YWLC’s Leadership Development Competency Framework and Model of Leadership

Leadership Development is one of the four core pillars of the Young Women’s Leadership Connection (YWLC). In order to further YWLC’s vision to empower young women leaders in Singapore to drive impact within their communities,  the Leadership Development (LD) subcommittee has conceptualised and introduced a set of leadership competencies for our members that are intended to provide members with a framework of leadership for structured leadership development.

As we continue to innovate and enhance our YWLC’s Leadership Development offerings, we aim to introduce to our members: (i) a LD competency framework and how this will relate to the events organised by the  LD subcommittee for the YWLC community, and (ii) our vision of what a YWLC leader looks like.

The YWLC LD Competency Framework

The LD Competency Framework comprises two areas – Leading Yourself and Leading Others. 

Leading Yourself is about personal competencies crucial for individual growth, well-being and success. This includes self-management & self-awareness, emotional intelligence & well-being, and resilience & courage.

• Self-Management and Self-Awareness: Be acutely aware of one's inner life - emotions, behaviors, values, preferences, goals, strengths, challenges and chart a path

• Emotional Intelligence and Well-being: Manage both your own emotions and understand the emotions of people around you, leading to better communication, motivation, and overall team performance

• Resilience and Courage: Manage both your own emotions and understand the emotions of people around you, leading to better communication, motivation, and overall team performance

Leading Others relates to key competencies essential for effective leadership and team success. This includes empathy, communication, diversity & inclusion, building relationships, managing upwards, decision-making, conflict resolution and entrepreneurship.

• Empathy: The foundation of effective leadership, understanding and connecting with others on a deeper level; understand your team's needs, motivations, and concerns, leading to more effective decision-making

• Communication: Mastering the art of conveying vision, fostering collaboration, and inspiring action; foster trust, alignment and ensure achievement of common goals

• Diversity & Inclusion: Cultivating an inclusive and diverse environment to unleash the full potential of every individual and drive collective success

• Building Relationships: Forging authentic connections that strengthen teams, foster trust, and drive mutual growth, resulting in better collaboration & team cohesion

• Managing Relationships: Navigating effectively to understand, support, and align with superiors for shared accomplishments; influence strategic decisions and create a more favourable environment for their teams

• Decision-making: Demonstrating sound judgement and resolving complex challenges to steer the path to success; navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and drive teams towards goals

• Conflict Resolution: Skill-fully mediating disagreements, transforming tension into opportunities for growth and unity; foster a positive work environment, maintain morale, and ensure focus on goals

• Entrepreneurship: Be innovative, take calculated risks, and seize opportunities; drive growth, adapt to changing environments, and inspire their teams to think creatively

A Model of YWLC Leadership

At YWLC’s Townhall 2024, YWLC unveiled a model of leadership as a reference point for the values that a YWLC leader should embody. These are traits that YWLC’s 8th Exco conceptualised together and distilled as being important traits of female leaders. 

The “YWLC Leader” model aims to aid the community in looking towards a model of leadership that they can aspire to embody. It is intended that members interpret and apply these values with regard to their own personal leadership journeys. 

New Leadership Development Initiatives

Each of YWLC’s events and initiatives aims to highlight each of the LD competencies. 

• LD Breakfast Club is a new initiative where participants can gain insights from accomplished female leaders about their careers and leadership journey while fostering genuine connections through authentic conversations held over the breakfast table.

• LD Masterclass comprises workshops where participants can gain a practical approach in learning and applying the leadership competencies.

Leadership development is a journey, and through these events and workshops, we hope to allow members and participants to adopt a hands-on approach in learning concepts, and applying them to their own leadership journey.

As we embark on this leadership journey together, we hope that our continued initiatives will empower our members as we grow by tapping into the knowledge and experience of the speakers and learning together from fellow YWLC members! We strongly encourage members and participants to join our LD initiatives.

If you have any questions or suggestions, please reach out to us at leadership@ywlc.org.sg.