The Three Pillars Of Leadership

Author: James Conlon

Leadership is arguably the most critical role within any business, particularly during these challenging times. Yet many organisations aren’t well placed to navigate the terrain ahead. A recent survey by Willis Towers Watson showed only 49% of UK employees trust and have confidence in their senior leadership and 41% believe their leaders have a sincere interest in their wellbeing.
I’ve worked as a team and leadership coach for a range of organisations over the past 10 years. During that time I’ve worked with some great teams. In this article I’d like to share with you my experiences; what I believe are the three key pillars of effective leadership and how all of us can improve our leadership capabilities.

1. Providing Clear Direction

This Way signs enLarge.png — A fundamental role of any leader is to set out their team’s destination and the route to get there. Otherwise, even the best people will struggle to pull in the same direction.

In my experience, all too often the organisational vision can be vague or poorly communicated; whilst the strategies to deliver it, incomplete or out of date. This leads to confusion, conflict and inefficiencies on the ground.

When I start coaching any team, the first questions I ask them are: What are the team’s objectives? and what is your role to help the team succeed? Members of high performing teams can clearly articulate both the organisation’s objectives and how the teams map to them. They understand not only their role, responsibilities and challenges but also those of the other team members. In contrast, the answers from perceived under-performing teams tend to be vague, to say the least.

When the team’s purpose is unclear, the first step is to find clarity. Obvious maybe, but I often encounter a reluctance from teams to make decisions. Employees looking to their managers, who in turn look to theirs. Or a fear that challenging may have negative consequences. Communication is a two-way thing; for teams to thrive they must be able to query and challenge and I encourage them to do so. On the occasions when this still doesn’t result in a clear answer, I suggest they define their objectives and ways of working, so at least as a group they share a common purpose.

Leadership starts at an individual level. Having the ability to lead oneself. When coaching teams, I’m keen to understand the goals and aspirations of each member. What’s their desired destination? What strategies have they put in place to get there? Strong teams have a breadth of leadership skills and capabilities. They continually provide opportunities for new leaders to grow. I’m a keen rugby fan and love watching the 6 nations. Whichever team is dominating, it’s noticeable how many of the players are demonstrating leadership on the field. Having the confidence to make decisions and not waiting for someone else to do it. In a commercial environment, when leadership is perceived as the responsibility of all, it results in improved performance as a whole.

2. Effective Communication

We tend to think of the best leaders as great orators, capable of rousing and inspiring the masses. Images of Winston Churchill addressing Parliament with his ” We’ll fight them on the beaches’’ speech and Barack Obama’s inauguration speech spring to mind.

Although this is a great quality for a leader to have, effective communication is so much more than that.

GREAT COMMUNICATORS:

Accept it’s their responsibility how a message is interpreted. Just like the children’s game Chinese whispers, the meaning of workplace communication is often lost in transit.
Are great listeners – When conversing, how often do you find yourself focussing on what you wish to say rather than the person speaking. We all fall into this trap from time to time. When we do, we miss not only what is being said but also all the subtle nonverbal cues. A good communicator spends far more time listening than speaking.
Demonstrate flexibility – We all have a preferred communication style. How we like to receive and give information. By adapting our style to that of the other person, we have the greatest impact.
Are trustworthy – This is a critical factor in whether a message will be accepted by an audience. Adopting specific body language and communication delivery techniques can help foster a trustworthy persona. Ultimately though, if what we say isn’t congruent with our beliefs and intentions, our audience will pick up on it. Building relationships is key to trust; invest the time to get to know people, what they care about and what drives them.
Project authenticity – They allow people to see who they are and what they stand for.
Inspire - This comes more naturally to some but can be learnt. Awareness of simple non-verbal communication principles can be the difference between inspiring and boring the audience.

3. Championing Employee Well-Being

The benefits of employee well-being are widely accepted: it drives productivity and creativity; improves staff retention; helps attracts the best employees; and benefits physical and mental health. Yet regularly it is treated as a secondary organisational goal, rather than embedded into the organisation. And when times get tough it’s often the first thing to be discarded.

How well is employee well-being embedded in your organisation? Ask yourself the following questions: How open and transparent is your organisation? When problems occur, are they raised quickly or slow to surface? Is the first reaction to assign blame or to collaborate on a solution? How open are people to being challenged and receiving feedback? How often is feedback sought? Is hero behaviour rewarded or frowned upon? Are people willing to try tasks outside of their comfort zone? Do financial rewards pit people against each other or recognise collaboration and supportive behaviour?

To embed well-being into the DNA of an organisation, it must come from the top and be embraced by all. Ultimately it comes down to behaviours and doing the right thing. I’ve encountered unacceptable employee behaviours that are tolerated either because the employee is perceived indispensable, or so senior and well connected that tackling their behaviour is perceived career limiting. Whilst these damaging behaviours, witnessed by so many were being tolerated, well-being events were being scheduled, guest speakers booked and work from home ‘Fridays’ encouraged.

Truly effective leaders ensure the right behaviours are recognised and rewarded. They possess the courage to challenge and correct damaging ones. They lead by example, demonstrating what they expect from others. If you are the first in and last out of the office, what message does it project? That hard work is valued or that working hard is valued above working smart? Great leaders are self-aware. They ask for and embrace feedback. I once worked with a director who reacted badly whenever issues were brought to his attention; publicly shouting, swearing, slamming his fists on his desk, even on occasions, throw things (albeit never at an employee). He raised a challenge in one of our coaching session - how to stop his team from covering up problems. He was completely unaware of his reputation and impact on those around him. He put his behaviours down to his passion for the company and assumed everyone else did too.

Summary

Every one of us can improve our leadership skills and be an effective leader. It requires:

Self-awareness. An understanding of one's strengths and weaknesses and the desire to improve

Curiosity in people and a willingness to invest in relationships
The courage to lead from the front and do the right thing

The Three Pillars Of Leadership

1. Providing Clear Direction

2. Effective Communication

3. Championing Employee Well-Being

Summary

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