IN an era where hierarchical titles alone no longer guarantee influence, leadership coach and trainer Antoinette Griffin is advocating for a more dynamic, all-encompassing style of leadership that empowers individuals at every level of an organisation.
Griffin, an executive director and teaching faculty member with the John Maxwell Leadership Certified Team, recently delivered a compelling session at the Leaders LEAD Symposium in Fiji, where she guided participants through practical strategies for “Leading up, leading across, and leading followers.”
Griffin’s message resonates strongly in today’s workplace: true leadership isn’t confined to the top; it radiates in every direction.
“Everyone deserves to be led well,” says Griffin.
She emphasises and breaks leadership into three interconnected dimensions that can be applied daily, regardless of one’s place on the organisation chart.
Leading up: Influencing those above you
In boardrooms and executive suites, Griffin highlights the subtle art of supporting superiors without overstepping boundaries.
“Leading up isn’t about challenging authority; it’s about adding value through preparation, humility, and anticipation,” Griffin explains.
Over time, this builds relational capital, opening doors for input on strategic decisions and accelerating career growth.
Leading across: Building bridges with peers
Lateral influence collaborating effectively with colleagues who hold equal authority is often the trickiest dimension, yet one of the most impactful.
Griffin points to cross-functional teams where departments like sales and marketing clash over priorities. Her advice: ‘start with informal conversations to understand pressures on both sides, then propose shared tools like joint metrics dashboards and celebrate collective wins publicly.’
By focusing on win-win solutions and avoiding silos, leaders foster faster innovation and stronger informal networks that endure beyond any single project.
Leading down: Developing and inspiring followers
The most traditional aspect guiding team members. She encourages leaders to go beyond directives by modelling vulnerability, offering targeted coaching, and connecting daily tasks to larger purpose. As organisations navigate rapid change, economic pressures, and hybrid work environments, Griffin’s call to become a “leader of leaders” is gaining traction.
By mastering influence upward, laterally, and downward, professionals create ripple effects: fewer executive blind spots, smoother collaboration, and stronger bench strength for the future.
Following on from the Symposium Day 1 session, that leadership is about people and about relationships.
Griffin encouraged leaders in attendance that “the journey starts small, one intentional action in any direction can spark lasting transformation.”
Griffin empowered participants with strategies that they could use right away to influence their superiors.
Mereseini Tuivuniwai is a Communications Specialist with Leaders Lead Symposium
Left: Transformational leader Dr Colander Headley speaking at the Leaders LEAD Symposium.
Picture: ELENA VUCUKULA
