Tan Sri Lim Wee Chai is Chairman and Founder of Top Glove corporation, the world’s largest rubber glove manufacturer. When we spoke to him about his brand of leadership he summed it up as: "must learn, must do, must teach”. He believes that leadership means gathering knowledge for yourself first, encouraging ongoing learning, and ensuring you don't spend too much time sitting behind a desk.

In your view, what are some key characteristics that make leaders different?

A successful leader is one who is able to invoke confidence in his followers of his vision and his ability tolead them in achieving the vision. He is also able to command the respect of the others by walking the talk while demonstrating a high level of honesty and integrity.

Some people fail in leadership roles, even though they fare well as an individual contributor. What advice would you give about leading?

The difference between a leader and a contributor is that as a leader one has to be able to juggle and considermany aspects as compared to a contributor. Many who have just transitioned to the new role still prefer to spend more time behind the desk doing the work by themselves than working with their team to get the job done. A new leader has to ensure that the communication channel is always open, to allow input and feedback. He/she can start by getting to know each and every one of his/her team members –understanding their strengths and weaknesses, motivating factors and views.Having that knowledge would enable them to communicate effectively with theindividual team members. Next, provide direction, guidance and priorities. And on an ongoing basis talk and listen actively to keep staff motivated and inspired. Also develop people through skill-building, coaching and mentoring.

What are some specific beliefs or values that you work by? How do you ensure that your values and vision permeate the organization?

Honesty, integrity and transparency. These values form the very foundation of a successful workingrelationship among employees, between the company and its employees, customers, suppliers and business associates. The compromise of any of these values would lead to the disintegration of the relationship. Therefore, I’ve given it great emphasis in Top Glove’s tagline, the staff badge and messages around the office. It is regularly reinforced in our communication with the staff. Most importantly, it is leadership by example.

How do you inspire your team to learn, stay motivated and continue to make a difference?

We encourage our staff to further their studies by providing flexi-working hours for those who take up part-time studies. When advising my staff, I place a lot of emphasis on living every moment of our lives by adding value to ourselves, our family, our workplace and our society. I always tie back my business philosophies to continuous learning and contributing.

You can read the full interview with Tan Sri Lim Wee Chai here.