Leaders Are Crying Out For Support
Only 48% of managers strongly agreeing that they currently have the skills needed to be exceptional at their jobs (Gallup).
The work environment continues to shift and evolve with Leaders assuming more and more responsibility and navigating modern day complexities.
Modern Leaders need skills and confidence to balance the needs of people with the demands of performance – they need to be able to lead both safely and effectively.
Leading Safely means:
- remaining cognisant of and actively addressing work-related stress risks
- addressing poor behaviour or under or poor performance actively and within the parameters of reasonable management actions
- modelling and expecting appropriate behavioural standards
- providing growth and learning opportunities and safe stretch tasks
Leading Effectively means:
- working with the team to ensure deliverables are achieved
- motivating and mobilising people to do the work to the best of their abilities to achieve on the organisation’s goals
- leading teams through uncertainty and change.
Safe and Effective leadership isn’t about choosing between people and performance, it’s about both coexisting in equilibrium.
People vs. Task: Understanding Modern Leadership Styles
Leading safely and effectively equates to having a balance of both task (productivity) and people focus as the quadrant model below shows.
The Safe and Effective Leadership Quadrant model is based on contemporary research into psychological health and safety, leadership, motivation, engagement, and work design. It draws inspiration from the Blake and Mouton Leadership Grid, which explores how leaders balance concern for production with concern for people.
Safe and Effective leaders aren’t afraid to have the difficult conversations. They understand productivity is a reasonable expectation and our reason for being at work. Yet they know how to encourage, motivate, engage, and support their people and genuinely care.
If leaders are high in people and low in task focus, they fall into the Safe and Comfortable zone. These leaders can have an overly comfortable and nurturing approach and be more focused on the individual than the expectations of that role in the organisation. This can create difficulties in having tough conversations and ensuring productivity expectations are met.
Conversely, low in people focus and high in task focus can create Risky Superstars. Risky Superstars get work done at any cost. They are risky because often their approach may compromise safety (physical or psychological) and most certainly can compromise team culture and relationships.
Low in both people and task focus are Risky Stagnaters. Risky because no organisation can carry this weight in the current economic climate and work does not get done, nor do people get the leadership support and direction they require. Stagnater’s need coaching on mindset and/or task completion to move out of this redundant zone.
We Build Safe and Effective Leaders
Safe and effective leaders have been supported into, or sought out, opportunities to develop their skills and knowledge to lead confidently in the modern world of work.
These skills and knowledge are developed through experience, training, and support.
Without the right skills, Leaders can struggle to manage teams effectively whilst maintaining their own and their team’s wellbeing. They fail to find equilibrium.
This article is an adaption from Tanya’s second book
Finding Equilibrium – How to Lead Safely and Effectively in the Modern World of Work
Buy your copy. Tanya’s Books – Tanya Heaney-Voogt
Do your leaders need support to Find Equilibrium? To lead safely and effectively?
You may like our Finding Equilibrium Leadership Program. Finding Equilibrium Leadership Program – Tanya Heaney-Voogt
Our programs are contextualised to your specific organisational context, leadership team size, level of maturity, desired duration, and your current-future state change gap.
Our programs align to our Finding Equilibrium model (and book of the same name) which are compulsory components of our programs.
Programs can be delivered in intensive mode or long term.
About Tanya
Positive Change Drives Positive Results
A keynote speaker and author of 3 books with a career spanning more than 25 years in leading people, culture, projects and change, Tanya knows what it takes to cut through the noise and create positive change at work.
Known for her highly engaging approach alongside her evidence-based programs, Tanya’s programs are highly impactful which is why her clients continue to partner with her for years.
Working with CEO’s, Senior Executives, and People, Culture and Safety Teams, Tanya’s clients often say they are:
■ Wanting to create a mentally healthy and high performing workplace but don’t know how to start
■Struggling with team dynamics and culture challenges impacting on wellbeing and productivity
■ Implementing workplace change and want to ensure best practice so that it doesn’t fail or lose engagement of their teams
■ Going through complex change and people are stressed, overwhelmed and need to get change back on a more positive track
■ Are afraid of losing good people and the organisations’ reputation when tackling a significant change
■ Wanting to ensure their people thrive, not just survive.
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