Leading Leaders: How to Uncover Drive and Foster Potential
Effective leaders are those who can give their company a little something more than an abundance of skills and experience.
Skills can be learned and experience and qualifications gained, but there is no substitute for the enthusiasm, motivation and passion great leaders possess. These people can mean the difference between an average team and a high performing team – they are the leaders every company wants to keep, nurture and develop to their full potential.
Great leaders are acutely aware of the strategic goals they are striving for, and what they need to do to get there. They share company values, strive to be the best at what they do, identify areas for improvement and actively engage with their own leaders to perfect their craft and leadership method.
Leadership style isn’t a perfect science – some leaders are skillful communicators, some are experts in resolving delicate conundrums, while others advocate for their team when a plan doesn’t come to fruition. But what all great leaders have in common is their ability to be authentic. Great leaders ensure they are consistent and that their actions match their words, but they also have an ability to get people to relate to them. They understand their autobiography and surround themselves with people that give them good honest feedback, not just what they want to hear.
So what makes a leader tick, and what can managers and CEOs do to guide their leadership group to true greatness?
Freedom to develop their own leadership style
According to the Australian Leadership Foundation, the ideal leadership style is active and engaging, resulting in an autonomous yet productive and efficient team. Another concept suggests leadership style can be identified by three major tendencies – those who lead with their head, heart or hands.
An effective leader doesn’t just think with their head and focus so hard on the bigger picture they forget the needs of their team – they adapt or take a step back to actively engage their team and draw them into the strategic goal. Another simple trait that all great leaders have in common is that they enjoy leading their team, so developing their own means of communicating is essential to their motivation.
How does a leader develop their leadership style? Authenticity plays a key role, although learning by example from mentors who display their own passion and motivation while adapting to the needs of others, and to the project or goal, is also very powerful – especially during the formative years.
Managers need to recognise the emerging or apparent leadership style of their employees, and show guidance or reason for improvement where needed.
Do they lead with their heart? They may be a good motivator by praising the efforts of their team, but struggle when challenged by others. Are they a headstrong leader – constantly finding new opportunities, but complaining about a lack of progress because strategic goals are not being met?
Recognising a leader’s strengths, habits and idiosyncrasies can help you develop their talent to its full potential.
A clear understanding of what drives leaders
Great leaders have a firm goal and a clear strategic path to follow. It is this goal that truly gets them fired up and gives them the unbridled passion and enthusiasm they display every day and inspire in their team – no task is too hard, too boring, too trivial.
A manager or CEO should have a clear understanding about what drives their leaders and understand their goals and motivations – why are they so passionate about what they do? Motivation has a clear impact on behaviour, so knowing why your leader works they way they do will help you provide the most appropriate guidance.
Recognising the importance of human capital
An effective leader recognises that not all human capital is created equally, but works with the given skill set to maximise growth and get the best out of the team. Effective leaders have the ability to turn mediocre teams into high performing teams through their drive, passion and motivation. Leaders who tend to think with their head invest time and effort into their team and thoroughly explain processes and procedures to capitalise on staff efficiency, yet great leaders can go one step further, exercising patience and avoiding setting unrealistic targets or standards.
Great leaders in turn are excited by the opportunities to take their skills to a new level, and thrive on personal development to help them achieve strategic goals – they cannot be the best without active guidance and means of improvement. They are recognised as an important resource in the business plan, which only adds to their enthusiasm for the role.
It’s lonely at the top though, which also explains why an increasing number of leaders engage an executive coach to challenge their thinking and be that “unreasonable friend” that is often needed.
Loyalty is rewarded
Employers can benefit greatly by managing relationships with employees who rise through the ranks to seniority. An effective leader is supported in their decision to exercise company loyalty, and ideally should be rewarded in return.
Great leaders realise the importance of starting at the bottom, because later it allows them to keep the individual needs of their own staff in mind, while learning how to recognise the potential for future leaders. It also helps them to know who they are, and to accept their identity anchors, which in turn contributes to their authenticity as a leader.
Succession planning is a crucial factor in employee loyalty and retention. CEOs and managers may include their leadership team in succession planning details in a bid to further understand their motivations and foster their career goals.
Potential for leadership starts at the recruitment process
Job fit is an important concept when recruiting leaders or potential leaders. It relates to an individual’s compatibility with the job, and the tasks that are performed as part of that job. It is linked closely with organisational culture – a poor job fit can result in a poor team culture.
A leader who is not compatible with the tasks they are required to perform, including engaging and motivating staff, will be a poor addition to the company. Poor recruitment decisions can result in high turnover, wasted time and resources and low quality leadership, affecting many facets of the business.
Recognising job fit and potential for leadership begins during the recruitment process. Behavioural interviews can help identify personality traits and motivation. Behaviourally-based interview questions can also indicate suitability with the existing team culture, reveal an employee’s potential for prospective leadership, or indicate future leadership style.
There is no perfect leader, but each possesses a combination of skills and attributes that have resulted in their acceptance to a leadership position.
Discovering what fuels their passion, what style of leadership they practice and what areas can be improved will not only help you understand their motivations, but guide them to become the best at what they do.