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Everyday Leader
The Real Job of the Leader
Let's face it. Leading a growing organization is anything but easy. Problems that were solved quickly in the early days take on a whole new level of complexity with multiple locations and additional employees. Tactics that worked well to keep the team on track are tested as the scope of the business expands and new people with new ideas are brought into the company.
Amid all of this, the leader often feels caught in the middle. On the one hand she needs to devote her time to defining and executing the strategy to build the business. On the other, she needs to enhance the capacity of the team to support sustained growth. And somewhere in between she needs to maintain a sense of balance that allows her to do her best every day.
There are no easy solutions to this dilemma, and it would border on offensive to suggest otherwise. But there are some things that leaders of growing organizations can keep in mind to help them cope with the realities by focusing on the real job of the leader.
Step One...Accept that Reality has Changed. The fact is that when an organization begins to grow at a rapid pace, the leader's world forever changes. Span of control issues, capacity to handle the inherent complexities of the larger organization, and the need for more depth in all areas are key driving forces that demand action. It all can be ignored for a while, but if it is not addressed it can cripple both the organization and the leader.
Leaderful Action Response: Dedicate significant time and energy to build the team at all levels to do far more than it could do before. Treat this as job one and make it the biggest part of your daily activity every single day.
Step Two...Get Serious About Building Capacity. The only way to ensure the continued success of the organization is to develop the capacity of others to do the things the leader used to do. Implementing effective, on-going training focused on creating leaders who understand and are committed to the organization is critical at this point. Even more important is making sure that there is a readily accessible talent pool to support continued growth.
Leaderful Action Response: Over-invest in building the capacity of those currently in leadership positions, and more important in those who you will need to move into such positions in the future. Indoctrinate them into the culture of the organization and equip them with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes they will need to continue growing the business.
Step Three...Give Up Control Wherever You Can. Perhaps the hardest thing for the leader to do is to give up control over things that they have long handled. But the only way to sustain growth is to allow others to handle the things that used to occupy the leader's time so that the leader has time to do the things that now need to be done. Track the things the leader is doing and continually look for ways to engage others so that the leader has more time to tackle the new challenges as they arise.
Leaderful Action Response: Do an inventory of the responsibilities that leaders have at all levels of the organization. Review the items with a focus on removing as many as possible from each leader's to do list. Find others who can do them 80 percent as well as the leader, reassign them, and coach them to succeed. Accept that there will be some missteps, but don't be surprised when they find new ways to do things that are actually better than what was being done before!
Step Four...Focus on Your Strengths Every Day. Effective leaders know that one of the most important things they can do is to remove the obstacles and enable their people to do what they do well without getting bogged down. They need to do the same for themselves. By constantly looking for ways to focus their energies on doing the things they do well, leaders can achieve a better balance in their day-to-day efforts.
Leaderful Action Response: Assess your strengths and weaknesses with a goal of identifying the things that you do better than anyone else in the organization. Leaders should strive to spend at least 80 percent of their day doing these things by delegating things they don't do well to others. This will alleviate stress for the leader, while building the capacity of the team.
BOTTOM LINE: Leaders of growing organizations face predictable challenges--challenges that can be overcome by accepting that reality has changed, getting serious about capacity building, giving up control wherever possible, and focusing on their strengths every day.
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Everyday Leader is written by Michael Hudson, Ph.D., The Everyday Leadership Authority(tm). Comments are welcome. Archived issues can be viewed at Everyday Leader Archives
Copyright MMV by The Everyday Leadership Network. Reproduction for publication is encouraged, with the following attribution: From "Everyday Leader," by Michael Hudson, Ph.D., The Everyday Leadership Authority(tm). Toll Free: (866) 532-3968; International: (302) 684-8727 or at www.EverydayLeader.com
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