Great Leaders Get Great Results
The word “leader” means different things to different people. Here are some of the things that I’ve noticed over the years (in no particular order) that great leaders do.
They know where they’re going (they have a vision) and communicate this clearly to the team.
They always display a positive outlook, even during the darkest of times. People rally around this kind of outlook.
They’re know that those whom they lead have feelings. If you don’t respect your team, don’t expect them to respect you.
They have their team’s back; they support them as individuals and as a team. If an individual needs help, the leader sees that they get it. If the team is in trouble, they defend it.
They know that they don’t know everything, but do have a way of thinking through problems and aren’t afraid to ask for advice.
They lead by example or “walk the talk”.
They know that as leaders they both lead and serve. This means being available when their team members need them. They’re approachable. No team member ever feels that the boss is “too busy” or “too important” to talk to them.
They engage others through demonstrating a genuine interest in them and their opinions.
They communicate and share information (and encourage the team to do the same). For them, information isn’t power, information empowers.
They anticipate and plan in advance. They involve the team to get the best solution they can.
They constantly challenge the "status quo".
As a result, they don't mind people challenging them or disagreeing with them. If there's a better, faster, cheaper, safer, more profitable way to do something, they want to know.
They realise allow for people making mistakes as they understand this will happen and is the way they learn.
They take time to coach and mentor their team members, especially to bring on the next generation of leaders.
They ensure the "rumour mill" is kept in check by announcing news and change as soon as possible, not letting people guess.
They believe in accountability.
They give credit where it's due.
They don't play favourites.
They’re honest, even when delivering bad news.
What all the above have in common is that they all involve people. Leadership is about getting results through the efforts of others. Alienate them (or fail to meet their needs) and you lose their trust.
I have spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in the world financial services industry running different service, operations and lending businesses, I started my own Performance Management Consultancy to offer solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email . My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Productivity, Strategy, Teamwork
Understanding SMEs
SMEs
(Small and Medium-Size Enterprises) get a tougher deal from banks, governments
and other agencies. Ask any SME owner
what his main problems are and he or she will tell you bureaucracy and
obtaining finance. As someone who has
worked in large organisations and SMEs, this is what I have noticed
differentiates them.
Management:
In SMEs, there may be only one manager (the
owner) who does everything. His/her time
is spent selling, heading up Customer Satisfaction, managing day-to-day
operations, bookkeeping, acting as HR Manager, Legal Adviser and Head of IT. Large organisations and governments have separate
departments (or divisions) who specialise in a particular field. The SME owner/manager is a “jack-of-all-trades”
and has little time to spend on any one area.
Finance:
SME owner/managers are their own
bookkeeper, financial analyst and finance director. Don’t expect them to have the in-depth
expertise of a qualified accountant. The
good ones know almost to the last penny or cent what their total sales, costs
and profits to date are, and whether a new deal will make them money.
Awareness:
SME owners don’t have the time to keep up
with the latest legal and regulatory developments unless they specifically impact
their business. Don’t expect them to be
aware in the same way as the head of a large organisation. The latter pays others (e.g. lawyers,
accountants, specialists) to stay up to date and brief them as required.
Time:
Related to Management and Awareness
above, SME owners, as I mentioned before, are jacks-of-all-trades. Their focus is on getting business and
selling. Large organisations with
specialist Sales, Customer Satisfaction, IT, Legal/Compliance departments can
farm out tasks to the relevant specialist.
The SME owner is that
specialist and what is important to you right now may not be to them.
Decision-Making:
Is the territory of the SME owner. None of the employees (if there are any) is
likely to have any authority (or only has very little). Expect to wait.
How could banks, governments and other large official/government organisations help?
1.
Recognise the above. SMEs pay taxes and provide valuable
employment and business to the economy of any country.
2.
Have support mechanisms. Big organisations don’t recognise the
pressures and priorities of small ones - the fact is, they’re different.
3.
For banks, recognise that SMEs are different to multinationals and that
they may need specialist support. The
so-called “Small Business Units” of many banks are that in name only. I know one SME owner who hadn’t had a visit
from his “relationship manager” for 2 years!
I have spent more than half my
life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to
“emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in the world financial services
industry running different service, operations and lending businesses, I
started my own Performance Management Consultancy to offer solutions for
improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses,
charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international
speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email . My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of
services. For strategic questions that
you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.Labels: Regulation, Risk, Strategy, Teamwork
Getting New Staff "On Board" From The Start
I've just heard from a friend about an interesting event in their company. Two new staff were hired as business was growing.
Great.
What was interesting was that neither my friend nor his colleagues seemed to know:
- The names of the new staff;
- What they were actually going to do;
- Who would be responsible for "onboarding" them.
- This was bad for those already working at the company, but what about for the staff joining?
You only get one chance to make a first impression, and I can only imagine how the newcomers must have felt. Questions that they must have been asking would have been:
- Have I joined the right organisation?
- Why hasn’t anyone been briefed?
- What do they actually want me to do?
- Whom should I ask?
- Who will teach me?
- Onboarding is the most important stage in a team member’s career with your business. Many people tend to think that things end once the job offer has been made and accepted, but this is where the real work actually starts. Why waste the effort after you’ve:
- Spent time and money recruiting?
- Make them feel they made the right choice during the interview?
To make sure that onboarding is as successful as it can be, make sure that:
- They have a Job Description ready for them (this should in fact be ready at the interview stage);
- Their new manager/team leader (if they haven’t been present at the interview) knows who’s coming, when, and what they’re going to do;
- The manager/team leader briefs the team about who’s coming, when and what they’re going to do;
- The interviewer welcomes the new arrival on their first day and takes them straight to their manager/team leader;
- The manager/team leader introduces them to all with whom they’ll be working;
- Someone is accountable for their first 2 weeks (this may be the supervisor/manager);
- Someone is accountable for their TRAINING for the first 90 days (again, this could be the manager/supervisor or a colleague);
- Any identification cards, logon passwords and email addresses necessary have been set up;
- You follow up periodically (every week at least) to see how they’re doing.
“Probation” periods usually last for 3 months, but some employers forget that their business is just as much “on probation” with the newcomer as the newcomer is with them.
I’ve heard others say “Newcomers should use their initiative” or “We can’t spoon feed them from day one.” This means “We can’t be bothered now that they’ve signed on.”
Given that they’re supposed to be your business’ most important asset, wouldn’t you want to make sure that they’re up to speed as soon as possible, and that they’re happy and productive, earning your business more money?
If you don’t get the above right, you’ve failed your probation with them and they’ll be heading for the exit as soon as they find something better.
And then you have to start the whole expensive process all over again whilst thinking “They obviously weren’t suitable to work here...”
I have spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in the world financial services industry running different service, operations and lending businesses, I started my own Performance Management Consultancy to offer solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email . My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services. For strategic questions that you should be asking yourself, follow me at @wkm610.
Labels: Customer Care, Financial, Productivity, Strategy, Teamwork
