Page 194 - The extraordinary leader

New Insights into Leadership Development • 171

Competency Differentiator Competency
Companion Great Companion

Great Skills on Differentiator Interpersonal Technical Standards of
High
Strong
Expertise
Excellence
Skills

Poor Skills on Differentiator Interpersonal Poor Standards of
Low
Weak
Excellence
Skills
Technical
Expertise

Figure 8-2 Examples of Competency Companions Associated with Technical Expertise

an extremely high correlation between the frequency of crickets chirping and
the temperature.” There was a pause. A student raised his hand and said, “Pro-
fessor Peterson, are you saying that as the temperature rises, crickets chirp
more frequently?” With a totally deadpan expression on his face, Professor
Peterson replied, “No, I have always assumed that when crickets chirp more
frequently, it causes the outdoor temperature to rise.”
Most people would have an explanation for the relationship of tempera-
ture and crickets chirping, and this could easily be proved by simple experi-
ments. However, in many situations, when two things happen together, the
mechanisms that link them together are not entirely clear. All you can say is
that they occur together, and you can make some educated guess about the
cause-and-effect relationship that links them together.

The Link Between Interpersonal Relationships and
Technical Competence
To return to our example of technical expertise and interpersonal skills being
tied together, we could offer some explanations. This result is strongly