With the growth of business and economy, a larger quantity of Human Resource is required in any organization. This increase demands supervision and training through a leader. But most leaders fail in managing their teams. Why does this happen?
Original Story by Prashant Sachdev
What are the qualities of a good leader? I’m sure that your management institute taught you that.
Let’s recap:
1. Integrity
2. Confidence
3. Inspire Others
4. Commitment and Passion
5. Good Communicator
6. Decision Making Capabilities
7. Accountability
8. Delegation and Empowerment
9. Creativity and Innovation
10. Empathy
11. Resilience
12. Emotional Intelligence
13. Humility
14. Transparency
15. Vision and Purpose
You can find this list by just searching the following keywords “Qualities of a good leader” on Google. However, if the list is available publicly, then why do leaders miss out on one or the other quality? Why are most leaders unable to perform well?
In most organizations, the middle management is required to manage and develop their teams. But lately, I have observed that many leaders are unable to get the optimum results out of their teams.
When does this happen?
1. The leader didn’t manage the team well.
2. The team lacks the capability to handle the responsibilities. (Bad delegation?)
The leader didn’t manage the team well?
I have seen two types of leaders:
1. Followers
2. Go Getters
These types of leaders are very lazy. They leave things on tomorrow and have a lethargic attitude. These leaders are not aware of the processes and lack the basic knowledge of the work content. When such leaders join a new department, company or shift to a new industry, they become dependent on their team and agree to almost anything their team tells them. They try to imitate the working style of their team members and eventually find themselves in big trouble.
Don’t get me wrong. They might not lack the leadership qualities, but they may lack faster learning capabilities and might be lazy enough to absorb everything quickly.
1. The team members play a major role in inducting a new leader by helping him/her to understand the processes and culture. However, at times, the team members might not be able to do this as they may lack confidence.
2. The team members might not be aware of the complete processes themselves.
3. The leader’s ego might be becoming a learning barrier. (Happens all the time!)
4. The team might want a win-lose situation by not helping their leaders and might even fool the leader.
5. The leader lacks the capability of learning and does not want to learn. (Looking for a job switch or Retirement?)
A follower leader becomes so dependent on his/her team, that at some point, he/she loses the control that is required for leading them and he/she lands up just as an approving authority.
In their initial parts of the tenure, such leaders enjoy their time and feel that everything is under control. They start living in their own bubble and just focus on making sure that their team is happy and getting everything done.
Then one day, the bubble blasts when the leader realizes that a lot of work (which he/she is not even aware of) that was supposed to be done is pending or that work was done in an unacceptable manner.
Such leaders may even face humiliation while having a work related conversation with their superiors when the superior starts talking about something the leaders are not even aware about.
These types of leaders try to get involved in everything that is happening in an organization. They are enthusiastic, smart and are quick to learn.
They understand the processes and culture using the help of their team or superiors. They might even refer to the policy books and other documents of the organization and learn as quickly as possible.
The smartest leader would not even wait for the above methods, but would try to learn everything while the handover-takeover process/Induction process is happening at the time of joining.
Later, such a leader would be able to follow up with the team with the right questions and would be able to manage them easily. The team members would never be able to fool such a leader.
These leaders not only manage the team well, but also train the team well. They also shine bright in the eyes of their superiors and the top management as these leaders have answers to anything that is thrown at them.
I have been fortunate enough to work with both the kinds of above-mentioned leaders. I’ve seen the go getter grow in their career and a happy team working under them and I have seen follower leaders sitting in the same chair for years with a very poorly developed team.
"The problem with the follower leader is not only their own personal growth or the poor results that the team yields. A newly joined team member might suffer due a follower leader as this leader won’t be able to coach him/her. He/She would leave the newly joined employee in the hands of any team member who might not want any good for the new joinee in an unhealthy competitive culture"
Such leaders are never successful and they only observe high level of attrition rates due to their behavior. A leader must be a good team player. Try understanding the difference between a boss and a leader.
Communication is yet another quality that most leaders lack at. They do communicate the work that they want to get done. But they do not communicate the goal of the company and how that work would contribute to the same. This raises questions in the mind of the team and creates confusion. Communicating the complete information and the goals would make the team feel more involved and empowered. This would certainly improve their efficiency and their confidence.
