Follow the Leader?
Are you working in a company or law firm where members of the executive team are good followers? Do senior team members help the CEO or Managing Partner to be the most effective leader? Does your company or law firm have leader-follower relationships that are open, honest and build trust?
One of the most powerful questions one can ask is “Does our organizational culture encourage followers to give open and honest feedback to the organization’s leader?” Emotionally intelligent and socially intelligent leaders encourage building work relationships with followers where there is open communication and feedback is appreciated.
Do leaders in your organization empower followers to manage their boss? Are you a leader who models open communication by creating a workplace culture and climate that is built on openness and trust? Are you able to create a high performance workplace where leaders and teams are energized by developing leader-follower relationships?
Improving Follower Performance
Organizations are successful or not partly on the basis of how well their leaders lead, but also in great part on the basis of how well their followers follow. Surely improving the performance of followers should be worthwhile. What is the role of the follower and how does it affect leadership behavior and effectiveness? How can members of the executive team participate more effectively to create a truly dynamic partnership relationship with their leader?
When there is a crisis, when a company fails or commits some malfeasance, everyone cries out: “How could that have happened here? How come nobody said anything?” Followers have a responsibility to speak up.
No matter how much partnership and empowerment there is; the CEO has ultimate authority and responsibility. What are the responsibilities of the CEO’s followers? The most capable team members fail when they gripe about their leader but do not say or do anything to help him or her improve or get back on track. This requires courage and skill.
What distinguishes an effective follower from an ineffective one is intelligent, responsible and enthusiastic participation in the pursuit of an organizational goal.
The movement away from command and control leadership has brought new leadership styles that are more democratic and coach-like. The terms “shared leadership,” and “servant leader” are used to describe some of these new ways of interacting. There are also new ways of interacting in the follower role. Setting aside possible aversion to the term, the new flatter business organization requires more responsible followers.
Working with a seasoned executive coach trained in emotional intelligence and incorporating leadership assessments such as the Bar-On EQ-i and CPI 260 can help you become an inspiring leader or a good follower. You can become a leader who models emotional intelligence and social intelligence, and who inspires people to become happily engaged and aligned with the vision and mission of your company or law firm.
I am currently accepting new executive coaching and career coaching clients. I work with both individuals and organizations. Call 415-546-1252 or send an inquiry e-mail to mbrusman@workingresources.com.
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