Mar. 19, 2018 "Five tell-tale signs leadership is slipping": Today I found this article by Merge Gupta-Sunderji in the Globe and Mail:
Merge Gupta-Sunderji, leadership speaker and consultant, is the founder of Turning Managers Into Leaders.
Exceptional leaders understand that there is a difference between management and leadership.
They have learned that organizational success is accomplished not just by getting things done (management), but by getting remarkable things done through a large number of people (leadership).
And not just by any people, but employees who are inspired, motivated and self-driven.
Nevertheless, despite this essential wisdom, almost all leaders also go through rough patches, stressful periods when it's easier to focus on management rather than leadership – when it's simpler, and often crucial, to concentrate on tasks rather than invest in the building and nurturing of high-performing employees.
When this happens, the predicament is that the situation usually spirals downward.
Employees get frustrated and make errors, patience dwindles and tempers fray. Team members become less engaged, and the leader feels trapped and exasperated. The pattern continues as the state of affairs worsens.
Employees get frustrated and make errors, patience dwindles and tempers fray. Team members become less engaged, and the leader feels trapped and exasperated. The pattern continues as the state of affairs worsens.
The only way out of this deteriorating dilemma is for a leader to recognize the signs and act decisively to break the cycle. So, what are the clues a leader should watch for? Here are five.
You think an employee "should already know that"
If you find yourself consistently thinking that an employee "should already know that," then perhaps your employees aren't the problem. Have you given them the information they need in order to be productive?
In times of organizational crisis, consistent communication doesn't always happen. So don't assume your employees know everything you do. Instead, honestly question why your employee "doesn't know" and take ownership and responsibility for the deficiency.
In times of organizational crisis, consistent communication doesn't always happen. So don't assume your employees know everything you do. Instead, honestly question why your employee "doesn't know" and take ownership and responsibility for the deficiency.
You assume your employees will raise issues or problems without being asked
When priorities are shifting rapidly, your hope is that your employees will highlight problems on the horizon. If there is a risk of negative repercussions, they will often omit or filter the information they give you. Good leaders know to ask direct questions to uncover problems and issues.
When priorities are shifting rapidly, your hope is that your employees will highlight problems on the horizon. If there is a risk of negative repercussions, they will often omit or filter the information they give you. Good leaders know to ask direct questions to uncover problems and issues.
You believe it's easier to do it yourself
If you increasingly find yourself taking on more tasks because, let's face it, the only way to get things done right is to do it yourself, then you have a problem! Your reluctance to delegate responsibilities to your team members is a clear signal that you're slipping back into management mode. If you can't trust your people to do the job well, then you obviously haven't put the right staff in place.
You focus more on what's not working than celebrating what is working
Sure, when you're in crisis management mode, dealing with challenges takes priority. But, be mindful that you don't get sucked into the negativity vortex. For every problem that surfaces, remember your staff are investing energy in solving it, or at least expending significant effort to mitigate the damage. In the heat of the moment, it's easy to forget to acknowledge and appreciate their hard work.
You start telling people what to do rather than asking them what they think
It's tempting to tell your people what to do, particularly when the ship is straying off course. But good leaders know that employees who are able to share their insights and offer their own solutions are much more invested and engaged in both the process and outcomes. So, fight the urge to bark orders and issue commands; that's what managers do. Instead, be a leader: Remind yourself that you put good people in place, so let them do what they do best.
The Ladder: Debra Kelsall:
Debra Kelsall, 25, of Horsehoe Valley, Ont., an associate in the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs in London, works in debt capital markets and corporate risk management. She completed a Bachelor of Commerce with honours in Investment Management at McGill University before moving to New York.
I am thankful for the opportunities to work in international offices. When I first started working at Goldman in New York, I probably wouldn't have believed it if you told me that two years later I would be moving to London.
The key characteristics that define Goldman Sachs culture – excellence, integrity, teamwork and collaboration, to name a few – undoubtedly carry across the pond. However, the unique cultures of each city visibly impact the respective office cultures. In London, coffee catch-ups are replaced with tea time, small talk begins with weather before sports and while people on both sides are passionate about football, they're talking about a different sport!
Moving away from Canada has certainly made me more aware of things that are distinctly Canadian – and not only the way we say "about" (which to me still doesn't sound that much different). Whenever I go back to Canada, I am always amazed at how genuinely kind people are.
It's almost like you've stepped into this other world where people look you in the eye and say hello on the street. I try to take a lot of that with me to various places I've lived.
It's almost like you've stepped into this other world where people look you in the eye and say hello on the street. I try to take a lot of that with me to various places I've lived.
For me, passion and purpose are very much linked. It's more about the "who" than the "what." What I mean by that is that I think people say that you will only be happy when you're pursuing your passion, but that puts a lot of pressure to figure out what exactly that passion is.
One thing that I've always made a priority when moving to a new city is getting connected with a church. It is the place where I have found many of my friends and community and has been a way to meet people who do something different from me. Cycling has also been a helpful bridge in transitioning to a new place – cyclists have a culture of going for group rides together, which are a wonderful way to be introduced to a city and its people.
As a millennial, I believe there is a perception that we can't stick to anything for more than a year, which in some cases is well-founded. However, I think if managers manage their junior people with the mindset that they will probably leave in a year or two, then they're much less inclined to invest in and train that person. If managers took more of a long-term view, they could better help their junior employees adopt a long-term mindset.
Often, we have vague ideas of where we want to be, but to have your manager sit down with you and strategize for where you want to be in the medium term, long term and how to get there … is rare. If your manager is as invested in that end goal as you are, then we would see a lot less people jumping ship after a year or two.
I used to have a perception that leaders must have everything together. In reality – and a lot of this learning came from a course at McGill – I've learned that to be an authentic and inspiring leader, vulnerability plays a huge role. Only when you're willing to be vulnerable with others can you learn from mistakes and become relatable to the people that you're leading.
The best thing you can learn and develop in university is character. Learning to be faithful in the trivial things, to be a team player, to be diligent and to have uncompromised integrity has proven to be one of the most important determinants in my career progression thus far.
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