In many organizations there is a leadership crisis of confidence. In these organizations staff don’t respect their leaders. They don’t listen to their leaders. Most importantly they don’t trust their leaders.
This results in a “us versus management” mentality that makes any meaningful attempt to build a cohesive team near-impossible.
The team fails to perform. There is no concerted, coordinated effort to meet goals. There is a sense that the organization is without direction and impetus.
In spite of numerous efforts to build a new momentum, change does not come about because these initiatives fail to gain traction among the staff.
And no amount of “team building” sessions, or “motivational pep talks” will bring about this desired change unless there is a fundamental change in the quality and culture of leadership.
So what are the traits of an effective leader that commands trust from the team? Bookshops and internet sites are lined with thousands of books on the subject. I offer the following ideas based on my personal observations.
Number #1: Competence
Good leaders know what they’re talking about. They know their job, they know their business, they know their environment. They know their organization from the bottom up.
Whenever they speak, or make a decision, their words reflect a deep understanding of the issue at hand. Their comments are never superficial or superfluous. That is why their staff take them seriously.
They may not be omniscient, by any account, but they are seen as people with the intellectual curiosity and work ethic that drives them to know their job well as they can.
This is the issue of credibility. Staff will take orders willingly, gladly even, from someone who knows their stuff.
Better still, they have a track record of success. They have demonstrated in the past that they get things done and they have the results to prove it. Staff will not follow someone who has not earned the right to lead.
The psychological reality behind most human beings is that we want to play for a winning team. When someone like Alex Ferguson gives an order, the players follow, because they know that he is a manager who knows how to win. He has done it before and therefore speaks with authority.
Number #2: Fairness
Good leaders are JUST leaders. They don’t play favourites. They reward base on actual performance.
Under their leadership staff know exactly where they stand. Staff know that if they perform well and meet their performance targets, they will be rewarded in a just and fair way, and conversely, they know if they fail, there will be repercussions.
Nothing breeds dislike and disrespect like the perception that the leader is unfair. Worst still, some leaders are so removed from the daily happenings of the team, that they are completely oblivious to what is actually happening. This renders obsolete their ability to manage, evaluate and reward.
Number #3: Integrity
A leader with integrity walks the talk. They lead from the front. They set themselves as models to the team.
When a task needs to be done, they step forward rather than shy away. When an important decision needs to be made, they make it, and are willing to take responsibility for the consequences, rather than passing the blame to others.
They never demand from their staff, what they themselves cannot do.
There have been times when staff of certain organizations have complained that they don’t respect their leaders because the perception is that their leaders are not working as hard as the rest of the team.
Number #4: Protection
Good leaders place the needs of their staff above their own. They hold their staff’s welfare first and foremost in their mind.
They realize that while productivity and performance and keys to the survival of the business, their staff’s needs must be met in order for them to perform.
In the army, soldiers trust a commanding officer when that officer has demonstrated that he or she places the safety of his/her team above all things. The officer must show that decisions are made to protect the team, not to put them in unnecessary danger for personal gain or ambition.
I wonder during this time of economic uncertainty, how many leaders are willing to take pay cuts, or pay freezes, in order to help save the jobs of their staff. Why should our staff trust us, or follow us to the ends of the earth, when we have not shown a willingness to sacrifice what we have to take care of them?
Conclusion
Most of us would follow a leader with these qualities. We would be willing to go the extra mile, stretch ourselves, push ourselves to the limit to perform for such a person.
The ability to inspire trust, goes way beyond words. It is a style and quality of leadership that inspires such followership.