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KEY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY IN LEADERSHIP

Leadership is complex and challenging. You need to set the direction, communicate your vision, and be on top of strategy execution.

Focus on a positive workplace/team culture, align and mobilize talent to ensure they are working to their strengths and effective in their roles.

You are connecting purposefully internally and externally with a timely cadence. And…all the while personally managing your effectiveness and energy levels.

How a person performs in a leadership role matters. This is an obvious statement, but one we need to ponder as the top 20% of leaders could contribute more than 2.8% of the average leader.

Working on soft leadership skills is hard – ironic, isn’t it!

If you rate yourself on how you are performing as a leader on a scale of 1-5 (1-being abysmal to 5-knocking it out of the park)

  • How are you performing?
  • Why do you give yourself this rating, and in what areas can you improve?

No matter the industry sector nor size of the business or team, a leader’s key areas of responsibility include these steps:

1. SETTING THE DIRECTION

Looking back to look forward or conducting a review to do a preview of what’s coming is an essential leadership tactic.

Think of a Venn diagram, with the overlapping circles intersecting in the middle, that central area of overlap is the core focus. In the instance of setting direction, consider what is needed (your customer/client needs), what is your superpower (what you are good at), what drives you (what you are passionate about) and the big business kicker $ (how you can make money).

Be bold when setting your vision, direction, strategies, and resource allocation. Think beyond what is needed and focus on what is required in the future.

QUESTION: Why should we exist five years from now?

2. ALIGNING STRATEGIC PRIORITIES WITH BUSINESS GOALS

When taking on any new priority, ensure first it aligns with your overall business goals. This will ensure that you stay on track and focused for the long game. Don’t forget to set performance milestones, these will motivate and keep you accountable. Eliminate activities that do not contribute to core areas of focus.

QUESTION: What strategic priorities are you working on that ARE NOT aligned with your business goals? Why?

3. LEADING TO AN INDIVIDUALS PSYCHOLOGY

Everyone has a different psychology. What they need from a leader and how they receive it can be unique. A good leader makes the time to understand how to best lead each person in their team and get the psychology and mechanics right to help the individual be the best they can be in their position. A leader applauds an individual’s wins, supports them in situations, and provides professional development to help them be more effective in their role.

QUESTION: Do you know how you can best lead each team member?

4. EXECUTING CONSISTENTLY ON THE RIGHT THING

I love this quote:

‘There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.’
~ Peter Drucker

A reminder to constantly be assessing what the right thing is to be focused on and consistent in the execution of action to get it done. Remember the 80/20 rule or Pareto Principle (80% of our outcomes come from 20% of our causes), prioritize high-impact tasks, resulting in greater productivity and results. Look at your entire task list, prioritize based on the impact level each task would have if complete on your work/business goals, focus first on those top 20% of items on your list as they will result in 80% of the impact that you can generate for the day.

QUESTION: What are the top 20% of tasks I need to focus on today?

5. FOCUSING ON CULTURE AND ENGAGEMENT

One of the most challenging things about leading a business team is not the work that needs to be done but… working with the people, navigating personalities and reframing a business culture to be more positive. Motivating and inspiring someone to improve their mindset, work ethic, or ability to work with others takes time and needs to be very intentional.

From a work culture and employee engagement perspective, I encourage you to start by working on one thing. It could be your: hiring process, onboarding, annual performance reviews, processes to address bottlenecks and points of frustration, engagement survey, revised job descriptions or the incorporation of team building activities to look forward to.

There are so many items that you can focus on, pick the lowest hanging fruit that will help you improve culture and engagement and go for it!

QUESTION: How can you inspire your team to do their best work?

6. CONNECTING WITH STAKEHOLDERS

To ensure strong relationships with your stakeholders, you need to start with a foundation of trust.

When was the last time you asked your stakeholders for feedback on any process or improvement recommendations?

Engage and share the goals you are working on, help your stakeholders understand your opportunities and challenges, harvest new ideas, and stay focused on a forward-looking agenda.

QUESTION: What stakeholders should you connect with this week?

7. MANAGING PERSONAL EFFECTIVENESS

As a busy professional, one of the most important things to focus on is your time. Take back your calendar, be conscious of every item scheduled one week out and determine if you need to be present in every meeting. Be intentional about what you want to achieve daily, weekly, quarterly and annually.

