When A Supportive Leader Becomes a Suffocating Leader

Do you adopt a supportive style of leadership, even when it is ill-suited to the situation? Recently, a leader wondered aloud if he had done enough to support a team member to improve performance - after deploying a range of supportive leadership techniques for over 12 months.

What is Supportive Leadership?

As the name suggests, supportive leadership is offering encouragement and support to colleagues with the aim of motivating them to realize their potential. It is one of the leadership styles identified by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard and in their Situational Leadership Model*. Supportive leadership is effective when your colleague is capable and fully skilled to successfully deliver the project – yet they are not performing in line with past performance or expectations. In short, the downward turn in performance is not due to a skill deficit.

When is Supportive Leadership Effective?

A supportive style of leadership is effective when your colleague has the requisite skills for the role, yet is experiencing a temporary dip in performance, possibly due to a personal issue or a mindset or attitude challenge. As always, the most effective support will depend on the dynamics of the relationship and situation - and an adequate dose of emotional intelligence.

Personal Issues

The performance dip may be due to personal issues, so you listen and support them as they find their way through this blip. The most effective support will depend on their needs, your relationship with them and the context of the situation. The most effective support might to to leave them alone so they can work their way through the issue. It may be to reassure them of your support. It may be to offer tangible support, such as flexible working hours. It may simply be to listen. Or to engage in a conversation where you ask them respectful questions to encourage greater awareness, a different perspective, or appreciation of their talents.

Lack of Confidence

The performance dip may be due to an inexplicable (to your mind) lack of confidence. Perhaps they delivered a project, but not to their usual standards. You might ask the questions that enable reflection on the issue, what they can take from it and how enable them to refocus their attention on the positives of their past performance and their potential. Or you might simply give them a similar project to run with - and a few encouraging words.

Lack of Drive

You sense your colleague is losing their drive. Maybe they have delivered multiple projects drawing on a specific skill-set and boredom is setting in. If they value change, perhaps you can focus their attention on the new aspects of the project - the learnings gained from supporting a different organization with a different target customer base. Perhaps you help them reconnect to their values and how they can draw on those or the project - a value of freedom could be reinforced by contemplating how they can create a new process or explore the longer-term strategy behind the project.

Fear of Failure

You’ve delegated a project that is a slight stretch and are confident your colleague can apply existing skills to deliver it successfully. They need your encouragement and a display of faith in their ability. Maybe they just need a listening ear, a smile and a few quiet words of encouragement.

Stressful Environment

When your team or colleagues are under stress to deliver, an understanding ear can diffuse the tension and maintain focus. An, 'I'm here if you need me' can work wonders. Another approach is to simply stay well away and let them power through.

When the Project Doesn’t Play to Strengths

You know your colleagues’ traits and core skills. Some people enjoy highly creative tasks, some prefer strategic projects, others love detail and process. When the project or task doesn’t play to preferences, you can encourage colleagues to draw on their lesser used talents in a constructive, and hopefully fulfilling way.

Changes in the Organization

When your organization is in the throes of change, such as a new org structure or implementing new systems or developing new product lines whilst ending others, the main emotion people feel is fear. You can minimize the fear by being open, sharing the knowns and unknowns - and supporting them to focus on the deliverable in hand.

When Can a Supportive Leadership Style be Ill-Suited?

Lack of a Critical Skill-Set

If you team-member lacks a critical skill-set, no amount of supportive behaviour will enable them to succeed, until they have mastered the skill. Your job is to enable them to build that skill as quickly as possible.

Highly Effective, Self-Motivated Performer

Your words of support and encouragement to a top performer may annoy rather than encourage. Top performers want to be challenged and stretched. They want constructive feedback and a path to future growth.

Abdication of Responsibility

When you cascade a goal without clearly defining expectations and then assure your team they can deliver. Essentially, you are abdicating all accountability for the outcome.

Lack of Information

If your team member is lacking essential information, sharing encouraging words probably won’t support business outcomes. Your role is to provide the necessary information – data sources, relevant processes, milestones and check-ins, critical stakeholders, clear objectives and timeframes – and allow them to thrive.

Why do Leaders Extend a Supportive Style When It Isn’t Effective?

Don’t Want to Appear Bossy

Many leaders working with knowledgeable, high-performing colleagues don’t want to appear bossy by sharing expectations, asking for updates, and giving feedback, so instead share the project objective and deadline and ask, more as a confirmation than a question, ''All fine?''

You Are Not Exactly Sure How You Would Do This Yourself

Whilst you have a grip on the outcome expected and some vague ideas of how to achieve it, you aren’t wholly sure of the detail. You don’t want to expose your underbelly so delegate to your team member with effusive confirmation that, ''I know this will be safe in your hands'' before rapidly moving away from their desk.

To Show Empathy

Empathy is putting yourself in other people’s shoes and understanding what serves them best in that moment. Genuine empathy is a critical leadership skill. It helps leaders understand the real needs of a person and how to help them take the most appropriate choice in a situation. Sometimes we think it means showing concern, ''All OK?'', before moving swiftly on. If you’re frequently asking, ''Everything OK? without enabling or welcoming a real response, you’re not really showing empathy.

It’s Easy

It’s relatively easy to say, ''You can do it.'' It doesn’t require much thought to be supportive.

You Don’t Want to be Branded a Nasty Boss

It’s been three months and in spite of a proven skill-set, your extensive direction, hand-holding and feedback, your new team member is displaying a complacent attitude to delivering in line with expectations. You worry that their under-performance is your fault. Maybe you haven’t guided them sufficiently, or been encouraging enough. You don’t want to be judged unfair or mean, so you continue to offer encouragement and support.

When Does Your Supportive Style Risk Suffocating People?

Your supportive leadership style may suffocate people when:

• They need you to delegate the task and then get out of the way. They don’t want expressions of support, just a clear goal and the freedom to achieve it.
• Too much asking if they are OK causes them to question themselves and wonder if they are OK.
• Too much support, when your colleague has the skills, but is showing no sign of engagement or drive over a significant period, doesn't serve them or you well. This is when the supportive style risks suffocating both you and them. It's ultimately the choice of your colleague whether they want to engage or not - but at some stage, they will have to stand on their own too feet. Better sooner than later.

Supportive leadership, like all leadership styles, is effective when used in the right situation. My request: simply be aware when your supportive style isn't hitting the mark, tune into the situation and try on another style.

*Supportive Leadership is referred to as Participating in the Hersey and Blanchard model. The Situational Leadership styles are Telling (Directive), Selling (Guiding or Coaching), Participating (Supportive) and Delegating.

Andrea Stone is an Executive Coach and Leadership Development professional. She supports leaders and leadership teams to recognize their strengths and to fine tune behaviours that can enhance their effectiveness. She combines expertise in emotional intelligence, effective leadership behaviours and team dynamics to create impactful programs that facilitate lasting change.

Copyright: Stone Leadership Coaching & Consulting Pvt. Ltd.