What is ‘Authentic Leadership’?

Many people have written about the importance of ‘Authentic Leadership’, and as a phrase it certainly sounds appealing, but what does it really mean? To me ‘authenticity’ is something about being yourself as a leader, a sense of genuineness, of not simply playing a role because the organisation demands it, or imitating someone else, but playing yourself. However, in an attempt to understand more I consulted the Collins English dictionary which defines ‘authentic’ as something or someone that is: • of undisputed origin or authorship; genuine • accurate in representation of the facts; trustworthy; reliable So authentic leadership is also more than simply being yourself. When I want authentic leadership from someone, I am also looking for a number of characteristics, I certainly want them to be real, true, genuine and ‘on the level’. In fact I want them to be: • Trustworthy. We need leaders that can be trusted – that show integrity, credibility, reliability and congruence; that say what they mean, mean what they say and do what they say too. In their book ‘The Leadership Challenge’, Kouzes and Posner identified that trustworthiness was the most admired characteristic by followers. • Principled. To a certain extent this is linked to the above, I want a leader who knows what they believe in, what they value and the principles that they will ‘live or die by’. I want them to be able to manage tricky situations when personal values conflict with company or business values. • Humble. Leaders that are not self-absorbed in their role, think that all the power resides with them and recognise that their role is to enable and empower others to be the best they can be for their own good and the good of the organisation. • Friendly. I don’t want a leader to be my friend by I do want them to be friendly. I want someone who is approachable, not someone who hides behind their desk, role or status, someone who is capable of making a connection with me. • Self Aware. Leaders that are self-aware, that know their strengths and limitations; that recognise they still have a lot to learn. • Self disciplined. To maintain all the above, authentic leaders need to be self disciplined, sticking by their values, principles and commitments. Too often it is easier to give in and do the’ popular’ thing rather than the ‘right’ thing. So in my view ‘authentic leadership’ is not just about being yourself, it’s about being trustworthy, principled, humble, friendly self-aware and disciplined.

The Benefits of Changing your Leadership Style

This is a true account of an experience I had many years ago when a change in leadership style dramatically improved the performance of the business. In the late 1990’s I worked in a factory that printed and bound children’s books. It was a great business with strong values but sadly struggled against tough foreign competition particularly in China who could print and bind books far more cheaply than we could. The factory had a manager who was responsible for all aspects of the supply chain, from purchasing of raw materials, through printing and warehousing and finally delivery to the customer. He was very experienced and new the business inside out having been had been promoted from the shop floor into vacuous supervisory, and management roles before he was responsible for the whole site. He was however, what I would call a very ‘traditional manager’. . I call him traditional because of his style. He liked to keep control of everything, could be very dictatorial (‘when I want your opinion I will give it to you), and was almost obsessive about cost. He did not really trust any of us, and I got the feeling that he believed that if he did not tell us what to do all the time we would get things wrong! Because he was so cost focused, he didn’t spend money except on essentials and thought things like training and development were a total waste of money. If any of us needed to spend even the smallest amount we had to seek approval from him first. The consequence of his style and approach was that most of us only ever did what they were told to do, we rarely went the ‘extra mile for him, we were not very engaged and some had quite divisive relationships with their colleagues. Sadly, the manager didn’t recognise that his style also had consequences for himself. Because he disempowered his team and wanted to control everything he ended up doing things that we should have been doing and so worked long hours and was often stressed. He also couldn’t understand why some of us would not do more and take some of his work off him! The ultimate consequence on the business was that it didn’t respond to the changes in the marketplace as quickly as it should have done, and did not have the levels of productivity and responsiveness needed to compete. Eventually, the manager retired and a new person took on his role. However, this person did not have the detailed technical knowledge of his predecessor. He was not from the printing trade and he knew that he did not have the skills and experience to tell his managers ‘what to do’. However, he did understand about how to lead people effectively and recognised poor morale, team work, performance and lack of personal responsibility among many of the team he had inherited. He therefore decided to take a new and different approach from the previous manager , and did a number of things. He: Set clear expectations with each member of his team regarding their performance and behaviour. Got ‘out of their way’ and allowed them to get on with their job without undue interference. Invested in a development programme to enable them to improve their own leadership and coaching skills. Supported and coached each individual manager to take greater responsibility Took action with anyone who either did not want to or could not meet the expectations set. Over a period of 12 months, there was a massive change in the team and their performance. As individuals we understood what was expected of us and grew in confidence as a result. Overall we all took on greater levels of responsibility and gained more job satisfaction. As a consequence, the manager was able to spend time on other activities such as setting out a new strategy for the factory, planning for investment, and reorganisation of factory operations. All of this concluded with a dramatic improvement in the operational performance of the factory – lead times were reduced by 75%, stock levels were reduced by over 50%, productivity increased by 25% with a corresponding reduction in cost per unit. All of which meant that the factory became more competitive and successful. For me it was an interesting lesson in the importance of leadership style and the impact that it can have on business performance, in both a negative and positive way.

