Local Government - Leadership Judgement Indicator (LG-LJI)

What is the LG-LJI?

The LG-LJI is a situational judgment test composed of sixteen Local Government leadership scenarios.  In each one, a Chief Executive or other senior Officer is leading a team within a public services organisation.  The test taker’s task is to put themselves in the position of the Officer and decide upon the appropriateness of different ways of dealing with the people and the task.

What does the LG-LJI do?

The LG-LJI benchmarks how accurately the test-taker can judge the most appropriate way of engaging with colleagues, as well as the leadership strategies they are likely to employ.  The LG-LJI assesses the test taker’s judgement and preferred styles when dealing with a range of local government leadership decision-making contexts.  

What is the rationale?

There are specific challenges in leading reporting staff within public services successfully – and specific benefits in getting it right.  This instrument has been written with those challenges in mind, to assess current and potential leaders who have to ensure the motivation, effectiveness and success of their teams.

How has it been developed?

The authors worked with Roger Latham (pictured), formerly Chief Executive of Nottinghamshire County Council and a past President of CIPFA, his professional association.  Using his wealth of knowledge and experience, a diverse range of scenarios were written, honed and then positioned across the conceptual framework of the Formula 4 Leadership Decision Making Model.  As a result, all scenarios resonate closely with the experiences of leaders who work in public services.

Example scenario.

You are a Chief Executive in a local authority where a proposed reorganisation of secondary schools is proving highly contentious. Your Facilities Manager has just e-mailed you to advise that at a meeting to be held this evening at your organisation's headquarters there will be a noisy demonstration. Your Director of Children's Services has told you in the past that some of her staff have been the subject of personal threats by those who object to the changes. Your Facilities Manager fears that there may be some potential for violence and is suggesting that the Police are advised and that the demonstrators should not be admitted to the building. Your Legal Officer has made it clear that as this is a public meeting, the public can only be excluded by resolution of the meeting for specific statutory reasons.  The decision to be made is: should you seek to bar the demonstrators from attending the meeting?

Who is it aimed at?

The LG-LJI is aimed at current or potential leaders in local government.  It will aid those who select and develop senior officers and those who wish to create high performing local government teams.

What is its pedigree?

It is a very reliable (Alpha 0.79) sister questionnaire to Hogrefe’s Leadership Judgement Indicator (LJI-2).  It has a robust underlying theoretical model with an accompanying set of principles for effective leadership.  The principles guide the selection of the appropriate style for any particular situation so that optimum team performance can be achieved.

If you are a leader working in local government and wish to self-fund some continuing professional development, to complete the LG-LJI (£50) please contact Yvonne Mason on 0115 973 4888 or yvonne@mlcp.co.uk.  You can download a sample report here.