How can you achieve your strategic goals while serving your followers?

Something that I found very effective for me personally is to communicate my intentions clearly when sharing my values and goals with my team. This sharing of intentions helps clarify and reduce misunderstanding especially with words spoken or actions done in a hurry and in a multi- cultural team

Align your goals with your personal values in my opinion should be top priorities for any leader and should provide guidance for feature activities and responsibilities which is ethical to create value for society and others and just not creating shareholders values only.

I agree and believe clearly communicating your values to those you lead is really important. Once you share your values give them permission and invite them to share with you if they feel your actions aren’t aligning.

I will share an example where it didn't go well. We rolled out the purpose vision and mission and the strategy that was underneath it. Once. We rolled it out once to everyone. Then leadership felt it was distracting to keep going back and talking about the vision and the goals. Distracted from the day to day doing that was asked of the followers. Not surprisingly, it didn't stick and focus was not on the big game changing things. My experiences of serving leadership done well is all levels communication and conversation at regular intervals with the leadership. Regular and open dialogue. Listening to what your followers say. Taking away barriers to help achieve the goals aligned to the vision.

It’s important to not only listen, but to act in the feedback. If you can’t take action, make sure you share why you can’t. Also when you are engaging with your employees be present - no multitasking allowed!

It may sound too simple, but it is very effective to spend the time to build relationships and trust with your people. If you do this well, they will develop and present your strategy as their own.

Listening is important. But also supporting decision making where the knowledge is. True autonomy and empowerment of followers. Knowing that your leader supports and champions you, and will take the challenges and find solutions to improve. Will not finger point or blame, but lean in and solve with you. For you. That is serving leadership.

Your people are the most valuable component to your organization. Part of getting to your strategic goals involves showing them that you value them so they can take ownership of the goals and strategies you develop. If they feel heard, valued and part of the process they can take the reigns and drive toward the goal without micromanagement and with trust at the core. Serving them creates trust, connection, and encourages the teamwork you need to reach your organizational goals.

By empowering the people on your team you create trust and build confidence in them while building their strengths to compliment the overall team. Meet their needs first to develop their talents and your expectations will be realized as a stronger, more effective team evolves over time. Trust and respect go a long way to creating effective teams.

Talk to your employees about how they would like to recognized and rewarded. Be very specific with your recognition. Simply saying “You did a great job!” Is not enough.

Understanding your organization’s “core-values”, culture, mission statement. Partnering with issues which you’re passionate about that align to both your community and organization. Via Employee Resource Groups, local activities and workshops.

One thing I have found helpful is the open communication and creative freedom to team at the workplace. Where open communication encourages non-judgemental dialogue and feedback, the creative freedom enables autonomy and innovation at work. These two important pillars of leadership are equally important for inculcating the culture of servant leadership in individual and organisational structures.