Trust is also a major issue. Most leaders don’t trust their team members. They tend to reconfirm everything that is told to them and try to re-verify most things told to them. This makes the team members feel mistreated and start losing motivation. A demotivated team would never be able to perform well. A leader may re-verify the work later secretly, without making the team member knowing.
Lack of appreciation also demotivates the team. An appreciated team always works harder to get the best results as appreciation is nothing less than an incentive for any employee. Appreciation always motivates the team to work harder, irrespective of the results. One must appreciate the efforts even if the desired results were not achieved due to uncontrollable factors. A good leader will always be empathetic.
Another issue that yields poor results is a biased leader. I have myself worked under such leaders. Such leaders would facilitate their so called favorite team member/members. Other people in that team might feel that their work is not valued and they may feel ignored. At times, such leaders would also try to harm the work/efforts of a team member if they do not have a good working relationship with him/her. A good leader should always try to resolve any misunderstanding or a clash by talking. Personal grudges lead to bad leadership and will not only harm the leaders and the team, but also the organization.
Lastly, being honest is a quality that most leaders lack. In this age of technology, it is not easy to hide anything from anyone in the organization. Telling lies to get some work done is a common practice. I have seen leaders telling lies to their team member to get an unethical job done, keeping themselves in safe place but putting their team members at risk. A good leader is supposed to safeguard his team, not put them at risk.
At times, it is necessary to become bossy too, especially in case of a lethargic team. Being aggressive is also important. Understanding the meaning of being aggressive is even more important. Screaming at employees, using abusive language is what people understand by aggressive. That’s another bad assumption. Being aggressive means to be enthusiastic and to be involved as much as possible. That would help the leader to supervise in a better manner and avoid any blunders before they actually happen. Remember, precaution is always better than cure.
Let’s recap:
1. Integrity
2. Confidence
3. Inspire Others
4. Commitment and Passion
5. Good Communicator
6. Decision Making Capabilities
7. Accountability
8. Delegation and Empowerment
9. Creativity and Innovation
10. Empathy
11. Resilience
12. Emotional Intelligence
13. Humility
14. Transparency
15. Vision and Purpose
You can find this list by just searching the following keywords “Qualities of a good leader” on Google. However, if the list is available publicly, then why do leaders miss out on one or the other quality? Why are most leaders unable to perform well?
In most organizations, the middle management is required to manage and develop their teams. But lately, I have observed that many leaders are unable to get the optimum results out of their teams.
When does this happen?
1. The leader didn’t manage the team well.
2. The team lacks the capability to handle the responsibilities. (Bad delegation?)
The leader didn’t manage the team well?
I have seen two types of leaders:
1. Followers
2. Go Getters
The Followers
These types of leaders are very lazy. They leave things on tomorrow and have a lethargic attitude. These leaders are not aware of the processes and lack the basic knowledge of the work content. When such leaders join a new department, company or shift to a new industry, they become dependent on their team and agree to almost anything their team tells them. They try to imitate the working style of their team members and eventually find themselves in big trouble.
Don’t get me wrong. They might not lack the leadership qualities, but they may lack faster learning capabilities and might be lazy enough to absorb everything quickly.
When does a leader become a follower?
1. The team members play a major role in inducting a new leader by helping him/her to understand the processes and culture. However, at times, the team members might not be able to do this as they may lack confidence.
2. The team members might not be aware of the complete processes themselves.
3. The leader’s ego might be becoming a learning barrier. (Happens all the time!)
4. The team might want a win-lose situation by not helping their leaders and might even fool the leader.
5. The leader lacks the capability of learning and does not want to learn. (Looking for a job switch or Retirement?)
A follower leader becomes so dependent on his/her team, that at some point, he/she loses the control that is required for leading them and he/she lands up just as an approving authority.
In their initial parts of the tenure, such leaders enjoy their time and feel that everything is under control. They start living in their own bubble and just focus on making sure that their team is happy and getting everything done.
Then one day, the bubble blasts when the leader realizes that a lot of work (which he/she is not even aware of) that was supposed to be done is pending or that work was done in an unacceptable manner.
