Leadership is one of the most underrated qualities when it comes to working within a company system. What are the top criteria behind being a good leader and how can you ensure to get the best results possible out of your team? Below are five metrics to help you along the way and allow you to maximize on the opportunity of leading a team.
Leading by Example:
When managing a team, the first step is to build credibility, while fostering trust and respect among them during the early stages by being involved on all daily tasks, while also training them on how to do the work. The success in achieving the required results for each client will also build good habits with the rest of the team members feeling like they can achieve the same goals and creating a good sense of empowerment.
This consequently creates a strong internal growth amongst all members of the team where everyone is aiming to become the best version of themselves leading to overall client success and an enhanced team relationship. The approach will also help create a feeling of accountability, as well as boost engagement and motivation with everyone pushing themselves and each other in improving each and every day.
Synergy:
The goal to every team is having a different set of skills that all complement each other with every individual focusing on their own personal strengths for their team and clients’ success while working on improving any weaknesses that they may have. The best method of growth here is through internal workshops where all the members of the team are training each other for the end-goal of improving together.
Every industry has its own set of work pillars from business development to research and content, media relations, crisis management, just to name a few and when building a team, it is essential to ensure that they meet all the required criteria to deliver on the projects delivered to them. The phrase “you’re only as strong as your weakest link” is an extremely accurate statement here and you never want to compromise on your overall team’s success by missing out on any of the elements required.
Team Culture:
Building a positive and non-toxic culture across your team is another responsibility of being a good leader and a situation which might seem inevitable in certain situations. A competitive environment will always present its challenges with every person trying to shine and climb the corporate ladder and they might even view other team members as a potential obstacle to that. It is important to set strict guidelines and not encourage any bad behavior as this can easily become the biggest setback to a team’s growth.
Always make sure to push the notion that we are all here to grow together and our personal achievements are directly aligned with the team’s success where both are directly aligned. Try to also create a setting for everyone to be together outside the office every now and then by organizing team outings so that the team can get to know each other on a personal level; this usually helps everyone in feeling more comfortable and open with each other carrying over to the workplace.
Transparency and Accessibility:
Transparency is a key factor in creating a constructive model for individuals to grow on. Discussing issues together, especially when it is your own builds trust and allows more freedom and comfort in everyone speaking their mind as it creates a feeling that it is okay to be vulnerable and we are all here to help each other reach a common goal. If the issues are just swept under a rug, this will only cause further damage both externally with the work being delivered to clients and within the team’s relationship with each other.
With transparency comes accessibility where employees should be allowed to reach out to each other regardless of their position at the company. As with every company, there should of course be a structure where specific tasks are managed by certain individuals depending on their job description but if a junior person ever wants to reach out to a senior level executive with a specific question or concern, the door should always be open to that. The ease of communication between one another also creates additional trust by all members that they are here to support one another as opposed to solely sticking to a hierarchal work model with zero flexibility.
Setting work KPIs:
When it comes down to it and assessing whether your approach has been successful within the team, the technical element becomes the most important criteria to measure overall results and track the progress of each person. Just like how clients measure companies based on whether they are meeting their work KPIs, you want to follow the same approach with every member of the team based on their required duties and whether they are meeting their deliverables consistently.
If the results are not met by that person, this should become an open conversation between him/her and the team leader to see what the issue is and how you or the company can support. You want to be as efficient and transparent as possible with both your time and every team member that you are responsible for, while putting the company in the best position to succeed. Your job as a leader is to always try and find the right methods and tools to maximize on the opportunities that you are provided with but also knowing that at the end of the day, not every situation guarantees success.
