Expanding your Leadership Value Proposition

A check-in conversation with a recently promoted team member provided an interesting opportunity for reflection. 

First the context - I was working with this colleague in transitioning from a senior but individual contributor to a team leadership role. A large part of our conversation focused on discussing the ideas presented in Adam Grant’s book - Give & Take. In the book, the author makes a compelling case for why helping others drives our success. I have tried to practice this deliberately and have seen firsthand the benefits it delivers to the team and in return the fulfillment and career acceleration it offers. It’s also a book I recommend when team members get promoted or make transitions to other roles.

The challenge we were trying to work through in this case was the lack of self-belief and confidence that sometimes comes in the way of thinking of yourself as a ‘Giver’. As we explored further, the colleague shared several narratives that I could relate to:

-I am having difficulty in thinking of myself as a ‘Giver’ given that I am not senior enough in the hierarchy. Will my team and peers' value it?

-I am uncertain about what I can offer. I feel like most people already know what I know so there is not much ‘new’ thinking I bring in.

-I am comfortable giving to new members with a steep learning curve but not sure what I can add to an experienced team or people senior to me?

All these are versions of limiting self-belief and sometimes an inability to frame a compelling answer to ‘why should anyone be led by you’ as articulated by authors Rob Goffee and Gareth Jones. At an intellectual level, I find most people leaders can resonate with the concept of finding your leadership narrative and being a giver however struggle to navigate through the nuts and bolts of how this shows up in coaching conversations. Here are some of my lessons by observing leaders and experiments in this area.

Don’t do all the heavy lifting

Our role as a leader provides us with significant leverage beyond an individual’s level of competence. Think of value in terms of access to leaders, networks, information, voting rights, ability to decide, the veto rights that come with being in certain roles as tenets of your value proposition. Bring this full self to your leadership and coaching and imagine how this might take some pressure of you at an individual level.

Frame your value proposition across multiple parameters

My value as a leader is 30% based on what I know and capable of and 70% based on my role, my network, my influence, navigational skills and ability to get things done. I share this with my team and it allows us to keep the expectations real and provides me scaffolding to be vulnerable. It also provides assurance to team members about what I bring to the team and reinforces my leadership credibility. Think of this split as a frame of reference, not as a recipe.

Extract value out of every interaction and experience

When you extend your leadership proposition beyond self, the way you will extract value from social interactions and experiences will be different. I have networked far more, influenced in more compelling ways and been more open to helping anyone I can, given the potential of the impact all of this can have for my team members. 

Personal Development is not Personal

Unless you are in formative education, personal development should no longer be limited to the person. It must translate into smarter, stronger teams and organisational capability. Share with your teams and let them benefit from your knowledge and networks. Expose team members to senior leaders, key projects, organisational systems and challenges. The leadership role in this context provides the legitimacy to do this, and this is part of creating a winning ecosystem that enables you to deliver your best.

In summary

Whenever I have complicated or intellectualized my value as a leader, I have fallen back on Arthur Ashe’s quote “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” This framing has allowed me to circle back to ‘What can I do’ and ‘What can I impact’ and then go from there.

What has your experience been of coaching colleagues in such transitions? I look forward to learning from you.