Managing Your Levels of Stress

I read an article the other day in which the HSE reported that there were an estimated 428,000 cases of work related stress in 2011/12, which was around 40% of all total work related illnesses. While companies have a legal duty of care to manage work related stress, I have always been a firm believer in the concept of ‘resilience’ – our personal capacity to manage and cope with stress. Resilience is the capacity that allows some people to cope well with stress and bounce back to their normal self very quickly, even after suffering from a traumatic event. My observations are that resilient people rather than letting failure overcome them, they look to find positive meaning even in a traumatic experience. But is resilience a quality that anyone can develop? I think that it can be, and the following are some ideas about how you can build your resilience. 1) It is important to develop close relationships with people, as this provides you with someone who can support you when you need it, as well as you offering others support when they need it. 2) I think it is important to accept that some things cannot be changed. It is not helpful to waste time and emotional effort on these things and instead and focus on those things that you can influence. Try this exercise to help. On a piece of paper draw two concentric circles and write in the centre circle ‘direct control’, the next ‘indirect control’ and on the outside ‘no control’. Write down the things that worry you most in the appropriate circle and reflect on what you have written. How many have you written in the ‘no control’ area? 3) Develop realistic goals for yourself that are clear, specific and have a time frame and regularly do something that helps you to move towards them. 4) Maintain an optimistic outlook and expect good things to happen in your life. Try to think of what you want, rather than worry about what you fear. 5) Take decisive actions when difficult situations arise rather than hoping they will go away. 6) Try to avoid seeing a crisis as an insurmountable problem. While we cannot change what happens to us we can change how we react to it. Focus on how the future may be better as a result. 7) Look for ways you can learn something about yourself when you are going through difficult times. 8) Take small steps outside of your comfort zone to build greater confidence and resilience. For example, if you dread presentations and find them really stressful, build your confidence by giving a simple talk to a small group of people. This could be in the form of a training session, team brief or talk to a local church or voluntary group. Doing this on a regular basis will enable you to start to give more complex talks and presentations. While you may never relish the opportunity to give a presentation your confidence in your ability will soar! Resilience is our personal capacity to manage and cope with stress. My view is that it is analogous to a glass being filled with water. As the glass fills with water (i.e with life’s pressures) our stress levels increase until finally the glass overflows and we become highly stressed and ill as a result. However, you can increase the size of your glass and increase your resilience by adopting the ideas outlined above. By developing your resilience you will be less likely to become one of the HSE’s stress statistics.

Assessing Recruitment Candidates

Having participated on ‘both sides’ of an independent assessment process (as a recruitment candidate as well as a manager assessing candidates) I fully recommend it as a means of identifying the most appropriate candidate for the role. I say this there are a number of benefits of using an independent process over the traditional interview for both the employer as well as the candidate. Firstly, the process provides a wider range of information about a candidate than just an interview and therefore as an employer you are more likely to make the right decision. Secondly, the process is transparent and independent which is a comfort to both the organisation and candidates. It avoids any ‘halos or horns’ effect of managers assessing internal candidates ensuring that all candidates (both internal and external) are assessed on equal and fair terms. Lastly, (and if done properly!)the feedback to candidates following the assessment can be invaluable in helping them develop in their new role (if they are recruited) or learn new skills that will help them to land their next job. Personally I found the last point invaluable following the first assessment centre I attended many years ago. So what are the keys to making an assessment process successful? The following are my observations and recommendations. 1. To ensure independence, use an external organisation who have fully trained and competent assessors and can tailor their assessment tools for your organisation. 2. Be clear about the success criteria for the role. For example, what level of leadership skill is needed, does the role require strategic thinking and/or analytical skills? What type of communication skills and behaviours are important too? 3. Use a range of assessment tools to identify the key skills and behaviours you wish to measure. These might include a personality profile, attainment tests as well as a number of tools designed around the business and job role (e.g. business case scenarios, role plays, presentations etc.). 4. Use a simple scoring system. I recommend that at least three pieces of evidence are used to provide an assessment of each criteria. 5. Once scored the candidates can be ranked in terms of closest fit for the role as well as their potential to fulfil other roles. In my experience assessing potential is just as important as assessing job fit because it provides valuable information about candidates who can fulfil other roles in the business or alternatively be a successor to the person recruited. 6. Once the decision is made and communicated on who to appoint I recommend each candidate receives 1:1 feedback from the assessor(s) on how they performed at the assessment centre. It is important to remember that the feedback is not about the candidate’s ability to fulfil their current role but for the role advertised. My view is that the feedback should focus on the candidate’s strengths and development needs and what they can do to get themselves in a position to be successful. In this way the feedback is more likely to be motivating for the candidate. As I mentioned at the start, having participated on ‘both sides’ of an independent assessment centre I fully recommend it as a means of fairly and equitably identifying the most appropriate candidate(s) for the role and hopefully my experiences will provide you with a useful start to running an assessment process for your organisation.

