How many senior executives actually possess the competencies laid out in your HR systems? Helping skilled, talented managers become truly great leaders is a complex job. Traditional leadership models often overlook the intangible qualities that separate those who aspire to top leadership roles from the ones who actually reach the C-suite. But if you look closely, you will start to see that there are patterns in the attributes of people who succeed at the highest levels.

As you work with high-potential candidates on their leadership development, consider the following 10 behaviors that are fundamental to executive success.

Wisdom

Knowledge gleaned from previous experiences does not become wisdom until it is consciously applied to new circumstances. Great leaders don't just think about what happened, they think about why it happened.

Coaching tip: Leaders will build wisdom by designating time for self-reflection. Challenge them to reserve an hour each week to think about the "big stuff." They should be using that time to ask, "What decisions did I make?" and "What have I learned in the last week?"

Social judgment

Social judgment is one's ability to analyze people and situations, and then make good decisions based on that information. Executives who possess this intangible are able to hire better people, negotiate well, and truly influence others to change.

Coaching tip: Tell the leader to step back and pay attention to the subtext of meeting dynamics. The pace and flow of the discussion provides important clues about what the group cares about, topics that are uncomfortable, and which issues will require the most guidance.

Integrity

Leaders that maintain steady performance at the top levels of business anchor their decisions in a consistent set of values. This stability and steadfastness affects every relationship. It also keeps them out of newspaper headlines.

Coaching tip: It may seem basic, but they need to stick to "doing the right thing." Make leaders to write out their core values. What do they stand for as a leader? A declared set of values serves as a compass for key decisions, and writing them out is a helpful process.

Presence

Executives with presence seize your attention not just because they have power, but because they know how to use it. Understanding the impact one has is crucial to running a successful organization.

Coaching tip: Executive presence often occurs before an individual enters the room. It's often based on reputation. Work with leaders to brand themselves in such a way that when they enter a room, people sit up straighter and think to themselves, "that's the one who "

Self insight

Self-insight is one's primary tool for growth and development. A leader who knows her strengths and weaknesses can become the most effective type of leader: strong and focused, yet adaptable.

Coaching tip: Help executives build a personal "board of directors." Ensure they have trusted advisors to can confide in. If necessary, help them look outside the organization because they need to be able to solicit honest feedback from people they trust, no matter how difficult it may be to hear.

Executive maturity

Executive maturity is the ability to master one's emotional responses to yield maximum influence. Sometimes it's important to hold back and remain unemotionally objective, and other times it's ok to really let loose and show one's anger.

Coaching tip: Awareness of one's emotional patterns and triggers, and the ability to manage those feelings, are essential to fully formed leadership. Help the leader understand what sets him off and what it looks like to the observer. Through such insight, he can learn to better calibrate.

Fallibility

People don't want their leaders to be ineffectual, but they do want to see a willingness to take risks and discuss past failures. Leaders who admit their mistakes are more relatable and more trustworthy.

Coaching tip: Put simply, being fallible is being real. Help leaders 'let people in.' Challenge them to show others the real person behind what they see at the office. Be sure they are celebrating wins and taking ownership for failures.

Will

Some leaders exercise their influence so delicately that those around them happily follow without questioning why. Others are more insistent, forcefully staking out their territory at the front of the pack. Both methods require will.

Coaching tip: Will requires "stick-to-itiveness." You can't quit. Help people understand that when obstacles get in your way and it seems that you'll never meet your objectives, they should remember this: You are probably just a hair's breadth away.

Fortitude

In a study of world-class performers, few had been considered prodigies. The most accomplished subjects worked hard for years to succeed. Many endured crises or major life challenges. The conclusions are powerful: Drive, energy, and persistence - not inherent talent - propel people to the top.

Coaching tIP: Do the people you are working with shy away from "big" issues? Don't let them! Challenge them to take on the big stuff. See what they're made of. The more you force yourself to tackle these challenges, the more confident in your own abilities you will become.

Self-efficacy

Leaders need to possess an underlying belief that they will achieve their objectives. Those who don't tend to make safe decisions that accomplish little. Extraordinary leaders know their boundaries of competence and masterfully exploit them.

Coaching tip: Leaders need to seek the help of a mentor or role model to build confidence through osmosis. Help them visualize success, recognize their self-defeating patterns, and know that people are capable of being at least one order of magnitude better than they think they are.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Richard Davis is a management psychologist and partner at RHR International. He is author of The Intangibles of Leadership: The 10 Qualities of Superior Executive Performance (Jossey-Bass, 2010):http://www.intangiblesofleadership.com.