Rob’s Unsolicited Advice: Recognize the Power of Followership & Why it Matters!

Let's be honest, wouldn't we all love to be hailed as "great leaders"? A quick Google search confirms our bias: "leadership" yields 18.4 billion results, while "followership" comes in at a comparatively measly 1.9 million.

But here's the thing: strong followership is just as critical for organizational success as strong leadership. Not everyone can be a great leader, but everyone can be a great follower.

Dr. Howard Prince defines followership as actively contributing to a shared vision, working with leaders and colleagues, and aligning individual goals with the bigger picture. Notice, he doesn't say followers can't lead, or that it's an either/or situation. In fact, leadership and followership go hand-in-hand.

Quite frankly, without followers a leader is just someone with a fancy title.

The Followership Spectrum: From Disengaged to Rock Star

Dr. Robert Kelley breaks down followership into five categories (as seen in the picture above):

• The Exemplary Follower: The holy grail – proactive, knowledgeable, and dedicated. These are your rock stars!
• The Alienated Follower: Just as capable as the Exemplary Follower, but disillusioned and disengaged. These are your workplace cynics.
• The Conformist Follower: Supportive but lacks initiative; often new employees still finding their footing.
• The Passive Follower: Unmotivated and does the bare minimum to avoid getting fired. The paycheck may be their only motivator.
• The Pragmatic Follower: The adaptable jack-of-all-trades, reliable but not always a go-getter.

The Good News: We Can All Improve Our Followership

The beauty is these categories aren't set in stone! People can (and should) evolve:

• Reignite the Alienated Follower: Find the root cause of their disengagement and address it with empathy. Get them feeling like part of the team again.
• Empower the Conformist Follower: Give them small projects to build confidence and experience.
• Motivate the Passive Follower: This is the toughest one. Have an open conversation to understand their needs and find ways to make them feel valued.
• Inspire the Pragmatic Follower: A little nudge, some encouragement, and ongoing support can push them towards taking initiative.
• Recognize and Reward the Exemplary Follower: Don't take them for granted! Public recognition and opportunities to mentor others will keep them engaged.

The Blind Spot of Self

My boss, Chris Izquierdo, first introduced me to the concept of followership and it really made me pause to take stock of where I fit in with these traits. I thought I was an Exemplary Follower, but a self-assessment revealed I was actually a Pragmatic Follower.

The Challenge: Where Do You Stand?

So, LinkedIn folks, where do you see yourself on the followership spectrum? Have the courage be honest with yourself… and have the courage to ask your supervisor for their perspective too.

Remember, leadership is important, but exceptional teams are built with exceptional followers. By understanding the different types and fostering growth, we can create a more successful and collaborative work environment. After all, everyone can be a great follower if they want to be!