Getting Your Team Engaged - It's All About Leadership
Last week, we started our discussion about the importance of creating a culture of employee engagement within your department, company, or organization. One comment I made last week needs to be repeated again: One thing that I can tell you with a high degree of certainty is that to successfully create a culture of employee engagement involves three key and related components:
1. Vision
2. Leadership
3. Tactics
This week, my focus will be about "Leadership". Leaders get paid to produce results. It is a known fact that an effective leader is only as good as the team they assemble (recruit and select), develop (properly train), and lead (set expectations and goals). If the leader is not effective, then it stands to reason that the team will not perform well on a consistent basis and it would be a miracle if they were "engaged".
Leaders in an effective culture of employee engagement share the following characteristics:
- They understand reality and explain why the "status quo" needs to change
- They create the vision and show their team the way
- They spell out timetables and milestones to measure progress
- They show no fear
- They never offer or accept excuses
- They acknowledge the right actions and say "thank you"
- They set performance expectations and hold people accountable to get the job done
- They challenge their team to help them grow and "stretch" their capabilities
- They reward the right actions - those that move the organization closer to the vision
- The never accept "below average" and act quickly when poor performance has been identified
- They listen and solicit feedback
The obvious question for you is: How do stack up to these characteristics? Which can you start doing? Which ones can you be better at?
One last question: Is a productive team important to you? If so, then get engaged. When you do, they will follow your "lead".
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