Such leaders may even face humiliation while having a work related conversation with their superiors when the superior starts talking about something the leaders are not even aware about.
The Go Getters
These types of leaders try to get involved in everything that is happening in an organization. They are enthusiastic, smart and are quick to learn.
They understand the processes and culture using the help of their team or superiors. They might even refer to the policy books and other documents of the organization and learn as quickly as possible.
The smartest leader would not even wait for the above methods, but would try to learn everything while the handover-takeover process/Induction process is happening at the time of joining.
Later, such a leader would be able to follow up with the team with the right questions and would be able to manage them easily. The team members would never be able to fool such a leader.
These leaders not only manage the team well, but also train the team well. They also shine bright in the eyes of their superiors and the top management as these leaders have answers to anything that is thrown at them.
I have been fortunate enough to work with both the kinds of above-mentioned leaders. I’ve seen the go getter grow in their career and a happy team working under them and I have seen follower leaders sitting in the same chair for years with a very poorly developed team.
"The problem with the follower leader is not only their own personal growth or the poor results that the team yields. A newly joined team member might suffer due a follower leader as this leader won’t be able to coach him/her. He/She would leave the newly joined employee in the hands of any team member who might not want any good for the new joinee in an unhealthy competitive culture"
So what can a leader do to manage a team better?
The purpose of having a leader is to guide the team to work in the right direction in order to get the best results, whereas the purpose of having a team is to divide the work into parts as a single person cannot get everything done. Most leaders don’t understand this. They treat their subordinates like their servants and expect them to do whatever they’re told to.Such leaders are never successful and they only observe high level of attrition rates due to their behavior. A leader must be a good team player. Try understanding the difference between a boss and a leader.
Communication is yet another quality that most leaders lack at. They do communicate the work that they want to get done. But they do not communicate the goal of the company and how that work would contribute to the same. This raises questions in the mind of the team and creates confusion. Communicating the complete information and the goals would make the team feel more involved and empowered. This would certainly improve their efficiency and their confidence.
Trust is also a major issue. Most leaders don’t trust their team members. They tend to reconfirm everything that is told to them and try to re-verify most things told to them. This makes the team members feel mistreated and start losing motivation. A demotivated team would never be able to perform well. A leader may re-verify the work later secretly, without making the team member knowing.
Lack of appreciation also demotivates the team. An appreciated team always works harder to get the best results as appreciation is nothing less than an incentive for any employee. Appreciation always motivates the team to work harder, irrespective of the results. One must appreciate the efforts even if the desired results were not achieved due to uncontrollable factors. A good leader will always be empathetic.
Another issue that yields poor results is a biased leader. I have myself worked under such leaders. Such leaders would facilitate their so called favorite team member/members. Other people in that team might feel that their work is not valued and they may feel ignored. At times, such leaders would also try to harm the work/efforts of a team member if they do not have a good working relationship with him/her. A good leader should always try to resolve any misunderstanding or a clash by talking. Personal grudges lead to bad leadership and will not only harm the leaders and the team, but also the organization.
Lastly, being honest is a quality that most leaders lack. In this age of technology, it is not easy to hide anything from anyone in the organization. Telling lies to get some work done is a common practice. I have seen leaders telling lies to their team member to get an unethical job done, keeping themselves in safe place but putting their team members at risk. A good leader is supposed to safeguard his team, not put them at risk.
At times, it is necessary to become bossy too, especially in case of a lethargic team. Being aggressive is also important. Understanding the meaning of being aggressive is even more important. Screaming at employees, using abusive language is what people understand by aggressive. That’s another bad assumption. Being aggressive means to be enthusiastic and to be involved as much as possible. That would help the leader to supervise in a better manner and avoid any blunders before they actually happen. Remember, precaution is always better than cure.
Conclusion
Keep your team motivated. Tell them how their work would contribute to the larger goal of the organization. Show them the bigger picture. Appreciate their efforts and hard work. Train them, coach them until they become better and are able to get you the desired results. Trust them, make them feel valued. Treat everyone equally and resolve any clashes whatsoever. Never indulge into unethical activities and make you’re your team does the same.
"Be a Go Getter, not a follower"
Comments
Post a Comment