Did you know that Australian leaders have been found to under-perform in four of the six areas that employees desire most from their managers and leaders?
So, what does this mean?
Simply, organisations could be missing out big time when it comes to:
- Employee engagement
- Attracting and retaining great employees, and
- Profitability.
According to the Zenger Folkman study, Australian managers delivered:
- Less than half the level of inspiration and motivation expected by their team members, and
- Fell short by 40% in terms of delivering the powerful and prolific communication desired by their peers and direct reports.
The other areas that leaders were found not to be meeting employee expectations were:
- Building relationships, and
- Collaboration and teamwork.
As a leader, what can be done to turn things around and close this leadership gap?
- Be aware and turn up the energy!
Change needs to begin with self-awareness of what your actions (or lack of action) is having on team results, and then step up with might and enthusiasm. This will create powerful momentum for change. - Make a plan (and follow through)
It may be as simple as committing to more regular team communications so everyone is clear about where you as a team and organisation are heading, inviting team members to contribute ideas for improvement, or catching up with employees one-to-one over a coffee to find out how things are going for them. Follow through always, and build on the plan as you go along. - Relevant training and education
Unfortunately technical knowledge and industry experience don’t necessarily translate to effective leadership and, like most things in life, when it comes to improving leadership and communication skills, it is so much easier once someone shows you how. So, to accelerate results, and pinpoint areas to focus on for improvement, the right training and education are key.
As the study shows, addressing communication skills, in particular, could provide an enormous opportunity to tap into unrealised potential, and help develop better leaders for the future.
For more than 30 years, Rapport Leadership has innovated the way leadership is taught and empowered new leaders with the confidence, self-esteem, and focus necessary to improve their results and build high performance teams.
Contact us today on 1800 330 027 to find out more.
