Leveraging Leaders

Leader’s struggle. Regardless of their location, industry, or organizational culture, leaders face both internal & external challenges. I often wonder, is it them, their experience, or the expectations of their role? Honestly, nobody goes to a leadership or CEO/CXO school and becomes one. They all grapple with a stereotype of how a leader looks and acts. However, as HR Business Leader, if you could facilitate and pivot leaders to find meaning in their struggle, it will help them not to settle for stasis. Leadership is not about mastery, instead, it’s a set of constructs that each one needs to understand and explore. Having worked with leaders from different industries, I have observed a few patterns that worked well:

1.????? Making way for the 25th hour in the calendar: Leaders often live life as if they are on a treadmill 24*7. Making way for the 25th hour is making time and space for reflection. What difference and magic does this 25th hour bring in? It often helps to pause and reflect. It often brings insights to re-direct, re-route, and slow down to chase the right stuff. It may help to bring sanity and may regret some of the decisions taken during rush hour. It will probably build in patience and an ability to not get fettered by the pace of changes and the pressure of expectations. Many times leaders wrestle with self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy. The 25th-hour reflection could help them identify the drivers to lead, deal with imposter syndrome, tap into their capabilities & competence to make courageous decisions, embrace the uncomfortable and start focusing on catalytic actions.

Role of HR: It's difficult to find space for reflection. Push your leaders to have this space. Although they are surrounded by people all the time, the adage is true – It’s lonely at the top. They grapple with loneliness and isolation. They need someone who will listen, not judge. Be their “Vent Buddy.” Sharing struggles should be normalized. Let them be vulnerable. This is how you will be able to work with them on their Leadership Gap.

2.????? ?Create an exciting future while maximizing results today: Leaders struggle with how to navigate change. It's overwhelming to make progress amidst the chaos. While one may intend & visualize to create an exciting future, the challenges of today pull the leaders into here & now mindset. The myopic view takes over as against the long-term view. This impacts the organization's overall culture in terms of innovation, decision-making, employee engagement, and establishing the right pace of change.

Role of HR: First & foremost, trust & clear communication are drivers to lead change. By creating avenues for open communication, trust could be built with the teams. Enabling leaders to zoom towards both perspectives – zoom in & zoom out is imperative. Zoom in and get a close look at select details, perhaps too close to make sense of them. Zoom out and see the big picture—but perhaps miss some subtleties and nuances. Working the zoom button in both directions will help to respond to events before they become crises. So, it’s important to help leaders to make room to zoom.

3.????? Recognizing and acknowledging their own leadership shadow: This challenge is multi-fold. One - Leaders may tend to operate in the shadow of their past, especially their previous role. Two - It could be challenging for leaders to confront difficult aspects of their personalities. As Brad Smith righty said – “All leaders cast a shadow. The question is whether yours is blocking the sun or inspiring others with its silhouette to strive for more.” The leaders need to “reintroduce” themselves to their organizations.

Role of HR: A leader’s shadow (conscious & unconscious influence) is felt across the breadth of an organization. For a leader to make mindful & effective decisions, facilitate to orchestrate debate & dissent. Guard your leaders against the temptation of working with “yes” people. Help them find a mentor who can hold up the mirror in ways that result in accelerating their ability to quickly create value.

4.????? Developing potential future leaders: When leaders themselves are struggling, developing the next line of leadership is a challenge. It often takes a backseat in the list of priorities.

Role of HR: A formal succession plan is a must. However, pivoting your leader's thinking is essential. Only capability building throughout the organization will yield better results. Create mechanisms to review the vision.

I would love to hear from you about other leadership struggles that you have experienced.

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