Making Leaders

Most companies today are struggling because they have promoted technical experts into leadership roles. Bad decision. Why is this a bad decision? I will tell you why. Most technical experts do not understand the responsibility that goes along with being a true leader. They know and understand how to be technical leaders, not necessarily how to be responsible leaders.

Responsible leaders cultivate their judgment skills. Allow me to explain.

It is your responsibility, as a leader to get things done; not do things yourself. Your ability to deliver results depends on how well and how consistently you grow other leaders. How will you do that? Judgment. It takes skill to judge people accurately, imagining what each person’s potential could be. You then must take the initiative to provide opportunities for them to not only contribute to the organization, but also to be tested and hopefully grow.

Responsible leaders are held accountable for the growth of their team. If you do not develop your team, how can you expect those individuals to produce the high quality products you need in order to meet deadlines and deliver over and above what is expected. Let’s face it; over-delivering is what it takes to remain on top these days. In a time when the norm is no longer the norm. We all have to step up our game and deliver better quality products and develop top-notch teams. As responsible leaders, YOU must plan to be successful and deliver quality 10 times out of 10. No exceptions.

Success comes with execution and execution comes with a willing and able team. It is YOUR job as a responsible leader to create that team.

Responsible Leadership Pillar #1-Build Your Team

It is the responsibility of the leader to build his/her “Dream Team”. What skills are needed and how will you interview in order to determine if the candidate has the skills to succeed during these tough times? Can they make the tough decisions? Will they be able to lead during adversity and still report progress and productivity?

Honestly, these days it’s not so much about the skill set that one possesses as it is about what they do with that skill set and the composure one has under stress. Leaders have to figure out a way to articulate what is really needed to successfully work on a team. For instance, as the leader of the team you must drive home the fact that it is all about increasing productivity and decreasing costs. That’s the bottom line. How well a person is able to network and create winning relationships within a team setting is not at the top of the list. Let’s face it, we are in dire straights and need to act as such.

Planning a team these days has taken on a new dimension. If a company is willing to spend the money to hire new staff, they will most definitely expect a high return on their investment fairly quickly. As someone who has the power/authority to build this “Dream Team”, think long and hard before entering the interview process about the types of people you will need to get the job done. My guess is you will need people that are strong leaders themselves and that know how to deliver results. As a leader you will want this type of person on your team. As a responsible leader you will already have several of these people on your team. How do I know? Well, it’s simple. Responsible leaders know what they need to be successful and they work hard at grooming others in order to get it.

Having said that, I only have one question: Are YOU a responsible leader?

Fear of Change

Most people who have been through difficult and very bad change efforts tend to draw bad conclusions when the first thought of change comes to mind. They become really suspicious of the motives of those calling for the change and worry about the repercussions (i.e., jobs loss and new management). Of course, this is not always the case but it is normal to feel that way. Actually all change is not bad and will not turn an organization upside down. Honestly, it could help significantly. Some people would like to believe that their company couldn’t be changed. Wrong! John P. Kotter of Leading Change states that change usually is associated with a multi-step process that creates power and motivation sufficient enough to take over all sources of inertia. This process is not executed effectively unless “high-quality leadership, not just excellent management”, drives it. Leadership is about motivation and communication with others, which is exactly what is needed to drive a major change within an organization. Today things are changing with the economy so rapidly that companies seem to not have the time to catch up. The secret to staying ahead of the learning curve is to prepare your team for the change and give them as much information as possible. Do not allow many surprises. Nothing can kill the morale of a team more than them coming to work to find lay-offs taking effect and they did not hear it from you-the leader first. It is natural to be a little fearful of change, but as a leader you must embrace the change and see it as an opportunity to grow. Not just grow individually, but as a team.