Business people across the globe reported which key traits make a successful business leader and reveal that honesty and the ability to communicate with others are the must-haves in a successful leader’s arsenal.

Almost 40,000 business people globally rated a number of qualities and traits to help sketch out the portrait of a good leader and reveal that as well as a strong moral fibre business leaders need be naturally confident and able to motivate people. 

But it is not enough to have the gift of the gab, and successful bosses also need to show commitment and not shy away from hard graft.Interestingly, ambition, financial competence and technical product knowledge were much less desirable.

Top 5 leadership skills globally

* Honesty 

* Good communications 

* Commitment

* Confidence 

* The ability to motivate people 

Dr. Nirmal De Silva Country Manager Regus Sri Lanka comments, “Being a good leader is something that most workers aspire to, whether they are dealing with a small team and making their way up the ladder one rung at a time, or whether they are visionary entrepreneurs hoping to make it big. Global business people report that successful leaders have a number of strings to their bow and are very well rounded.

“Not only are good leaders able to communicate well with employees and the outside world so they can share their vision, but they are also able to rally groups of people and motivate them. But being an impassioned speaker is clearly not enough, as business people expect real substance behind the mask and report that honesty and commitment are also key traits to success. A good dose of confidence also does no harm and presumably helps leaders deal with both the ups and downs of businesses.”