LET'S CONNECT

In my last blog, I discussed the picture of leadership today – how leaders need to engage their employees and be more involved.   I have a few more thoughts about what it takes to be an effective leader. We call ourselves a "market-facing organization." We face the final three feet in the market. We find opportunity in the market and customers tell us how they want to be served. We can make assumptions about what clients and customers want from us, and we can put ourselves in their shoes, but without getting into the marketplace and engaging the consumer's experience, our assumptions are irrelevant. So let's carry that logic into our company leadership. Dictating a vision doesn't get leaders anywhere, and if leaders aren't going anywhere, neither is the team. Leadership is about unearthing shared pictures to develop an ever-changing shared vision. In sales, we talk about buy-in, but when we ask our teams to buy in, we should really be asking them ...

Take a minute to think about what gets you out of bed in the morning.   Now put on your empathy hat and think about what gets your people out of bed in the morning. What gets them to show up day after day?    The culture? The value of the work? The difference they are making in the world?   Or is it the paycheque? Your bottom line? Fear of being fired for not showing up?   Your motivation for showing up and giving what you give every day should reflect in your people. If done right, your vision, energy, and respect for the work you do will be contagious and that enthusiasm will leak throughout the company.   There is a stereotypical picture of leadership: An old white dude sitting at a big desk surrounded by files and scotch. That's not good enough anymore. Strategies come from the bottom up. To lead, you must engage. Today's leader is surrounded by people and doesn't need a desk. Today's leader sits in the passenger's seat of employees...