(2/2) 2019 in full flow, but fundamentals of leadership remain unchanged
In my last blog, I highlighted the six fundamental leadership practices that all great leaders need for success, and I discussed the first three. According to a recent report from the Harvard Business Review, those six practices are:
Uniting people around an exciting, aspirational vision
Building a strategy for achieving the vision by making choices about what to do and what not to do
Attracting and developing the best possible talent to implement the strategy
Relentlessly focusing on results in the context of the strategy
Creating ongoing innovation that will help reinvent the vision and strategy
"Leading yourself”: knowing and growing yourself so that you can most effectively lead others and carry out these practices
So let’s dig into the fourth, fifth and six practices.
4. Relentlessly focusing on results in the context of the strategy
Having a regular, robust method of tracking results is crucial to ensuring the strategy is delivered. High performing teams will put OKRs/KPIs in place and monitor them over the appropriate time period. Communication - vital of course to the points and arguably the thing that underpins it all - is so vital in this step. Be it weekly team meetings, regular 1-on-1’s with team; if the leader isn’t constantly communicating expectations and progress to date, the team will be left unsure of how to know what to keep going on, and what might need recalibrating. RL Performance tackles this by giving its clients a suite of options in relation to objective setting and communication best practice excellence, including monthly or quarterly KPI’s, recommendations of the right team collaboration and reporting tools, to name a few.
5. Creating ongoing innovation that will help reinvent the vision and strategy
This practice is about constantly empowering and investing in the team; to make them feel that they “own” the vision and strategy every bit as much as the leadership does. Great leaders empower their teams to innovate on their ideas and actions, giving them the confidence to question the status quo and change course when it’s right to do so. RL Performance advises its clients on ways to introduce this into the regular work tempo, such as workshops, attending events and conferences, and sharing books and articles. None of these actions on its own may seem like it could have a transformative effect, but the use of each of these helps to create a certain discomfort within the team. A high performing team is one who rigorously questions its own methods and isn’t afraid to try new ideas.
“Leading yourself”, knowing and growing yourself so you can effectively lead others
This final practice seems so obvious and yet is so often overlooked by companies when deciding whom to promote for a leadership role. It sounds simple but a great leader is comfortable in their own skin; confident in their own ability, and comfortable hiring those who bring different skills. A great leader has a natural curiosity about what they need to learn to stay competitive and to keep their team at the cutting edge. RL Performance has designed a specific module around this practice because I recognise that in order to develop the leaders of tomorrow, it must first invest in the those of today.
For more information, visit rlperformance.org