Management & Leadership

Leading, managing, succeeding - How working to your strengths will help your business thrive

Article for the RAW Entrepreneur Magazine

http://millionimpossiblemagazine.com/

What differentiates successful businesses from those that struggle or fail? From my own experience as MD of an HR and personal development consultancy, two factors play a major part: leadership and management. 

You can have the most innovative product and best service, but if the leadership and management within your business are not up to it, then failure may beckon. Of course, ‘failure’ comes in different guises and needn’t mean a visit to a bankruptcy court. It may be a failure to achieve your true potential, or a failure to realise real benefits for your clients and customers, or failure to engage your team in a way that makes the most of their unique talents. Whatever way you look at it, this is failure, nonetheless.

Of course, many entrepreneurs have no argument with the importance of leadership and management. But despite this knowledge, backed by thousands of books, degrees and training courses, why does failure in this area continue to haunt so many businesses?  If like me you worked in the corporate world before going it alone, you probably wondered how some managers climbed the greasy pole to positions of responsibility. Couldn’t they see how their interactions with other people had the opposite effect they wanted? Didn’t they recognise the flaws in their decision making? 

As entrepreneurs, we need to make sure we don’t make the same mistakes. But what is that elusive ‘x’ factor that will help us to reach our potential and enable our businesses to thrive?

I believe the key differentiator is a leader’s ability to recognise and leverage his or her strengths, acknowledge their weaknesses and employ counter measures to mitigate for them. In practice, this means doing what you are good at and passionate about, using your strengths to deliver results rather than spending huge amounts of energy improving your weaknesses.  This may run counter to the idea that you should spend time and effort working on your weaknesses, but take a good look at the leaders who have found extraordinary success; they leverage their strengths and build effective teams around them with the skills they don’t have.  

As entrepreneurs we adopt numerous roles as we take our business from an idea through the various stages of business growth.  This requires leadership and management skills, whether we are a sole trader or the owner of a large business.  Of course these skills will differ in importance, depending on where we are in the business development cycle, but we need to know, recognise and acknowledge what our leadership and management style or talent is.  We need to bring in the skills we do not have, and quite frankly don’t do well and probably don’t want to do; why waste time and energy developing a skill that will only ever be adequate at best?

In the last issue of the RAW Entrepreneur I found Rachel Elnaugh’s comment “…as an entrepreneur focussed on pastures new has little energy left for running their existing (if by now somewhat boring) ‘big Money Machine’”, a very telling statement.  Based on her article, it appears that for Rachel the ‘buzz’ and passion is achieved through creating and developing new ideas. Once a business is up and running, she is excited and motivated by moving on to the next new challenge. There is a woman who knows her strengths and interests.

Although anyone starting a new venture is an entrepreneur, everyone comes to the role with their own unique leadership and management skills.  Look at some of the most successful leaders; while all are different, they have utilised their own unique style to very successful effect.

Creators - the ideas people, such as Bill Gates and Richard Branson.

Stars, with success based on their own identity, such as Michael Schumacher and Tony Blair

Outstanding leaders, such as Jack Welch and Margaret Thatcher

You get the picture.  I have worked with a business where an understanding of different styles of leadership and management has helped them to become highly successful. In this case, the leader is an ‘ideas man’, as his number two stated: “John has more ideas in one day than most of us have in a lifetime; my challenge is to turn his ideas into a successful business, and remind him that we can only cope with so much change in the time allowed!  He is not interested in managing a team, whereas I couldn’t motivate and inspire like he does. I am, though, very good at implementing John’s ideas and managing the team.  John and I recognise each others’ unique talents in terms of leadership and management and through leveraging these we have become a hugely successful business.”

It is short-sighted to think that we will be interested in and good at activities that our businesses require but we have little desire to do.  The question is not whether we can undertake the required role, the question is do we really want to, and if not, why are we doing it? It is human nature to gravitate towards the things we enjoy and are good at.  As employers (even if the only employee is yourself) you owe the business and yourself time to focus on developing your strengths and looking at ways of ‘plugging the gaps’ where you are weak.

