The challenges of leading a company are important even when navigating through seemingly calm waters. In the current business environment, they are critical. To say that these are “challenging times” is rather cliched at this point. But, whether it is the current economic conditions, the pandemic, local market changes or change in your own business, leaders today are facing some of the steepest challenges of their entire careers.
Leadership is the science, art and skill of establishing a far reaching goal for an organization, creating as clear a vision for that goal as possible, identifying and managing the “unknows”, communicating the vision to the organization and keeping the team on that path, all while keeping the organization effective, efficient and profitable in the short term.
Decide Your Future
The far-reaching goal should be all about the future reality you want to create for your business. In looking five or ten years into the future, even if the picture is a bit fuzzy, what do you see for the company at that time? What should the revenue be? How many people will you have on staff? Will you be in the same location or a different one? Will you acquire a building or possibly build one? Will you be offering the same services? Will you expand your geography?
Leadership first requires filling in as much of that picture as you can. But it is important to recognize that this picture is more of a mosaic than a painting. It is all about how lots and lots of little pieces – strategic decisions, assessment of capabilities, team development – will come together piece at a time to start looking like the end result you are picturing. This is not a skill everyone possesses, but it is also something that can be developed and nurtured.
Nurture Your Team
The next step is communicating this picture to the team. The more challenging the times, the harder it is to get out of the firefighting mode and into the “creating the mosaic” mode. And yet it is likely the most important time to do so. This is particularly true because if the challenges of the day are taking us off course, we must be able to know where things should be in order to get back on track. For most in the organization, they will see their piece and the issues right in front of them. It is the job of the leader to continually frame today’s discussions in the context of tomorrow’s objectives. Annual strategic meetings, employee reviews, budget planning sessions, company meetings and leadership team discussions are all opportunities to reinforce the vision and how we will get there.
Another important role for the leader is to resist the temptation to chase “shiny objects.” So many aspects of business have what appears to be stroke of luck or that hard-to-pass-up opportunity. It is the person that seems so perfect for a position that you don’t have open. It is the building that would make a great location even though you are not ready to make such a move. It is the “larger projects” or “handyman” service or any other service offering that someone else is offering and seems like easy money or a simpler path. The fact is that any one of these ideas could be a great move, but only if it is in the context of the greater plan you are trying to execute. Every organization has only so much time, money, talent and other resources. Leaders need to carefully allocate resources so that the ultimate mission is achieved.
Leaders also need to set themselves up with a support system that will allow them to share their vision, get critical feedback, challenge their assumptions, offer accountability and help them become better leaders. It can be a mentor, a coach, a peer group, a partner or some other resource, but leaders should not put themselves in a vacuum. Leaders should also not expect that it is the role of their spouse, partner, friend or even employees to be that resource. Leadership is difficult and it can be lonely. And yet, the right support can allow a leader to face difficulties, recognize shortfalls and address fears without putting that burden on those who have chosen to follow that leader.
Leadership is not for everyone. It is also a job unto itself, not just something to do when time allows. As your company continues to grow, be sure you are taking the steps to be the leader that you, your company and your team deserves.
