Fearless Leadership

It is uncanny that this morning, as I read the HBR Management Tip of the Day, it is again in direct alignment with one of my go-to leadership practices, Fearless Leadership. It must be time for me to renew my HBR subscription, as the value prop on this read is growing daily. Ha!

Additionally, as we had our monthly #CommercialCollab call yesterday, one of the participants noted that it would be great to have a calendar of Commercial Strategy tactics that one could focus on monthly throughout the year.

As the stars align, HBR, speaking to me and one of our monthly participants, making a request; here is our January focus, Fearless Leadership.

The "Management Tip of the Day" of the HBR article, "20 Questions to Ask When Your Team's Vibe is Off," notes;

Understand that it’s normal for team dynamics to ebb and flow over time and reflect on what exactly feels off. Then decide whether your team ultimately needs to be realigned or revitalized. - HBR

While the entire article goes into numerous tactics to realign and revitalize, following the Fearless Leadership process realigns and revitalizes the team and allows leaders to lead fearlessly through shared accountability.

Fearless Leadership Tactics

I recently discussed the importance of some of these tactics in a podcast with Cory Falter if you want to skip to the 30-second version here. Otherwise, I have for you here what you need to know.

The Alignment

We start with setting the expectation. The last time this occurred was likely when the employee was hired and interviewed per a job description in a job posting. They were onboarded for that role and then likely left to execute with feedback provided annually. So much of the frustration exists in employees' belief that their leader does not know what they do. Let's solve it.

1. Ask the team to write down everything they do for one week. This exercise is called "A Day-in-the-Life" or DITL.
2. Compare this list to their job description.
3. Revise the job description to align with the attributes of the job as you have defined it and as they are now executing it.
4. Determine what of the job attributes the employee has mastered or needs improvement.
5. Develop training for those items that need improvement; individual and team training based on the number of employees that require the same enrichment.

The Alignment does several things;

• It acknowledges the job that the employee is currently doing.
• It gives the employee a voice in revising the role to meet the job as it is executed and getting training as needed.
• Most importantly, it sets the expectations for the employee and the leader.

The Accountability

Holding others accountable is more accessible when the expectation aligns with the employee and leader. Now that the work has been done to realign the role, the leader can lead fearlessly through the following steps.

1. The leader schedules monthly one-on-one meetings with each employee on their team.
2. The agenda for the meeting is twofold. The employee brings their agenda, which is discussed first. The leader's agenda is a follow-up on previous meetings, training plans, goals, and feedback on overall performance.
3. The meeting notes should be documented and shared with the employee.

Accountability does several things;

• It allows leaders to be fearless in their feedback. The expectations have been defined and aligned.
• It provides regular dialogue between the employee and the leader about the performance and the role. What used to be done annually is a conversation that continues all year.
• Most importantly, the leader can be fearless in their communication and expectations.

In conclusion, the remarkable alignment of HBR's insights with our Fearless Leadership approach marks a pivotal moment on our journey. As we delve deeper into our Commercial Strategy tactics calendar, commencing with Fearless Leadership in January, we eagerly embrace the wisdom of fostering ongoing dialogue and setting clear expectations. This alignment reaffirms our unwavering commitment to growth, accountability, and the ethos of fearless leadership, promising a future filled with empowered leaders and thriving teams. Together, we stride forward with a shared vision for success, driven by the courage to lead boldly into the promising future that awaits.

We invite you to join us on this exciting journey by sharing your thoughts in the comments below. Stay updated with our progress and insights by subscribing to our newsletter and following us on Instagram. Let's embark on this transformative path together and shape a future of Commercial Strategy defined by Fearless Leadership.

Obsessed so you don't have to be - Lori Kiel