Successful businesses often use assessment tools to help them identify their leadership and management styles and support team selection and development. Behavioural assessment gives insights into the strengths and weaknesses of individuals and teams, whether it is Myers-Briggs MBTI, Extended DISC, Birkman Method ® or Hogan.

Failure to recognise the value of leadership and management to your business will hinder your future success, both personally and professionally.  Personal awareness is a key part of this; however you do it, setting aside some time to identify the type of leader and manager you are and acting upon the findings will pay dividends.

Linda Klassen-Brown

MD, Business Adrenalin Ltd

Linda Klassen-Brown is a motivational leader who helps senior executives, owner managers and their companies to improve business performance and achieve their potential. Her company, Business Adrenalin, provides HR, coaching, training and product marketing services to drive positive change, with a focus on the bottom line.

www.businessadrenalin.com 

Performance - The top Four reasons we do not deal with poor performance

Amazing but true, we tolerate poor performance at work in a way that we are unlikely to in any other aspect of our lives. With every client we have worked with we have assisted in dealing with poor performance issues that are known but have not been dealt with effectively.  We find there is a common thread with all the various performance issues even though the companies, size and sector are different.

Why more effective action isn’t taken?

·         Managers don’t know what to do

·         The performance issues are difficult to quantify

·         The individual is difficult to deal with

·         Managers allow feelings to interfere with business decisions

What action is often taken?

If someone isn’t performing managers often do one or more of the following:

·         Avoid dealing with it

·         Talk to the employee only after things come to a head and can’t be put it off any longer

·         Talk around the problem, don’t communicate directly enough

·         Move the problem to another job, team or department

·         Try to get HR or someone else to deal with it

·         Make the employee’s working life even more difficult hoping they will leave

So what happens when we don’t deal with poor performance effectively?

·         Managers overreact and take action which introduces a litigation risk to the business

·         Increases a high level of stress to both the manager and the employee

·         Time Cost – either dealing with the performance or the fall out when it goes wrong

·         COST – dealing with performance incorrectly can have a very high costs attached for solicitors fees and awards through tribunals

·         Reputation – ineffectively handled performance issues can badly damage business and personal reputation internally and externally

I recently saw a posting on a forum from a small parent lead, committee run after school club.  No one in this group had recognised that they were in fact employers and when managing the staff all employment laws apply to them as an employer - just as they would to any employer.  The status of the business, whether it is a charity, not for profit or a big multinational - if staff are employed, the principles and rules of employment will apply.

Managing performance is important we all recognise that yet when it comes to devoting the time needed, it is often given the least time and effort.  Performance is the lifeblood of the business or charity; it can make the difference between success and failure of individuals and businesses.  Where the importance of this function is recognised individuals and the business thrive.

Have you looked into how you appoint your managers, what recruitment measures do you use?  How much training and support they are given on appointment or do you assume they will ‘just pick up the skills’ as they grow into the role?  Do you measure a manager’s performance with team based/personnel measures or are all performance measures entirely operational?  What importance do you place on performance management and how is that demonstrated in the way the business supports its managers?

How much do you know about management?  Are you just replicating your experiences of management, applying some bits of what you may have read?  How do you know how to manage?  Do you know your legal responsibilities?  Does it matter?  What difference does your management style have on the business performance?  Don’t know – why not – surely your personal management style should be something you know and manage?

So what to do?  Improving management skills can be done in a number of ways and will depend on your personal learning styles and something that is referred to as your ‘emotional intelligence’. How much do you know about who you are and your effect on those around you?  How aware are you of the effect you have on others and what you need to do to get the best from them?  How much will you need to change your behaviour to become an effective manager?  How will you know if your behaviour is achieving the results you are hoping to achieve?

Depending on your personal views, approaches and desire to succeed, you can use a number of ways to develop and increase your management skills and competence.  Some options are:

·         Take a management course

o    Management courses, educate.  They provide your mind with knowledge, they do not necessarily deliver changed performance.

