Learning Leadership Under 30

It’s been almost 5 years since I have had the privilege to be elected as one of the Channel Sales Directors at TBI. These are the first few years of what I hope to be a long-tenured role in leadership, but it definitely has come with its many challenges, learning opportunities, and great moments of collaboration amongst various departments, vendors and partners. It’s also no secret that when you look at my profile picture, I have a quintessential baby face and have just exited my 20’s.

With this combination I felt compelled to share my learnings over the last 5 years in leadership, and specifically at a young age. My goal in all of this is to hopefully inspire others out there in the world, who are millennials and have goals of becoming a leader, and maybe even give some tenured folks a different way to look at leadership, and potentially change their approaches for better long-term results.

Before I talk about these findings, I want to stress that this journey has had its ebbs and flows; and required me having to take some long hard looks into the mirror. Prior to becoming a Director, I was a Channel Manager for TBI, supporting partners nationwide with a major focus in the Upper Midwest, and had spent that time learning, educating partners, and building solid relationships that are still with me today. However, after becoming a leader, my overall philosophies had to change. It was no longer about me, it was all about the team. That transition from contributor to leader, didn’t happen overnight; but I am confident that over this time, I have evolved more than I could have ever imagine; and still continue to learn and adapt.

Through these learning moments, I’ve had to make tough decisions with the company’s vision and goals in mind, while continuing to build a world-class channel team. We still have some areas to improve and grow collectively, but it’s been impressive to see the growth amongst our partner community and innovation throughout the industry in areas like cloud, cybersecurity, CCaaS and other virtual technologies.  There is more to come no doubt, but it starts with good leadership and focus.

With that, here are my 8 biggest things I have learned the last 5 years:

Accepting your team members are not you (and that is a good thing!)

At the end of the day, the best companies in any industry thrive via new ideas, out of the box thinking, and without the attitude of “this is the way I’ve always done it”. In most cases, leaders are promoted because they did a great job in their previous role, whether that’s marketing, sales, or operations. However, just because you were successful in the way that you did things individually, doesn’t mean that you should be concerned if your team members do it differently. Focus on the objectives and end-results; and who knows, you might learn a new way of doing something that can benefit the organization. 

Enable your people to make mistakes

In addition to accepting that others are not you, enable your team to run their ship and make mistakes. I’ll talk more about coaching and development shortly, which is vital, but find that balance between coaching and allowing them to think for themselves. Lead them by asking what they would do, allowing them to share their intended approach, and if they’re on the right track, then let them run with it. If they aren’t, provide a different perspective and continue to coach them – either way they learn and find their own voice and approach. 

Get out in front of your desk (or virtual desk)

This isn’t a new philosophy, but we have all heard the stories of bosses who really don’t add a lot of value to their people, treat them as minions, and really only bark orders and point out the bad. As a LEADER, you need to be out with your people, spend a day in their shoes, and gain an understanding of their challenges. Go on ride along and sales meetings together, and especially if you were successful in sales prior, you have a lot of input to give, and it’s best in the moment. If you aren’t doing this, you are greatly reducing the opportunities for growth with your people. This leads me to…

Coaching and development are the key to building trust and true progression

I’m a big believer that coaching and development is one the main criteria of your role as a leader. It’s not about you knowing all the right things to do, messages that should be said, and approaches; it’s about you helping your team learn to do it on their own. This is paramount to my previous point, along with understanding their goals and objectives (personal and professional) and continuing to provide guidance and constructive criticism that’s going to allow them to get better. At the end of the day, whether you are the best or can improve, everyone needs a coach, to help they stay on their plan, stay focused, fine tune their skills and minimize distractions that may be getting in the way.

You work for your people, not the other way around

Alright, technically this isn’t accurate according to the company org chart, however, this is more of a mindset. Take this approach with your team members daily, and I assure you they will be more thankful and the trust will grow. Get off your high horse, and find ways to help them, ask them questions about where you can help, what they are struggling with, what they need more of, and then help them accomplish these objectives. Just make sure to not enable them to delegate items that they are more than capable of handling. Bottom line – be helpful and willing to be there!

Gain buy-in by explaining the WHY behind initiatives

I have heard numerous stories and have seen it firsthand where leaders are sending a full baked plan/initiative ready to deploy; and everyone is looking around wondering:

·      Why are we doing this?

·      What is my role?

·      How does this impact our organization?

·      How does this help me achieve my goals?

If you are rolling out a great idea or initiative, I implore you to bounce it off the people who are going to be driving it, and have a role in it, before deploying. Gain their ideas, thoughts, comments, and feedback. Once they have clarity, and there is room for you to alter the plan or make it better with everyone’s considerations, the more buy-in you are going to get across the board. Don’t roll something out that perceived as “just because” where you are going to get lackluster buy-in, equally lackluster results, and a waste of time. Yes, this takes longer, but it requires you to look at the bigger picture and overall impact, causing you to have better long-term success.

Collaborative leadership builds culture

At TBI, we have many departments that are integrated with the Channel Sales Team, which include Operations, Training, Marketing, Engineering, Finance, and others. With that, it’s important that we are fully aligned with the overall goals of the company, what our objectives are, and how we are going to work together to ensure success. If you are working with other departments and you rely on them as part of your success, make sure to understand their goals and objectives and make sure they know yours. Have monthly or quarterly touchpoints to ensure communications is happening and you are working together to pivot and adapt as things evolve and change. This will create an open communication culture which will have great downstream affects to your employees and customers.

Never stop learning

At the end of the day, there are many leadership styles, tactics, and approaches, which can alter based upon who you are coaching and managing. With that, continue to always stay in the learning lane, find new ways to approach the way you lead and coach, and don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone. We are in an industry that continues to adapt, change and thrive; and leadership is not any different. The world we live in is much different than years past; and whether you want to accept it or not, different generations are entering the workforce that value and view things differently. Align with them as much as possible, so you can coach with empathy, understanding, and work to build incredible internal relationships.

Conclusion

There are many more things that I have learned over the last 5 years, and there is going to continue to be more learning opportunities throughout the rest of my career, but these key lessons and takeaways were the ones that stood out the most when I reflect on my career and professional progress. If you are a leader, please let me know your thoughts and some of the standout things that you have learned. If you aspire to be a leader, and feel this was helpful, make a comment or send me a private message with any questions or thoughts you have.