QUESTION: Can you articulate your professional areas of strength and work style? What changes do you need to make to be more consistent and effective in your role?

 

‘You have to reinvent yourself. The world changes. You have to change.’
~ Roberto Setubal, Chairperson, Itau Unibanco

If you have any questions about leadership and leader’s key responsibilities, or want to learn more on the powerful benefits of executive coaching to elevate your leadership success, please reach out to +1 604-616-1967 or jenny@jennyreilly.com and book a complimentary 30-minute strategy session. If you want monthly leadership tips, sign up for my JRC newsletter or check out my social media on Instagram for top leadership advice throughout the year.

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WHY IS COACHING ESSENTIAL TO GREAT LEADERSHIP?

There are various leadership styles we can exhibit, and one of them is the coaching style. 

Coaching requires patience, instruction, and feedback. In a fast-paced working environment, leaders often find it easier to answer a question or solve an issue rather than coaching, as it takes less time. Ironically, the long-term coaching results override the initial time taken, and it is worth adapting your leadership style to have more of an emphasis on coaching your employees. At its core, coaching will help you work with your employee to become:

  1. More self-aware
  2. Help them move forward, learn, develop and grow so they can take on more, and
  3. Create more satisfaction in their roles as they take on added responsibility in their positions.

Coaching is a positive and powerful tool that you can use to improve performance, results, increase engagement and company culture.

I challenge you; the next time you are about to answer or solve a problem for an employee, think long-term and coach the employee through the process, I appreciate that it will take time, but the outcome will be worth your return on investment. 

 

You cannot teach a man anything. 

You can only help him discover it within himself.

-Galileo Galilei

 

Coaching benefits:

  • Coaching can positively impact performance, culture, and the bottom line.
  • Coaching can help individuals unlock their potential
  • Ongoing coaching dialogue improves clarity and understanding of expectations
  • Coaching allows leaders to delegate, give challenging assignments, and promote an environment of learning and knowledge 
  • More companies are trying annual bonuses to a leader’s development of their direct reports. The reality is that there is an understanding that coaching does positively affect bottom-line results

Listen intently and ask powerful questions

When we listen, we are not distracted by anything else around us. The individual has our full attention, and we are not as prone to jump in and provide an answer, solution, or fill in the gaps. 

Ask powerful, short questions. When formulating a question, I keep in mind two things: 

Why are they telling me this?

What’s the real problem?

I then follow with an open-ended question that starts with ‘What…‘

Try the following questions in your next one-on-one:

  1. What should we focus on (a work project, people issue, or behaviour) discussing that will help you most?
  2. What is the heart of this issue for you? Tell me more… what else…
  3. What is the challenge, and why is this important to you? 
  4. What have you done so far to address the issue?
  5. What is your ideal outcome?
  6. What is the next best step to take?

 

Most people do not listen with the intent to learn and understand. They listen with the intent to reply. They are either speaking or preparing to speak.

-Stephen Covey

 

Don’t be the bottleneck

Leaders and managers need to coach their people. Coaching helps decrease overdependence overwhelm, and this dependency creates bottlenecks and frustration for both leader and staff member. 

Stop being the bottleneck and allow your team members to develop. Coach your team members to help them learn and grow. 

Empower your staff by giving them the responsibility to do their job, coach them through knowledge gaps and then allow them to run with it. Autonomy allows the employee to learn by doing and demonstrates your trust in their ability. Trust that there will be setbacks and debrief on these areas in your regular one-on-one meetings. 

Coaching Tips

  • ask one question at a time 
  • listen with intent for the facts and maintain neutrality
  • ask ‘what’ questions
  • be curious about the details
  • focus on what matters most
  • explore off-hand comments (what is not being said). They will often assist in getting to the heart of a problem
  • ask questions that will help the individual expand the way they are thinking about the problem or issue
  • don’t use rhetorical questions that offer advise
  • Using the 80/20 concept allow the staff member to speak 80% of the time and yourself only 20% 

If you would like more information on leadership and coaching tactics, and you need someone to keep you accountable for your process and execution, I can be contacted at +1-604-616-1967 or jenny@jennyreilly.com. If you want monthly leadership tips, sign up for my JRC newsletter or check out my social media on Instagram for top leadership advice throughout the year.

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2022 VISION – WHERE ARE YOU HEADED?

