A change in thinking could make all employees leaders

A common misconception that many business organizations have is the
"someday" mindset: Someday, somehow, someone will come along and sprinkle
magic dust on employees, transforming them into the leaders of tomorrow.

By JIM SWEENEY Seattle PI

It would be great if everything about business were that easy. But one of the most
difficult lessons to learn in business is that leaders are created, not born.

Unfortunately, most companies’ current leadership is usually too immersed in
running the business day-to-day to commit precious time to mentoring leadership
skills in people. But smart companies are taking advantage of the current slowed
economy to create the next generation of leadership.

How?

It’s quite simple, really. Commit time and resources to employee mentoring with
the goal of inculcating leadership qualities in every employee. There are two
concepts that any company can adopt to create a strong environment for
leadership development. They are:

Behaving the belief: The majority of us believe that people in general are
inherently good.

Company leaders usually share that conviction. Their employees are inherently
good ones and capable of professional growth. It’s a great mindset. But may turn
out to be disproved if no action is taken by management to make it a reality.

Successful companies "behave" the belief — they act on this belief and challenge
employees to grow and learn, devoting the necessary resources to develop the
next generation of leadership from within.

A case in point: A large contractor client recently underwent a significant
corporate change. Analysis of the company’s management team showed that the
knowledge, skills and attributes required to lead a separate division already
existed among the second level management group. By allowing this
open-minded perspective, the senior team significantly cut short the learning
curve and cost that they would have been incurred bringing in management for the
new division from outside the company. The new division was up, running and
successful in nearly half the time required to hire outsiders.

Making leadership bloom within an organization is like gardening. You don’t
simply scatter seeds and wait for nature to take its course. Growth may happen,
but not necessarily where or when you want.

Growing a garden — or the next generation of leaders — requires cultivation,
encouragement and foresight.

Employee empowerment: It is important to enroll employees in the premise of
developing leadership qualities in both the employee and the company, to the
benefit of all.

Are they taking advantage of the opportunity to be reflective and undergo the
personal transformation that will move them and the organization forward?

The key premise of this second concept is that leadership or the seeds of it can
be found at every level of a company, from the CEO to the office clerk.

Given the opportunity the encouragement and the right environment, most of us
will undergo the personal transformation from a follower into a leader.

Just what are the most important skills for leaders at any level?

Without question they must be comfortable with self-analysis and the idea that
success is not a destination but a journey; there is always more to learn and new
ways in which to grow. This introspection drives the virtue of humility that is
possibly the single most appreciated characteristic that future leaders can
develop. An unwavering commitment to the professional development of their
peers will do much to keep an organization moving forward. This attitude
enhances the business knowledge, combining into successful leadership.

Companies that truly live these concepts rarely have to look outside their own
ranks for people to fill leadership positions. The perceived magic of someone
"from the outside" being hired into a leadership position is minimized, because
leaders developed in an environment like the one described above possess
institutional memory — they know the culture, they know the core business and
they already are steeped in the company’s core values. They know what works,
and they do it.

We all know that business is really about relationships.

If we commit ourselves to building successful relationships within our own walls,
then successful relationships outside our walls will surely follow.

Jim Sweeney is a senior partner at Corporate Strategies & Development, a
Seattle-based firm specializing in strategic planning, leadership development,
process improvement and executive search. He can be reached at 206-575-7834
or [email protected].

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