Brief
New leaders will succeed in moving their team members forward if they take the time to listen to them, share a bit about themselves, review current policies and processes for alignment and show appreciation for what the team has accomplished so far, writes Alaina Love. “People will go the extra mile when they feel their hard work is appreciated by leadership,” Love writes.
Insight
Miles had just been promoted to his first position at the director level after two short years of working for a large manufacturer in a complicated, heavily regulated industry. What surprised him most about the culture of the company is how project oriented the firm had become during his tenure as a manager.
Common practice was to assign a project team to study the details to the nth degree. Miles felt the phenomenon of analysis-paralysis was slowing down decision making, and he was not alone in this opinion. His boss had chosen Miles for the new role in part because he was decisive and able to weigh options quickly.
Those capabilities had borne fruit over the last year, allowing the company to capitalize on opportunities while its competitors were still evaluating the options.“This team has been accustomed to working for a leader with the reputation of being risk averse. She never made a decision without consulting with many other people and seeking consensus on her direction.
While I appreciate prudence, I don’t typically lead that way. How am I going to develop a team to be successful that’s been led so differently by someone else?” Miles asked me.
His question was not an uncommon one, especially from a client who hadn’t hand-picked their team. At the core of the solution, was how he would come to know each member of the team and evaluate their capabilities, without judging them based on his predecessor’s leadership style.
READ MORE
Recent Comments