Imagine being able to step away from your business and take a much needed holiday. What if you had the chance to work minimal hours, or even none at all? Before you take that step, you need to be confident the business will stay on track. Take stock.
Do you have full confidence in your team to run the business the way you really want it to be run, without your having to be there 100% of the time? If the answer is ‘no’ or ‘not yet’, what would it take for the answer to be ‘yes’?
If your answer is better systems, better communication, better performance or more resources, these are all gaps you can address. You can develop a plan and work through a process to make it happen
But what about if you answer that it would take more self-starters, greater initiative, and better decision-making in the team? You’re pinpointing leadership qualities. Do your team have what it takes to be great leaders? Yes! Well … sometimes. Not everyone has the desire to lead and not everyone has the skill. People who have leadership potential don’t always know it and business owners can sometimes overlook people whose potential has not yet been awakened. But almost everyone can benefit by being encouraged to grow and show more initiative. As a leader, you can help to develop existing leadership capability and awaken sleeping leadership potential in others.
A reliable line of succession is a priority so that not only do you have a 2IC but your 2IC has an up and coming offsider. But wouldn’t it also benefit your business to have all your team show just a bit more drive, be just a bit better at problem solving and decision making?
Large corporates usually devote resources to leadership programmes and incentives. It’s more challenging for small and medium sized businesses but just as vital.
So think about it. If your business had a leadership programme, where would it focus?
Leadership development 101
So… you’d like to implement a leadership development programme but aren’t quite sure where to start?
Start with your business’ strengths and weaknesses in terms of succession.
Your backup
If your business has a pretty flat structure, and you are the key person, do you have a reliable 2IC who could step up if you were away for a while? Is there someone backing them up who could also step up?
If you do, consider these people in terms of their leadership qualities. Would you like to see them stretch further? If so, you already have the bones of a leadership programme – why not talk to these people about how you see their development and listen to what they have to say. Together, you can put together a development plan to strengthen the immediate leadership succession.
The team
Widen your focus to take in the rest of the team. Do you spot obvious leadership qualities? Maybe there’s some potential there but it’s not exactly blossoming yet?
Go back to your business’ strengths and weaknesses. Are there weak spots where you want to lift performance generally or where there are gaps if someone goes on leave? Consider whether it is feasible to give people a chance with aspects of the business they haven’t previously experienced. Is there room for rotation or job sharing? This can broaden team members’ vision of the business and their skill base. Develop their self-confidence along with their competence and see if growing initiative and leadership capability follows. Share information about the business and actively seek your team’s ideas on the business. Be open to creative approaches to decision making and problem solving.
The aim of a leadership programme is not to push people in at the deep end. Sink or swim is a sure way to flatten most people’s confidence and keep their aspirations close to the ground. And it poses an unacceptable risk for your business.
Trust your team. Encourage them to take on more responsibility and give them feedback on how they do with it. Have systems in place that they can refer to. Support and guide them so that you’re not pushing them in at the deep end. Once you have your team on track, you might just be able to trust them enough to step back for a moment and enjoy a little time to yourself.
