accept failure - once - but insist that all failure is as powerful a learning tool as success.

7. Listen with both ears.

8. Be authentic.

9. Be transparent.

10. Be grateful to those who provide extra effort, extra performance, extra consideration, extra support to others, and who share their knowledge and experience.

11. Delegate responsibility but monitor the delegation.

12. Embrace change when it makes sense to do so.

13. Never tie your 'status' and 'ego' to any single decision, strategy, action or project. Always be prepared to change with new evidence.

14. As far as you can, engage personally with as many people in the organisation as you can. Shake their hand, look them in the eye, listen to them and give them feedback - and above all, respect them as fellow human beings.