·         Take a variety of training courses

o    As above, although training courses are usually more practical in nature, they are a one off experience and if you do not apply the knowledge you pick up it is unlikely to change behaviour

·         Find a mentor

o    Mentor and coach can be used differently, but I see a mentor as an internal resource, that is not your line manager but is usually more senior and can assist you in achieving career progression within your organisation.  A mentor can be helpful but is concerned with long term career advice not short term competence development

·         Find a coach

o    A coach can be internal or external and is concerned with assisting an individual to develop insight and analysis into themselves and the work situation or issues in a way which develops a way to deliver sustained and embedded changed performance.  A coach can help an individual to develop competence with support in applying them in the new setting either work or home

·         Access others experience

o    Mirroring performance of others within or outside the organisation using it in a way that affects personal performance.  Depending on who the role model is, this can provide both good and poor examples of how to do things - providing learning through observation and analysis.

·         Read management 'How to' books and other management resources

 

There are hundreds of books that can be read to provide details of how to be a good manager, leader or whatever else you are looking for -

Some or all of the above can be used to enhance skills but the most effective an long lasting change is proven to be through coaching.  Sometimes we have a coach and we don't realise it as we have never really formalised the relationship or put a label on it because it is a friend/acquaintance that has been a trusted adviser or coach. 

If you really are serious about changing performance - find a coach, it will make a real difference and pay for itself.  What have you got to lose?

Leader, Manager or Coach - Which one am I?

Surely we fulfill all three roles during our lives?  Do we really need to debate the differences? What does it matter?  Intellectually I do understand the need to define, debate and clarify these different roles, but I live and work in the real world, and I guess I come from the ‘so what’ brigade. What difference will it make to my day to day life?

So what makes a leader?  Do you think leaders are born or made, is it nurture or nature that makes leaders?  Wherever I go I find people on different sides of this debate.  There are numerous research studies and academic theories which will inform both sides of the argument, but as I noted above, I just want to know what difference being a leader, manager or coach makes – in the real world, my world.  Can I fulfill all three roles?

So, lets look at Leaders.

Leaders are only leaders if others follow them, they need to be perceived as leaders.  So why do people follow leaders?  This question applies as much to Hitler, Stalin, and Osama bin Laden as it does to Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair – why do people follow them?  Who do you think of as a leader?  What is your definition of leadership? 

I have my own definition of a leader, it isn’t scientific but has been developed over years of observation in work and home settings. Leaders are passionate, believe whole heartedly in what they are doing, have vision, see possibilities, the big picture, how things can be, drive change, make a difference and develop a loyal following that believe in their leadership.

The effective leaders skills include being an effective communicator, not always a good orator but they all have highly developed influencing and negotiating skills.  

So, what about Managers?

Effective managers understand what the goal is and what needs to happen to achieve the goal.  They value the power of teams and are skilled at building teams that will deliver the goals. A manager focuses on the here and now, what needs to happen and when they are skilled project managers and programme managers.  They know that there are a number of milestones which need to be delivered in order to achieve the ultimate goal.

Where a leader sees and designs change a manager delivers the change.  A leader without a manager achieves little.  A manager without a leader is unsure of what the goal should be and delivers little.

So , where does the Coach fit in?

Do leaders and managers need coaches?  What is it the coach can bring to this debate?  Can leaders and managers become coaches?  Why have a coach?

Why do football clubs employ coaches?  Why is it that when a team fails it is the coach/manager that is fired not the players and yet if the business is failing we fire some or all of the team? Ever been in a situation where the team took the fall for management failure?

So what exactly is it the coach does?  Effective coaches are catalysts, they enable individuals and teams to achieve peak performance, to follow the leader and achieve the goal.  When individual’s or team’s, win the FA Cup, Stanley Cup, take home Olympic medals or the Wimbledon tennis trophy behind all of these there is a coach. 

Effective coaches will be the catalyst which enables the individual to finish their first marathon or deliver their first sales presentation. Some coaches are trained, others are individuals that have ‘been there and done that’ and yet others understand how to release individual potential.

