Benevolent Style of Leadership: Croatia President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic

It was 16 July 2018. And in a country of four million, which is not even 1/13th the size of England had overcome its demographic & economic odds to reach the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup 2018 finals for the first time. Of course, they lost the finals to France. However, it was delightful day for the Hundreds of thousands of people who poured on to the streets of Croatia's capital Zagreb wearing national red-and-white checkered colours and waving Croatian flags to greet its team and to Captain Luka Modric, who won the Golden Ball after being voted the best player of the World Cup. This was all for the homecoming event and observers saw at as the biggest ever event in Croatia. In the midst, there were two more twinkling eyes that was not just shining bright, but also riding high on respect showered by the media from across the world for the leader in her & the leadership gesture of standing in support for the country's team through the tournament - be it the groups to that of the Quarter finals and then the scintillating world cup finals which Croatia lost. She was none other than Croatia’s President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, the 4th President of Croatia and the 1st woman to occupy the chair.

About President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic: Born on April 29, 1968 in the Croatian part of Yugoslavia, Grabad-Kitarovic, a 50-year-old President of Croatia. She is a multilinguist and is fluent in multiple languages - Croatian, English, Spanish, Portuguese with some understanding of French, German and Italian. After finishing her education in Washington DC, she returned to Balkan and joined their parliament. Later, she joined Croatian Democratic Union in 1993 and held multiple positions during her early years with the party. She had been the country ambassador to the United States and Assistant Secretary General of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) before winning the Country's Presidential elections in February 2015.  The Forbes Top 100 list has Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovi? at no.39 ranked higher than Hillary Clinton who was ranked 65.

The football enthusiast in Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic: She attended for multiple games played by her country from the time her team played the 1st group match against Denmark till the World Cup Finals. While she had to be off to attend the NATO summit giving a miss to the semi-finals wherein Croatia beat England, she flew back to be the proud witness to her country play the World Cup finals for the first time. Being a President of the nation, while she can be at her political comfort and maintain bureaucratic dignity, she put on a shirt with national symbol, cheered for the nation along with fans in the stand and showcased the football enthusiast in her.

The Benevolent Style of Leadership of Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic:

• An epitome of Humility - On July 1, 2018, she flew economy class to witness the FIFA semi-finals in Moscow and shared a picture with her fellow passengers. While she could have pulled in her full office protocol, she did travel to Russia the normal citizen's way thus reflecting her humbleness. When the players were sweaty, probably smelly and exhausted in the changing room she hugged them regardless. After the matches she was often in the locker room with the team looking them in the eye, sharing their emotions and ensuring she had a personal connection to the team. By being so and doing so, reflects her as an epitome of humility.
• Being a Visible Booster - She spent most of the games cheering in support of a squad that ultimately lost the 4-2 final. Before being recognized and invited into the VIP box as a guest of Russian President Vladimir Putin at the finals, she watched every single game of her team’s appearances from the stands with fellow Croatia fans. One of the fun parts of being a leader is about being a visible booster even when the history shows that Croatia has never advance beyond the group stages before being led to the finals by captain (and former refugee) Luka Modric.
• Epitome of sportsman spirit - She cheered for her boys, hugged French President Emmanuel Macron when the French Team has made a goal, comforted her team in their loss, and still managed to keep her enthusiasm and that warm smile intact.
• Willing to stand up and project a positive presence - When Croatia was left with a deeply disappointing defeat she embraced and wiped the tears of a shattered Modric when he won the Golden Ball, the tournament’s most valuable player award. During the final award ceremony, there was a torrential downpour. Grabar-Kitarovi? stood in the rain to shake the hand of every player on both the winning & runners teams while handlers rushed to put umbrellas up over the heads of Putin and other dignitaries. Being willing to stand up and project a steady and positive presence in times of disappointment is one of a leader’s most important tasks.
• Projecting a sense of unity and unwavering commitment - Consoling a losing soccer team is not a challenge for her. But standing by the team during its moment of public disappointment is as powerful a statement as celebrating in the good times thus projecting that a sense of unity and unwavering commitment is a necessary and important part of the job.
• She let her personality shine through & was not embarrassed about her feelings - She did watch some matches from the VIP areas. However, she clearly stood apart from other people in such instances not just as the only world leader wearing their team’s strip but also in her facial expressions. After Croatia's semi-final win, videos of her dancing with the team went viral. She screamed, cheered, cried and made a human connection at every opportunity. Seeing the leader as ‘a real person’ doing normal things joyfully and with the same excitement as everyone else promotes trust. It is this naturalness that made her a genuine open hearted personality and made her stand apart from the crowd. This authenticity is in short supply in the world of international politics.

"Croatia’s economy is weak and people are leaving the country in search of a more secure future elsewhere. I can’t even begin to explain what this has meant for Croatian unity. I hope that this will boost the country’s economic development and bring new jobs and young people back to the country. It doesn’t really matter if we win the gold or the silver. We’re on top of the world. I’m so proud not only of our football team, I’m so proud of our nation”.

President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic told The Associated Press in Moscow on Sunday, 15 July 2018.

Thus she stood as a prime example for Benevolent Style of Leadership, which is all about putting people’s well-being on top.

Compiled and presented for learning by:

Dr. Shankar Anappindi | [email protected]

Sources

1. "Benevolent Leadership", https://beinginawareness.com/benevolent-leadership/
2. "RUSSIA 2018: Three reasons Croatian President, Kitarovic remains unforgettable", https://www.thenewsguru.com/russia-2018-three-reasons-croatian-president-kitarovic-remains-unforgettable/
3. "Internet Is In Love With The Croatian President For Showing All What A True Leader Looks Like", https://www.storypick.com/croatian-president-world-cup/, 16 July 2018
4. "How to Win Hearts and Influence People, the Croatian President Edition!", https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/317142, 21 July 2018