IT Leaders,
We’d all like to think that leadership is easy, you just adopt the behaviors that Zapp! and most other books tell you to. Unfortunately, as in life, it’s not so easy. This part of the book focuses more on the how rather than the what.
We all have lots of issues that compete for our attention. There is not enough time in the day to do everything 100%, so we have to prioritize. Because the effort you put into being a good leader pays off in the long run, it is tempting to de-prioritize leadership effort. I strongly encourage you to put the effort into doing these behaviors well. An empowered team is so much happier and more effective.
You can’t talk people into Zapp, it is your behavior that provides the spark. Talking the talk without walking the walk can make things worse.
Here are some key points:
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Praise. The quality of praise is important. You have to notice when people do well and let them know. Praising them when they know their effort was mediocre lowers the value of future praise.
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Self-esteem. Maintain the self-esteem of your team. Belittling may get temporary results, but you won’t get the full potential from your team if they don’t believe in themselves.
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Really listen. When you talk with your team you have to really listen. You must listen and respond with empathy. When you share your thoughts, feelings, and rationale, you build trust.
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Ask for Help. Don’t be afraid to ask for help and encourage involvement. Your team might even provide better ideas than you have!
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Support and Accountability. This might be the most important point— provide support without removing accountability.
When delegating responsibility:
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Refer the task to the appropriate person. Making a person stretch is great, setting them up for failure is not.
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Delegate authority to carry out the task and make decisions. Don’t just assign work, empower them to own the task.
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Don’t guide action, excite action. A person who is excited about taking on a task will deliver far beyond.
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Channel action in the right direction. You can’t be completely hands-off. Support includes feedback that helps them be successful.
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Mutually establish the goal, any KPIs, or standards. People need to be clear about what they must accomplish. When they help define success, they are much more likely to achieve it.
Your team needs:
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Direction. Goals, metrics, plans, vision, etc. They need to be clear about what they must accomplish.
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Knowledge and Skills. Job information, organizational information, technical skills, people skills, and decision making ability.
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Resources. Tools, money, time, etc.
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Support. Approval, coaching, feedback, and encouragement.
Try to keep these in mind as you go about your day. Like many investments, the payoff takes time. The value will be immensely greater to you and your team.