Most people who find themselves in a leadership position for the first time are lost and unprepared. The challenge of stepping up to leadership is not something that can be overcome by attending a course or reading a book that abstractly talks about planning or motivation or delegation. There is a big difference between understanding the theory of how something works and being able to apply those ideas in practice, especially if things are going wrong and you are under pressure to get results.
We work extensively with mid-and senior-level leaders in the IT sector across national boundaries and cultures. We find common issues whether we are working with technical team leaders or the senior leadership team – they all ask us similar questions and they always start with the words ‘How do I…?’
But we have come to realise that generally they are not asking for theory; they already have the knowledge of what to do, they just have no idea of how to go about doing it in their particular situation and circumstances.
When you engage with someone as their leader, you are not simply directing work; you are engaged in creating and sustaining an environment within which those people can deploy their various talents to collectively achieve great outcomes – outcomes that make a real difference in the lives of business partners, clients, customers and constituents.
Successful leaders realise that success comes more through their ability to create and sustain positive emotional spaces for their people than from implementing best-practice processes. Every situation that you face as a Leader will have an element of uniqueness; every interaction will be coloured by the hopes, fears and aspirations of all parties. What makes Leadership so difficult is that all too often you are unaware of your own driving forces, Let alone those that drive the people you are Leading.
When we are consulting with IT Leaders at all Levels we hear the same complaints – too much work, too few resources, too much change, conflicting priorities and customers who don’t understand our problems. We see good people running faster just to stay in the same place and too many people facing ‘burn out’. It need not be Like this but it takes courage and focus from the Leader to change the situation for everyone’s benefit. In this book we Look at five areas of focus that we have come to believe are critical to building and sustaining a winning team, getting the best out of yourself and everyone who works for you. The first thing to realise is that no Leader can make a difference alone. To make a difference you need your team to follow your Lead, to willingly commit their time, effort and talents to achieve great outcomes for your business partners.
In Chapter 1 we explore why someone would want to follow you. One reason they follow is because you, by virtue of your position, can bring them things; this may be tangible things such as resources or it could be more psychological support such as recognition. Either way you are best placed to help them if you are well connected and well respected in the wider organisational context. As such, Chapter 2 deals with building your circle of organisational influence. Sometimes your team will be engaged in routine tasks which are familiar, on other occasions they will be taking on new challenges in complex or politically charged situations; either way you need to get the right person with the right aptitude and attitude on the right task at the right time. Chapter 3 therefore Looks at how to delegate for maximum impact. For a variety of reasons people don’t always perform to expectations or to their own best ability; a Leader cannot ignore these Lapses and hope they get better on their own. In Chapter 4 we address the issue of dealing with poor performance. We are all under pressure to produce more with less. The answer is not to work Longer hours, skip meals and run everywhere; what is required is focus. You need laser-like focus on your own activities and a similar approach to the activities of your team members. Focus on doing what matters to achieve the agreed outcomes and get rid of activities that eat time without contributing to results. We call this state behaving with a true sense of urgency and this is the focus of our final chapter.
Each of the chapters follows the same structure. Each chapter contains short anecdotes of how real people have applied some of the ideas in this book. We point to resources for you to develop a deeper engagement and understanding and we provide a series of simple things you can do now to start to develop into a more successful team leader.
Throughout the book you will see icons in the margin to focus your attention to particular aspects. Below you will find the key.
GOLDEN RULE
The golden rule to remember, even if you don’t remember anything else about the chapter.
ANECDOTE
An anecdote or case study; real-life experience from leaders who have faced these situations and taken purposeful action
KEY IDEA
Key ideas to unlock potential. Things you should be trying to build into your professional practice
QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF
Get into the habit of asking yourself these questions before you take action.
EXERCISE REGIMES
Things you can try immediately together with hints on how to adopt and adapt the ideas to your unique situation
RESOURCES
Links to resources where you can find additional helpful and inspiring ideas
We are always fascinated to hear of your experiences in applying the ideas we have presented. Please email us with examples from your personal experience and we will seek to include them in future editions of this book series.
Brian Sutton and Robina Chatham