The common thread for an effective coach is the ability to release the energy, motivation and potential of the individual or team to enable them to achieve their goal.  The single most important issue is that the coach and the individual or team connect – that there is respect and understanding and ultimately belief.  The team or individual need to believe that the coach will be the catalyst they need while the coach needs to believe their support will ensure the coachee/s can achieve peak performance.

So, which one am I and can I occupy more than one of these?

I think we can all be leaders, managers and coaches although we do need to know which of these roles we are fulfilling at any one time and what that means to how we act and communicate.

I also think that we will so one of these roles better than the other two even if we can do all three.  The skills we need to be an inspirational leader are different from those of an effective manager and a competent coach.  although they are not mutually exclusive, we will naturally gravitate towards one more than another.

What is important is that we recognise that leaders need managers and coaches, just as managers and coaches need leaders and all of them need teams.     

I Want to be the Boss

OK I really do want to be the boss, the leader, be the one that makes the decisions!  The other side of that coin says that I also need to take ownership, responsibility and ‘carry the can’ for the results. Now that the time is here, I wonder if I have really thought this through?

Unless you are a one man band, working for yourself you are either an employee with a boss or you are one of the bosses.  Even when working for yourself, you need to change your ‘business’ hat for the ‘employee’ hat on occasion.

So how do we learn to be the boss? 

I have done a first degree (in Personnel Management), an MBA and I have realised that while education and training give you the theory, models and case studies it does not really prepare you for the experience of being the boss. 

If education doesn’t give me the answer then where do I learn the skills that I will need to become the boss? That leads me to the question of how do we as human beings learn?

All of our first learning experiences are through observation, experience and practice.  As babies, we don’t take a class to learn how to walk, talk and feed ourselves. We observe those within our environment, practice walking, talking and feeding ourselves over and over again, falling over, not being understood and missing our mouth, keep practicing until we ‘get it’.  We no longer fall over, we start to go faster and learn to run.  The experiences we have through the practice teaches us what works and what doesn’t. 

We observe how others in our immediate environment do things, how they interact and talk to each other, how they treat each other, respect others opinions, discuss subjects, make decisions.  Perhaps our environment is safe and open, or full of conflict and uncertainty – all of these experiences will become what I refer to as ‘personal baggage’.  Not all of our personal baggage is good or bad, it will be a mix of both and it will depend on how we deal with the baggage. Some of us will find it easier to rationalise the observations and experiences making sense of them, translating them into our ‘view of the world’. 

So much of our early lives will influence how we will be as bosses although that is only the beginning.  As our world grows and we go to school, university and then join the world of work all the time we are adding to our memory banks.  We will again observe, practice and experience the effects of a variety of ‘bosses’ including parents, teachers, lecturers and ultimately our first real boss in the world of work.

So why do some people become a boss that everyone wants to work for, the teacher that everyone wants or the parent that seems to have ‘cracked it’?  What is the differentiator?

Besides our personal baggage we each have our personal ‘filters’.  This is how we make sense of the observations, practice and experiences, how we explain to ourselves the outcomes.  It is why you can find two people that have gone through the same experiences or have very similar personal baggage but they have very different outcomes. I explain this by giving the example of: is your  ‘cup half full’ or ‘cup half empty’?  These are a reaction of our personal filters. 

I normally see things as ‘cup half full’, I see possibilities, positive outcomes, how things can be achieved – the danger with this filter is that I do not always see or take into account the risks that may be ready to derail.  My husband on the other hand sees most things through ‘cup half empty’ where the danger is that he sees everything that can go wrong, why something won’t work and can be seen as a negative influence.  Too much of either of these filters without the counter balance will have its own de-railers.

All of us have seen the combination of baggage and filters, how these have an influence on listening and understanding.  If you put several people in to observe a discussion it is likely they will all come out with a slightly or possible quite different understanding of what has taken place.  Their personal filters and baggage have influenced what they heard and observed.  I see this outcome as communication blocks.   

So before we can be good bosses we really do need to understand our own baggage and filters and how they influence the way we ‘see the world’ within which we find ourselves.

Next time I want to discuss how we explore ourselves and how this can influence our ability to be ‘the boss’.