Leading Change

I have witnessed many changes fail, from poorly implemented CRM systems that have compromised the organisation’s ability to service their customers effectively to inadequately executed acquisitions where the full business benefits were never realised. So why do so many large scale changes fail to live up to management’s expectations? I believe there are a number of pre-requisites for successful change. Some of these have been well documented over the years and a few are from my own observations and experience. Successful change happens when: 1. There is a compelling need (i.e. ‘we have to do this because….’) for the change and a clear vision for it. If change is simply a ‘good idea’ or a ‘nice thing to do’ it is likely to fail. 2. Leaders in the business demonstrate their commitment to change by regularly ‘walking the table’. So if the change involves restructuring and cost cutting, it’s probably best if senior managers don’t travel first class! 3. Employees understand what the changes mean for them personally and what they will be expected to do differently. 4. Managers and their staff are involved in and can help shape the changes in the areas that they are responsible for. Dictating change is rarely a recipe for success! 5. People involved in the change are regularly communicated to, they are listened to and their concerns are managed and dealt with promptly and effectively. 6. Individuals have the skills, capability and confidence to manage the reaction to change both in themselves and their teams. 7. Everyone is encouraged to behave in line with the changes and consequential actions taken if they don’t. 8. People are given the time and space to implement change as well as doing their day job. Staff need to be given time away from their day job to make changes happen. As I mentioned previously, I have seen many changes fail, mainly due to management not taking cognisance of one or more of the points above, and as a consequence not getting the engagement and commitment of their people to change too.

What Makes a Great Leader?

Characteristics of Leaders There are lots of articles about that have been written on what makes a great leader and what the characteristics of successful leaders are. I am sure you know someone who was great was an intelligent and skilled individual who was great at their job and who was promoted into a leadership position and then sadly failed. You may also know someone who wasn’t the best at their job but had certain traits and abilities that enabled them to succeed when promoted into a leadership role. Some say identifying individuals who have the right leadership abilities is not a science! Personally I have a different view. So what characteristics do successful leaders have? • Integrity – They have integrity, they do what they say they will and are trusting of others too. • Vision – They know where they want their organisation to go and are able to communicate it and it explain to others • Goals – They break their vision into clear SMART goals • Team Working – They encourage working together as a team and empower their team to understand issues, create solutions and act on them! • Communication – They are constantly in touch with key individuals in the organisation and engage regularly with others on a face to face basis as well as via email and other means • Inspiration – They are someone that other employees look up to for direction • Ambition – They have ambition, both in terms of wanting to be a leader but also they constantly strive for improvement and success I have seen many leaders’ loose trust and credibility quickly by ignoring these fundamental ‘leadership rules’. In summary as a leader you need to be there for your staff, demonstrating trust and communicating with them whatever their role in the organisation.

Are you a new boss?

Have you been recently promoted or have you taken on a new role in a different company? If you have beware as it is very easy to come across as though the promotion or new role has gone to your head! I have had bitter experience of this, just because I am in a more senior position than my colleagues I must know more than them! Don’t fall into the trap that I did and follow these simple steps to make sure you manage your credibility and authority: 1. Don’t send an email to all employees saying ‘I’m the boss now!’. You need to communicate your new role and to make everyone aware, use ‘low key’ methods. Such as a simple paragraph in the next company newsletter, or an introduction at a team meeting. 2. Make a few small decisions quickly, e.g. set up a new agenda for team meetings but do not try and re organise the whole department in the first week. 3. Talk about your vision. But also ask your team, ‘what can I do to make you more successful?’ 4. If another employee is disappointed as they went for the same role as you but was unsuccessful then approach with caution. You need to let the person adjust to the situation that they were unsuccessful and then work with them to let them know that you want them to succeed and will coach and support them. Remember these summary principles and you won’t go far too wrong: DO- Take actions that demonstrates your credibility Support people going forward Ask for feedback DON’T- Start re-organising the business right away Forget to connect with your new peers and new boss Maintain too close a relationship with peers Build on the above steps you gain the confidence and respect from colleagues and peers and you will then have the foundations to be a great boss!