DQ - Leadership
This week’s lecture notes cover three main topics:
Foster Collaboration
Teambuilding
Strengthen Others
Foster Collaboration
Per Maxwell (2002), “Collaboration is working together aggressively. To collaborative team members, completing one another is more important than competing with one another.” (p. 14). Working together builds organizational cohesion, collective competence, and trust. Leaders must work consistently to create individual and team ownership of organizational goals. Many leaders have problems with making decisions because they already perceive that they know the answers and fail to listen objectively to their team members. The solution is often in the grasp of leaders if they would be open minded to recognize that the answer is right before them. A leader's solicitation of collective team input helps to facilitate developing a viable solution. Your team members can astound you with innovative approaches and recommendations to any given situation or circumstance. Leaders must avoid becoming pugnacious and appreciate the unique value that each member brings to the team. Leaders should tell people they are outstanding and that they can achieve great things, and in most cases, people will meet or exceed expectations. Leaders must tap into the uncharted reservoir of all available resources, skills, and talents of their people. Leaders should watch the ingenuity, creativity, imagination, and accountability of their team members when they are empowered with adequate resources and given responsibilities. Remarkable things can occur when collaboration exists.
Teambuilding
Effective teambuilding takes effective leadership. Kouzes and Posner (2007) stated that leadership is a team effort. Maxwell (2002) stated that building a team is as important as producing the product. Jones (1995) stated that if a leader intends to accomplish anything significant, the first step in attaining that goal is to create a team. Trust, commitment, and a common goal ratified in the hearts and minds of team members and embedded in the organization's culture determine true teamwork. Teams do not come together by accident. It is a process where leaders build, guide, and mold people into a synergistic team. Developing teams takes hard work, patience, and it involves applying interpersonal leader skills that transform individuals into productive teams. Successful leaders win the cooperation of their followers when they provide growth opportunities, keep team members informed, share information, anticipate change, establish priorities, and see the big picture. Successful leaders create strong bonds between them and their people so that the organization functions as a team. A good team is a group of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. Maxwell described a team as many voices with a single heart. Effective teams are committed to excellence and greatness. They exploit the potential of each member of the team. Moreover, effective teams get the job done on time and usually exceed the standard. People who belong to an effective and successful team look at almost everything with a positive attitude; their winners’ attitudes are infectious. They see problems or changes as challenges and opportunities rather than obstacles. Additionally, they thrive on demanding challenges and learn from their experiences and are proud of their accomplishments. A bond of mutual trust, respect, and confidence builds effective and cohesive teams. True leaders create environments that honor the human spirit to achieve together and celebrate together.
Strengthen Others
Strengthening others ultimately benefits the organization. When leaders fail to equip and empower people, they do not optimize value and potential. Empowerment and development of employees can pay important, long-term dividends to an organization. One of the best ways to develop people is to train them, give them the necessary resources to do their job, and then step back and let them excel. Kouzes and Posner (2007) stated that great leaders make other people feel strong. People who feel weak, incompetent, and unimportant will most likely perform poorly on a continuous basis. Leaders who can strengthen others can increase people performance and productivity. Creating a climate where people are involved and important is at the heart of bolstering others. It is the leader’s responsibility to add significance to the lives of their followers. When leaders help, others win, they also help themselves and the organization win. Kouzes and Posner stated that great leaders enable others to take responsibility for the organization’s success by enhancing their competence and confidence in their abilities, by listening to their ideas and opinions, by involving them in important decision making, and by acknowledging and giving credit for their contributions. There is nothing worse than a leader taking credit for their people actions. The motivation level will decrease, and people will want to leave the organization. Promoting a learning environment that shares knowledge and wisdom are expectations of a genuine leader. Organizational effectiveness and success depends upon equipping people, sharing power, and influence.
References
Jones, L.B. (1995). Jesus, CEO: Using ancient wisdom for visionary leadership. New York: Hyperion.
Kouzes, J. M. & Posner, B. Z. (2007). The leadership challenge (4th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, Inc
Maxwell, J.C. (2002). The 17 essential qualities of a team player: Becoming the kind of person every team wants. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc.
