Many leaders are considered such by the way they “lead” a business. When asked what their job is, leaders will typically respond with something along the lines of “I lead the financial department,” “I lead my company’s sales strategy” or “I lead the product division.”
Leadership can mean many different things to different people, but it often directly ties back to how a person’s contributions impact a business’s bottom line: “My efforts saved us X amount of money,” “My strategy resulted in X amount of new clients,” “I closed a huge sale that brought in X dollars.”
In my experience, this mindset is pretty typical in the world of startups. In the early stages of a new business, startup founders are solely focused on building and proving the value of a prototype, product or service. Every effort revolves around doing so, because this is what determines if a startup is viable and will be able to grow and succeed. While all of this is important, startup founders in this phase tend to be less concerned with leading people. They are very often serial entrepreneurs who haven’t been with an established company long enough to witness how seasoned leaders do just that.
Traditional Leadership Versus People Leadership
The traditional idea of leadership focuses on the outcomes and results a leader is able to achieve — their contributions, level of authority and how much respect they garner from their peers. On the other hand, people leaders focus on the team. Similar to servant leaders or Level 5 leaders, people leaders spend time building relationships with colleagues, coaching employees to reach their full potential and aligning teammates toward a common goal.
People leaders tend to be more influential in motivating employees to do their best work and feel engaged at work. Think about it: Are you going to brag about your manager because they make you feel included, supported, challenged, empowered … or because you can say they increased sales by 15% this quarter?
The Real Cost Of Poor Leadership
The value of people leaders can’t be overemphasized. According to Gallup, "bad managers cost businesses billions of dollars each year," further illustrating the finding that people don’t quit their job, they quit their boss. Many companies promote top performers to management roles based on who contributes directly to business function success. But great employees don’t always make great managers.
However, there is good news: Almost anyone can be a good manager if given the right tools and guidance.
Embracing People Leadership
A people leader is not a defined role within an organization. It’s not necessarily someone who embodies specific traits or carries with them a long list of accomplishments. Nearly anyone can become a people leader by implementing the following practices.
1. Maintain a team-first mentality. People leaders put their team before themselves because they know an aligned team that feels supported is the most powerful team. When the team succeeds, the credit goes to the team, and if it fails, the leader takes responsibility.
2. Set high standards of excellence, but outline how your teammates can get there and give them the tools and support to do so.
3. Communicate, communicate, communicate. Keep lines of communication open by frequently checking in with teammates on a one-on-one basis. Use this time to discuss the direction of the company and the team, as well as individual accomplishments, goals, professional development and career growth.
4. Be transparent in your communication. Make sure your team has the information they need to be successful in their roles. Additionally, being honest about what you don’t know fosters trust.
5. Follow through on commitments. This one is straightforward: Do what you say you’re going to do. It’s essential that your team can depend on you. Whatever you do, don’t cancel one-on-one meetings without rescheduling.
6. Provide feedback in real time. Feedback is often given to employees months after it’s relevant or useful, especially with the traditional annual performance review cycle. The quicker an issue is brought up, the quicker it can be resolved. Encourage your team to provide upward feedback to you, as well.
7. Give public recognition. Don’t underestimate the impact of positive recognition. If a teammate did a great job on a project, recognize them in the moment. Highlighting accomplishments more broadly reinforces positive behaviors and keeps employees motivated.
8. Remove barriers. Look for roadblocks impacting your team and prioritize collaborative problem-solving. If there are simple things you can do to help your teammates achieve their goals, everyone wins.
9. Have tough conversations. Management isn’t always easy, and sometimes you have to engage in difficult conversations with employees. Don’t shy away from this; instead, view it as a learning opportunity for both parties.
10. Inspire and motivate. Ask what inspires each of your team members and hone in on these motivations to unlock their greatest potential. This is a highly undervalued and extremely effective practice.
All of these practices positively impact a business’s bottom line, but maybe not in ways that are as initially obvious as those stemming from traditional leaders. After all, it’s much more difficult to tie metrics to behavior. But being a true people leader can have incredibly positive effects, including more engaged employees, who drive up productivity, reduce attrition and generate creativity, innovation and excellence in your organization.