We are now into our seventh week in Q1, and it is time to refocus your attention on one or more of five key areas, which may require your time and attention:

  1. Your Vision
  2. People
  3. Data
  4. Processes, or
  5. Current Issues

Minor improvements in one or more areas can free up considerable time in your schedule and help you focus on the important rather than wasting time on workarounds. 

In what areas do you need to concentrate in Q1?

    • Is your 2022 team and company vision clearly articulated, communicated, and understood? – vision
    • Have you developed your team to enable them to efficiently handle details so you can focus on the big picture and not get stuck in the weeds? – people
    • Do you have a dashboard of data that you can regularly refer to get a complete picture of actual results? – data
    • Do your systems support your processes? – processes
    • Do you have an issues list that requires attention? – current issues

2022 VISION – WHERE ARE YOU HEADED?

Your team vision must be in line with your organizational vision. Do a temperature check with your team, ask two individuals randomly if they know the vision of the team? ‘Are you seeing what I am saying?’ Don’t assume that everyone sees the vision in the same way you do. Communicate clearly and often on the articulation of your vision. This will ensure team members do not become frustrated and confused. A compelling vision enables everyone to see the direction they are headed and how they will get there. Think of your team’s vision like a laser beam highlighting the path to take. Having a clear vision will enable you to plan action items required and help you retain focus strategically.

SURROUND YOURSELF WITH GREAT PEOPLE

It is imperative to have the right people in the right jobs. Look at your team and evaluate each member’s level of effectiveness in their roles. List accountabilities of each position, how core tasks are organized and by whom and if the structure is conducive to the roles and individuals you have in place. Is movement, training, or are additional or less staff required? 

YOUR PROFESSIONAL DASHBOARD

When driving, you often look down at your dashboard and check your speed and petrol level. Driving a vehicle is like leading a team. How can you lead effectively without knowing the details? Effective leadership requires the ability to have a dashboard or scorecard of data that will enable you to have a pulse on the work being done by your team, help you predict what may be needed and identify when areas are falling short of what is required and the action that is necessary to course correct.

Knowing your data will empower you. Understanding your numbers will help you problem solve and make decisions faster. Determine the core elements that should be highlighted on your dashboard or scorecard. Having this information will help you make decisions based on factual information.

ISSUE MANAGEMENT

All teams and organizations have areas that can be improved upon and issues that need to be addressed.

  • How do you track your issues?
  • Do you have an issue management list or a ticketing system?
  • When do you allocate time to solve identified issues?

The challenge is often that issues are identified but not resolved fast enough, which results in time and resource wastage. Allocate staffing time to solve issues, don’t let them mount if they are taking away from productivity, focus or results. Allocate time in your weekly meetings to discuss priority issues that require action and give your team permission to solve problems and clear off issues.

PROCESS MAPPING

The importance of process mapping cannot be underestimated—the need to know what needs to be done, how and in what order is essential for repetitive and scalable processes. A good process enables simplicity of action, increased efficiency, and scalability. Processes must be documented, shared, continually evaluated, and updated for maximum efficiency. 

CONTINUOUS DEVELOPMENT IN EXECUTION

Goals are not attained without discipline. A short runway of actionable steps within a quarter or 90-day period will help keep priorities aligned and provide focus on the essential item to be worked on. Just as 90-day plans are recommended, so too are frequent, preferably weekly meetings to ensure priorities are communicated, there is team alignment, and focus is on the most critical priority. 

KEEP IT SIMPLE

Simplify processes, eradicate rules when not necessary, be clear in what needs to be done, by whom, how it will be assessed, recorded and evaluated. Complexity comes with growth; however, if you can focus on using simplified processes, efficient operational systems, and delegation techniques to move work down to lessen bottlenecks, you will be well on your way to a more efficient organization. 

If you would like more information on leadership tactics and tips as you’re going through your 2022 vision, and you need someone to keep you accountable for your process and execution, I can be contacted at +1-604-616-1967 or jenny@jennyreilly.com. If you want monthly leadership tips, sign up for my JRC newsletter or check out my social media on Instagram for top leadership advice throughout the year.

 

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TIPS FOR TRANSITIONING INTO A NEW ROLE

Transitions into lead roles are critical, and for those transitioning, this time can be challenging and stressful as you prove yourself to your colleagues and team. Try some of the following tactics over your first 90 days in your new role to alleviate some of this stress.

