Answering the Cry for Help
As we've worked through each of these individual profitability killers, my goal has been to provide you with some basic, practical steps you can take in applying specific behaviors that help you communicate with and lead your team members more effectively, making a measurable difference in your organization's bottom line. Based on the results I've seen personally, putting even a few of these steps into place can result in significant productivity increases AND considerable gains in overall profitability! That said, much of the perspective I've used to address each profitability killer has been based on those actions just being the logical (and right) thing to do. There's one point of view I've intentionally avoided until now: the perspective of so many people in society today begging for great leadership...
I've heard John Maxwell comment on some of what he sees as he develops leaders worldwide, saying that he's far too often left feeling "leadership sad." So many families, churches, civic organizations, and essentially any other type of group I could name fall short of providing the kind of effective leadership each of us truly deserves! As we think back to each of the profitability killers we've worked through together, I'll challenge you with another question: "What are they looking for?" What do the individuals you've accepted responsibility for leading need most from you?
What Are They Looking For?
I often talk about how much I still enjoy so many of the hair bands from the '80s. Quite honestly, there are only a handful of bands I've really listened to since. One of those, which may well be one of my top ten favorite bands of all time, is called Alter Bridge. Interestingly enough, they've been hugely successful in Europe but have received just a fraction of the same attention in the States despite being incredible musicians and their singer having one of the best voices I've ever heard. (In case you've never heard of them, three members were in Creed; then they got a good singer and started playing to their full potential.) In 2016, they released a song called "Show Me a Leader" that spelled this out as well as I've ever heard!
Since copyright laws prevent me from sharing the lyrics with you here, I'd encourage you to check it out on your own. And while the opening verse (not referenced here) seems to have a bit more of a political slant-and is as fitting today as it was then-it didn't grab me like the rest of the song did when I first heard it. Truthfully, the portion I've shared with you here captures what I've heard from so many great people across every industry! Without someone in leadership with pure intentions, any one of us can lose a level of hope. Without that leader who won't compromise their values, it's most certainly a harder fight. And if they're struggling just to get by, I'm not sure how much profitability we can expect to survive...
So I'll ask you again: do you know what people are looking for from you as their leader? Have you heard their requests, however subtle they may be? As we wind down this look at how much profitability is killed by poor leadership, we'll look at the impact bad managers have on their employees and what we can do to provide our teams with the support they need. First, though, we need to identify what every team needs from their leader.
What Support Can You Provide?
If we are tuned into what our team members are looking for from us as their leaders, we need to be intentional about providing them with the support they'll need to accomplish their goals. Some goals tie right back to daily, weekly, or monthly productivity, but those goals could just as easily be measured by where these team members want their careers to go. In either case, the support we provide them (or lack thereof) is often the difference between success and failure!
An article from Forbes.com called "10 Ways Managers Can Support Employee Career Growth" shared this, emphasizing the importance a leader plays in their team members' success and how their success can impact the entire company:
Suppose managers neglect to have important conversations with their employees about their career goals. In that case, they could risk having their most talented workers feel like they aren't appreciated, hurting morale and productivity. Showing employees that they have the support of both the company and the manager in their career advancement can lead to better retention and company growth overall.
In a Harvard Business Review article called "Making Sure Your Employees Succeed," the author quoted Linda Hill, professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, as saying, "A manager's job is to provide 'supportive autonomy' that's appropriate to the person's level of capability." The article emphasized that "the key is to be hands-on while giving your people the room they need to succeed on their own."
In an article from the Society for Human Resource Management called "6 Ways Managers Can Help Employees Achieve Their Performance Goals," the author points to the importance of ongoing communication with employees rather than just the traditional review process once or twice each year, quoting DJ Casto as saying that "People typically shut down once they hear what their rating is, especially if they didn't get the highest rating."
Each of those articles had direct ties to formal performance evaluations and long-term career development, which are critical in supporting our team members. As we discussed when we looked at how poor promotions and unclear expectations, each kills profitability. I want you to consider it from a deeper perspective for our purposes here. Think about how much it means to each individual we lead when they know we've got their back in every aspect of their role, how we're there for them when they make a mistake, how we notice when something's bothering them, and how we're willing to help them grow in whatever direction they want their career to take.
If we can provide this kind of support, we'll be well on our way to proving that our intentions are pure and unpersuaded, and that will earn a level of trust that can't be found through annual reviews alone. But as Myles Kennedy said, "A promise is never enough!"
I realize all this seems like a lot, and it is! I've heard far too many business owners, executives, and managers comment on how needy their people can be, often referring to them as high maintenance when they need more guidance or direction than was provided in the proverbial memo. (Like the one in Office Space about the TPS reports...) Before we risk taking that same approach, it will serve us well to think about what kind of support we've each received from a great leader at some point in our own careers.
We ALL Need Great Leaders!
After a couple of references to a song as recent as 2016, I feel like I need to mix in something from the hair band era to maintain my street cred, so let's think in terms of "Shelter Me" by one of the most talented bands ever included in that genre, Cinderella. After listing several vices people resort to, with rock and roll being his own, Tom Kiefer sang about how "we all need a little shelter, and it'll be all right!"
In all seriousness, I believe that fits right in with our leadership responsibility! If we're willing to care enough about our team members to recognize what they're looking for and give them the support they deserve, we can never brush them off as being needy. Heck, we might even end up being that shelter that makes it all right... If we're being completely honest with ourselves, I'm sure we can all point to any number of times when a great leader made a lasting impact on us when many in supervisor or manager roles would have considered us needy!
As I've mentioned several times before, I've been blessed to have worked with several outstanding leaders over the last few decades, and each of them has played a significant role in my professional and personal development. One stands out more with this particular profitability killer than the others, though. It wasn't that he was any better; it was more about the timing and what he provided.
In 2014, after nearly two decades with the same company-which was exactly half my life at that point-I made a very tough decision to change careers. I had worked extremely hard in that organization and had achieved a fair amount of success, both locally and with the teams I served across North America. That said, I no longer felt I had support from the folks I reported to. Think back to "show me a leader whose intentions are pure and unpersuaded, and won't compromise..." It had indeed gotten much harder to fight, and my hope, at least in that organization, was struggling to survive. Honestly, it hurt to even be in that spot where I felt like moving on was the only real option. While I certainly had some great opportunities there, the decision was still challenging because I had so many solid relationships and had given so much to earn them.
From the first interview I had with the small company I joined, I felt a great connection with the guy I would report directly to. He was several years younger than I was and a son of the owner, but he was as genuine and humble as anyone I'd ever met. He had significantly more experience in that specific industry and had some unique experience outside that industry, but he had less overall safety or human resources experience than I did. None of that, however, had anything to do with what made him such an effective leader! He was highly confident in his role but very quick to shine a light on everyone around him for their contributions. That was such a breath of fresh air after being involved with several others in leadership roles (but absolutely not effective leaders) who were far more interested in their own accolades than in ensuring anyone around them had the support they needed!
As you can imagine, there's far more to that story, but the details aren't the point. What I want you to consider here is how much value you've gotten from the great leaders you've worked with to this point in your career AND how many of the folks reporting to you have gotten that kind of support from you...
With the impact a great leader can make being fresh on your mind, let's change gears to consider how bad managers affect employees and how bad leadership kills profitability.
