Team leadership means providing guidance, instruction, direction and leadership to a group of individuals (the team) for the purpose of completing tasks successfully. The leadership component (highlighted) is what galvanizes other functions and helps to positively influence team members to want to follow. Hence when a team lead, supervisor, head of unit, or manager ‘work’ without the leadership component, people find it very difficult to follow them. And some of the consequences are loss of motivation to work, low productivity, mismanagement of […]
Category Archives: Leadership
May
14
Feb
14
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When a manager is not assertive
When a manager is not assertive, then in real terms, he’s either aggressive or passive. Aggressive managers use their positions of power and authority to belittle, intimidate, and control those who report to them. As a result, their team members begin to resent them. Then their productivity begins to fall, and if the dictatorial behavior of the manager continues, it will not be long before the organization begins experiencing a high employee turnover. In other words, aggressive managers create an […]
Feb
6
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It’s time to start being assertive
Please look over the following questions: Are you able to refuse unreasonable requests from friends or colleagues? If your meal in a restaurant is unsatisfactory, do you tell the waitress or just make the best of it? Are you likely to express your opinion if it differs from that of the people you are talking with? Are you quick to apologize even when you’re not at fault? If someone is disturbing you during a quiet time, do you ask them […]
Dec
7
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The leadership approach supervisors should avoid
“One size fits all” – using the same leadership style in every situation and for everyone in a team. This should be avoided because at any point in a team, individuals are at different developmental levels. Hence a supervisor should vary his or her style of leadership based on each individual’s developmental level. This approach, developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard, is known as situational leadership. It rests on two fundamental concepts; an individual’s developmental level and the supervisor’s […]
Jul
8
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The impact of leadership on employee engagement
In just about any industry and in just about any role, you will eventually find yourself in a leadership position, that is if you’re not a leader already. Hence it is important to understand what employee engagement means and how your leadership role affects it. Employee engagement is the extent to which employees feel passionate about their jobs, are committed to the organization, and put discretionary effort into their work. Employee engagement does not mean employee happiness. Someone might be […]
Jun
1
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Understanding the service concept
Good service creates customer satisfaction. Excellent service creates customer loyalty. Hence, by building service excellence into your organization, customer loyalty is increased which in turn results to profitable and sustainable business growth. Implementing an effective service strategy with a focus on retaining customers has proven to be more effective at increasing sales and profit, than mere marketing campaigns, promotions or advertising. Thus there is a strong correlation between service delivery and profit with research showing that a 5% increase in […]
Apr
8
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When teams work in silos
At some level, every manager understands that to deliver great performance they have to unlock the potential in teams. And to do this, they need to turn a collection of individuals into a high-performing group, the members of which support one another. In other words, managers must be team builders nurturing teams where members share resources, ideas and common goals and also develop a shared identity, often built on a combination of their skill sets and their perceived status in […]
Apr
5
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Career advancement: The inadequacy of hard skills
To get and keep a job, you typically need hard skills. For example, Dentists need to know how to fill cavities, Computer Programmers need to be able to write functional codes, and Accountants need to be certified. However, beyond the hard skills, which dentist do you go to? The one who is pleasant and takes time to answer your questions; or the one who treats you like a number in a long line of numbered mouths? Which programmer do you retain when the […]
Mar
3
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The role of supervisors in employee engagement
Employee engagement is the extent to which employees feel passionate about their jobs, are committed to the organization, and put discretionary effort into their work. Employee engagement does not mean employee happiness. Someone might be happy at work, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are working hard, productively on behalf of the organization. While company outings, TGIF, and end-of-year parties are fun–and may be beneficial for other reasons–making employees happy is different from making them engaged. Also, employee engagement does […]
Feb
22
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When do supervisors lose their leadership?
Supervision literally means “watching over”. However, in reality, it’s a lot more complex than just keeping an eye on staff. There is a leadership component in supervision. Hence a good supervisor should also be a good leader – positively influencing others to want to follow. A bad supervisor is that supervisor who lacks leadership skills, ability or training. In other words, they ‘work’ without the leadership component of supervision. They might think they are doing a great job, but […]
