THE MANAGERS

Generally, leaders fall into one of four categories:

1. The person who is neither delivering on business results nor exhibiting appropriate behavior. There is no question that these leaders must be asked to leave the company.
2. The leader who delivers great business results but does not model the right behavior. This leader is contributing to the bottom line but is not treating employees well. Often called “results-oriented leaders,” they are leaving dead bodies in their wake. Yet it is traditional in business that these people are rewarded and promoted for bringing bottom-line results to the organization without thought for the long-term consequences of their actions.
3. The third type of leader has strong relationship skills but does not demonstrate business savvy. These leaders are liked and respected by their employees. Employees readily follow them blindly and happily down whichever path the leader chooses. The good news is that with some training these leaders usually can learn the business skills necessary to be successful. In other words, the leaders with strong relationship skills are most likely to develop into ideal leaders if they can learn competent business skills.
4. The fourth leadership type is the ideal leader. These are the people who are getting business results for your organization, demonstrating the organization’s values and behaviors, and building great relationships with the employees and customers. They have learned to balance the leadership characteristics of building relationships with holding people accountable. They take disciplinary action when necessary, reward and recognize when it is appropriate, bring money to the bottom line, and give great service to customers. If this type of leader sounds like a miracle worker, it is for good reason. Mastering this scope of relationship and business skills is very difficult. It is no surprise that these people are a small percentage of leaders in any organization. When you find them, you must do everything in your power to keep them.