How Managers Set The Tone

Leaders set the tone for their organizations. Through keen observation you’ll notice how the team manifests the characteristics of their manager. A calm and detail-oriented leader versus one who is energetic and emotional?can achieve the same results, though the team chemistry can vary wildly. ?

In this 4-minute edition of Leadership, Simplified allow me to walk you through five principles that I have found effective in creating, running, and transforming organizations. ?

Take supreme accountability. Don’t you find it common, even for senior leaders, to avoid extending themselves to help others, for fear of assuming too much risk? This is appalling. A Senior Vice President at a company I used to work for always asked for ownership of the toughest projects. His span of control grew from a small fraction of teams to nearly the entire I.T. organization. His battle cry was “If this ship was to go down I’d rather be at the helm!”

Genuinely care for people. Have you ever seen a manager cry at work? Hug them. During lunch break at our annual product planning session this manager called our attention to acknowledge and celebrate the departure of a technical architect who was instrumental in our success. He was barely a few sentences into a prepared speech when he bawled in tears. The environment was emotional, resulting in this architect, himself, appreciating in tears.?

Mediate conflict. Do you find yourself being asked to provide feedback on behalf of others? Resist it. This was a key lesson during a management seminar I once attended. The reason? Going between conflict prevents those parties in conflict to resolve items themselves. How best to handle when you are put in this situation? Offer to mediate. Either encourage each party to reach out or mediate the conflict, creating a neutral and objective environment to air and address the problems.?

Be direct. Can you look someone in the eye and tell them their deficiencies? Be courageous. Managers who embellish the truth, for their own comfort, are failures.?When someone approaches me for a job counter-offer, knowing this person is not ready for the next level, I clearly enumerate the areas of growth and engage them in personal mentoring sessions. In rare cases, I even offer to help them negotiate a better salary with the other company, if the deal is that sweet.

Exude confidence. Do you know the difference between confident and cocky? The latter offends people. To be witness to these types of leaders is, literally, like watching Jesus walk on water. My career mentor and golf buddy does this. Watching him command the room, through very simple and personal messaging, is awe-inspiring. I was ready to trade my 200-person R&D organization for one scrum team of engineers halfway across the country for this person.?

Effective leaders exude confidence, are honest, takes supreme accountability, and genuinely care for their people. These leaders draw cult-like following, not only from their teams but from across the company. When transforming organizations look for these people to lead the way.

I'd love to hear what you have found effective in creating, running, and transforming organizations. Like, share, or comment so we can collaborate.