Leadership and Management-Keys to Partner Success

by Ken Thoreson

Last week during a keynote speaking engagement I covered a variety of attributes of success both for personal and professional achievement. I stated that organizations that are growing have management teams that understand having financial ownership in the company does not mean you automatically have leadership nor does being a manager give you leadership status. In each case the individuals on the management team in growing and profitable organizations understands the difference. Please note that in partner organizations executives must have both leadership and management skills.

Leaders know they must: 1) act as a catalyst for growth and continuous improvement, 2) build strong teams, 3) organize excellent processes and 4) create an environment for people to excel. Are you focused on these actions? In management or company meetings or in one on one encounter are you encouraging others to seek to improve results? Do you have development programs for ALL employees? Are you building belief in your organization? (Building Belief for Success, 03/07) In most partner organizations leadership fails to develop the desired culture of their company. It’s difficult but critical to success. How are you recognizing high performance? Do you have a customer relationship philosophy? (Building Culture to Avoid Turnover 08-06)
Management has an important role to play in a partner organization. Managers must focus on execution, gain cooperation and achieve predefined objectives. Their role is critical if the organization is to increase revenue and profitability. Below is a simple graph to highlight the differences between each role.

Where we have focused on soft skills, our clients have created self development programs for their management team.  It might be as simple as the entire management team reading the same leadership/management book and discussing it during their meetings.   I suggest you discuss this column at your next management meeting and even hand out the Ten Principles (below) to each member of your team. Ask each of them to provide written examples, at your next meeting, of what they did to reinforce each principle during the past week.  This will keep these concepts in the forefront during their daily responsibilities.

Acumen’s Ten Principles of Leadership and Management.

One role leaders and managers must perform is to develop their people, hold individuals accountable and increase performance.  Typically this is called mentoring, coaching or just plain communicating effectively.  We recommend the President hold brief meetings each week with their direct reports to ensure priorities for the week are in alignment with the executive’s.   We also recommend that at least once a month the executive hold an individual meeting to review each manager’s effectiveness. If executives hold these meetings on a regular basis we find effective, open and honest communication occurs.

These sessions should be designed to review, praise or correct behavior.  To be successful the President must create a proper environment and provide structured approach.  The President would describe their observations of the performance problem or situation; remember to be specific. Next gather information from the other person’s view, listen-actively and close the session by discussing possible solutions and then gain person’s participation to continue with their actions or correct their behaviors.  I like to use the following phases to ensure the communication is followed in the proper sequence. Note I use the word “feel”’; you are addressing the situation or action not the person.

1. Tell them “what it is you do like or not like!”
2. Tell them  “how it makes you feel”
3. Tell them “why it makes you feel that way”
4. Gain their viewpoint: “How do you feel about it”
5. Agree together on Action Plan to correct.

Focus on your leaderships attributes and your management skills and make 2011 your best year ever!