  1. Do your research and prepare yourself – get to know those in your team and whom you report to and understand their expectations and thoughts on what success will look like for you in the role. Your initial interactions form first impressions, so think carefully about the foundations to lay to create positive connections within your team, with peers and stakeholders.
  2. Observe, learn, and ask questions – find out who has and where to find information is half the challenge. To accelerate your transition, be focused and systematic in deciding what you will learn and how to do this efficiently.
  3. Build relationships – observe and be mindful of who is setting the tone, who is processed based, the go-to for answers, the motivator… this will help you strategize more effectively and build on the team dynamics. The easiest way to do this is to have brief ‘getting to know you’ calls to learn as much as possible.
  4. Manage expectations – through regular communication, organized team status meeting and 1:2:1’s. Working virtually requires more intentionality in coordinating and facilitating productive discussions. Highlight areas of focus: execution tactics on goals, what has been accomplished, what is currently being worked on, what is on, and not to schedule, what pivots or areas have been put on hold due to other pressing priorities, what opportunities and challenges you should be aware of in your role.
  5. Demonstrate your leadership capacity and show problem-solving and strategic thinking skills. Whether you are inheriting a team or building a new team, it is vital to evaluate, align and motivate your team members. Sometimes, some tough decisions need to be made; don’t procrastinate. Your ability to have the right people in the correct team positions is imperative for your team’s success.
  6. Don’t take on too much too quickly. You initially need time to understand the landscape, and you do not want to over-extend yourself to prove a point before competently taking care of your regular duties.
  7. Focus on your goals and how you can strategically attain them. Look for low-hanging fruit and quick, easy wins to build your credibility, motivate action and engagement.

What worked in your old team does not necessarily mean it will work in your current team. Rethink how you lead, what you delegate and how you can create a level of influence that will assist you in building and sustaining alliances. Be aware of your leadership presence, how you are being perceived against how you want to be perceived and the type of leadership brand you want to have in your role. Business orientation, stakeholder connection and expectations alignment will significantly assist you in accelerating your transition and overcoming roadblocks over the first 90 days. 

If you would like more information on leadership tactics and tips when transitioning into a role, I can be contacted at +1-604-616-1967 or jenny@jennyreilly.com. If you want monthly leadership tips, sign up to my JRC newsletter for top leadership advice throughout the year. 

 

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HAPPY 2022! | WHEN IS YOUR WHITE SPACE?

We all need time to think and have uninterrupted time to plan and be innovative in looking at a problem or challenge. For years I prided myself on the ‘busyness’ of my job. There was no white space in my schedule. I went from one meeting or project to another with no unscheduled time in between. Now I pride myself on the opposite, and I ensure there is white space in my schedule, unscheduled time to enable a strategic pause that increases my productivity and focus three-fold.  

I encourage you to look at your schedule for the month of January and into February and make some significant changes to how you are spending your time. If there is a meeting that you do not need to be at, decline. If you do not have an agenda associated with a meeting, reschedule until you do. Introduce white space in your calendar between meetings, block off focused time to work on projects, allow whitespace in your calendar. This pause in your time will allow you to follow up on items and circle back on any special action items that require your attention. 

For every ‘yes’ you make throughout the day on a work item, ensure you have a ‘no’ or delegation of action to another. These simple actions will assist you in beneficial workflow changes, improved communication, and reduced weekly stress. 

Enabling white space in your week provides you with time to think, plan, strategize, implement, execute and reflect – all items that we never otherwise permit time for in our schedules. When you look at your week differently, you will see that you will consciously move low-value tasks from your schedule and spend more time focusing on what is important that will give you increased bottom-line results.

When planning your week, focus on high-value tasks and assess what you can delete from your schedule. If you are a perfectionist, assess the time you require to complete a task and determine what is good enough. Turn your notifications off and allocate time to respond to email queries rather than perpetuate ‘reactive’ mode when notifications are received 24/7. 

Your New Year Professional Development Goal

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Ensure there is white space in your calendar!

If you want to learn more about, leadership coaching, and how your can prioritize your high-value tasks to maximize your success throughout 2022 for you, your team, and your business, reach out to askme@jennyreilly.com or schedule a convenient time for a complimentary strategy session via Jenny Reilly Consulting Calendly.

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