Organizations and leaders have been facing four chronic problems:

• Trust in leaders at historic lows: Just when the payoff for trust was never higher, we have wary customers, hesitant partners, a cynical public, and suspicious employees.

• The inadequacy of communicating vision to all levels: Leaders may have a strategic vision for their organization, but they are not fully aware of the significance of communicating clearly that vision to all levels and make no efforts to inspire their employees to live with the vision and proactively set their goals aligned with the organizational vision

• Strategic uncertainty: Challenges that once took years to materialize now arise overnight; competitive advantages vanish, governments vie for capital and talent; and hyper-paced technological change means that someone on the other side of the world just turned your business on its head.

• The war for talent: Just when the right idea can change an industry, knowledge and creativity are at a premium - and totally mobile. People no longer satisfied with just showing up want to make a difference. The best people hire their employers, not the other way around. And the contribution they can make is more motivating than their paycheck.

Even in the most turbulent times, there are four roles leaders play that are highly predictive of success. We call them essential, because as leaders consciously lead themselves and their teams in alignment with these roles, they lay the foundation for effective leadership.

The 4 Essential Roles of Leadership are: