Back when I was a brand new leader I was fortunate enough to work for a company that believed strongly in leadership development. I had the opportunity to attend many great training sessions and being an avid learner, was in the bookstore purchasing every new leadership book as soon as it was on the shelf. There was one thing that stuck with me even to this day and I tend to notice it immediately in other leaders.
Your Primary Objective as a Leader
Let me make sure we are on the same page to start this blog post. If you are in a leadership position for an organization, your primary responsible is to Lead others. Not to attend meetings. Not to shuffle paper and respond to the 100 emails in the inbox. Those things are important too, don't get me wrong. And believe me when I say I've been in middle management and understand the competing demands. That doesn't change the fact however, that your primary responsibility is to lead, guide, and direct others.
If your employees are hesitant to come to you with issues, thoughts, ideas, or concerns because you always seem like you are running around with your hair on fire and don't have time for them, then you aren't doing your job. Because, first and foremost, your job is to lead others. That doesn't mean you have to drop everything each time Jack shows up at your door to tattle on Joe. But it does mean the employees are your top priority and they should know without a doubt that this is the case.
Implementing an Attitude of Outstanding Service
A long long time ago (okay, maybe not that long ago), I was creating a new department within an organization. I knew that providing excellent internal customer service was the only way our department would be accepted in this organization. The mantra of our team was "How can I help you?" whenever we spoke to a customer on the phone or in person. This was unusual for this manufacturing facility and it set us apart. I watched our customers gain trust and respect for us by starting our conversations with this question.
But I was soooooo busy, running like a crazy person from meeting to meeting, responding to voice mails as I ran to the next meeting. And I was a major task master so there was nothing more gratifying to me than to mark another item off my to do list.
The Tipping Point
Thank goodness something clicked one day as one of my employees apologized for bothering me. I realized this team was the reason for our success and didn't they deserve at least the same respect and attentiveness from me as I demanded we provide our customers? This is when I started making a conscious effort to put down my pen, phone, paper, and thoughts whenever one of them popped their head in the door. Instead of my previous constant panic state I greeted them with a smile and a "How can I help you?" In hindsight, that time was a blip in my day and I looked forward to seeing all of them and helping in any way I could. What if we all treated our employees at least as well as we treat our customers (whether internal or external)? It's worth a try anyway.
It seems to me the group of leaders in the most need of development, mentoring, and coaching are those that are stuck right in the middle - mid-level managers. Most organizations seem to know the front line supervisors need training so they place a lot of effort in making sure that group of people know what they are doing. And Sr. Executives appear to have a plethora of opportunities to attend mini-MBA programs, executive leadership training sessions, and have an executive coach assigned. But the mid-level managers seem to get lost in the shuffle and/or stuck in an era.
What I mean by stuck in an era is mid-level managers often get stuck in the era in which they first became supervisors. So, if they started supervising in the 60's, 70's, or even 80's - they likely learned that the command and control type of leadership was the only way to get performance. They are often still trying to use that style of leadership and unless they are in the military, that probably isn't working out so well with our current generation of employees. This group of managers may take a class every now and then but they are reluctant to change their approach to leadership.
Mid-level managers also get lost in the shuffle. They get ignored as far as development goes. Sr. Level leaders believe these people have already been trained, have experience, and know what they are doing which is somewhat true. First level supervisors are looking up to this group for mentoring and guidance and they aren't getting it themselves so they are passing on information they learned 20 years ago which may not be so relevant today. The reality is this group is often ignored, not exposed to the latest leadership theories or benefit of coaching and mentoring. And they often have the most difficult job - the delicate balance between managing the politics and job demands of the organization.
It would seem to me organizations would benefit by making this group of people the target of ensuring the leadership philosophies of the organization are embraced. Think of the influence of this group of people - they are responsible for mentoring your next generation of leaders (first line supervisors). Shouldn't this be the group of people the company invests most heavily in developing?
And if you are reading this and you are a mid-level manager, what are you doing to learn and grow more so you can be the best leader you can be? Are you reading current literature regarding leadership? Are you requesting training and or coaching? Have you asked someone who exemplifies great leadership skills to mentor you? This is your career after all, what are you doing to be the best you can be?
