Organisations that seek to drive performance by forcing employees to comply under the threat of discipline or through forceful management, create toxic cultures.
Such organisations have higher than average workplace relations issues, fail to retain good talent, and produce below average performance.
After 25 years helping organisations trouble shoot employee relations issues, we identified that poor leadership was a common factor in most cases.
The more we investigated this concept, we realised some of the worlds highest performance organisations (for example) Google, Intel, HP, DropBox, Oracle, Spotify, BMW, Disney and Samsung had already come to the same conclusion.
As a result, we re-engineered our entire consulting practice philosophy to help organisations transition away from toxicity to focus on high performance.
What is leadership in high
performing organisations?
There is an evolving perspective of what leadership is. In the past leadership was typified by the stereotypical leader having a commanding presence, a strong personality, and a track record of infallibility – the ‘authority figure’ typified by Chief Executives, Presidents, and military leaders.
However, when we look at the leaders that are having the greatest impact and creating the highest performing teams, we see a more realistic and nuanced approach. Rather than over-powering with forceful personalities and “it’s my way or the highway”, effective leaders set directions with definite boundaries, define clear pathways, and encourage team members to contribute to the development of the solution.
Sometimes this means exhibiting qualities such as vulnerability and being prepared to be open and saying “I don’t know, but we need to find the answer”.
A very different leadership model
While traditional leaders might disapprove of this seemingly weak approach, effective leaders do not shy away from difficult conversations, holding team members to being accountable, and sometimes pruning poisonous apples.
An effective leader doesn’t need to have all the answers, instead they are accountable for building an effective team skilled at finding solutions and delivering outcomes. It’s about creating commitment and enthusiasm to achieving results through teamwork.
High performance doesn’t come from having leaders who develop solutions single handed, it comes from teams where all members take ownership and contribute to the problem solving process. The leader’s job is to create and foster such environments.
Team members who feel they are trusted and integral to contributing to the solution, and not made to feel they are a problem are more inclined to leaping out of bed in the morning wanting to get to work.
This philosophy of leadership is as true on the shop floor as it is in the boardroom. At EMA Consulting, we have developed a suite of tools for guiding organisations toward creating this style of leadership at all levels from board room to shop-floor.