Leadership Must Live Their Company Values — Every Value
Else fear is bred in all corners of the company
You can find companies that claim their commitment to people and their people’s development on paper.
I often wonder what evidence is used as a measure of that commitment.
What is the source of input that verifies leaders are lifting their teams to succeed? What are the examples of success in this area?
At a leadership town hall held for the entire company some years ago, similar queries topped the list:
How do we hold our leaders accountable to leadership commitments?
Following the webcast there were hundreds of anonymous comments posted internally. It was a hot topic then.
It remains a hot topic because the question remains unanswered.
There are fantastic leaders within many companies at all levels and around us. There are also leaders scattered throughout companies who must exemplify the core values and commitments espoused by the companies they represent. They may exhibit some but not all values; they seem to understand the values very little and demonstrate none.
The stories and concerns around these less-than-stellar leaders carry throughout employee hallways. These stories are not intended to create mistrust or breed rumors, instead they often come from a place of fear or shock, a place of trying to understand how to move forward, but this is where fear is bred.
Don’t get me wrong; the goal is not to stop these stories from being shared. Only through speaking the truth and hearing a story from another that resonates with one’s own experience can we truly understand the breadth and scope of the issues. We can see that speaking these truths is not a one-off example of bad days or missteps.
Instead, they are essential gaps in understanding and living the company’s values.
These stories bring us together and are evidence that we are not alone. They confirm where issues are present because they are more than a single incident.
I know colleagues who need help with their leaders and have gone to HR with concerns only to find a lack of support or direction. They go to counseling services only to be told there is nothing to be done, to be said that if they have a problem with their leader they must leave the team.
Why is this the answer? Do we not bleed out talent with this approach? Why is there no accountability?
Can you imagine not being happy with government leadership and having the answer be to leave the country? Ridiculous.
Where there are bad leaders in government who do not respond to the voice of the people,
Where there are teachers who are not upholding the principles of the school,
Where there are coaches who are unsuccessful in leading their team to the podium,
Those leaders, those people who are not fulfilling their mandate are given the chance to change, and when they don’t, those are the people to leave.
People want and need to be heard, seen, understood, and respected. The lack of accountability around poor leadership behavior within companies leaves people lacking in all of these.
Ultimately, it will drive that talent, those experienced and developed, and the up-and-coming who will bring the new ideas out the door and potentially into the arms of a competitor.
Upward Feedback
Ultimately, it makes sense for an upward feedback process to be embedded in work practices. A process through which team members could share insights and experiences with leaders within those teams and those higher up the chain.
That could be a game-changer.
Whether anonymous or open, that kind of feedback would reveal some of the more overt actions. It is also essential that this process is not informal but accessible. Small things can be brought to light before they become more prominent. Easy so that the work of sharing feedback does not add substantially to someone’s plate; they fear they don’t have the time to bring a concern forward because of the channels and the process involved.
Understand that the feedback must be across the board and open to employees at all levels to participate as it makes sense. If we can pick and choose from where and from whom we receive input, are we not then able to potentially filter the feedback that we fear may be more insightful, feedback that may impede our goals of promotion and career advancement?
Your Call-To-Action:
Consider the best way to communicate with a leader if you have a concern. To whom would you go? Another leader? A committee of peers? Would it be more comfortable to email someone you don’t have contact with — not anonymously — so they could follow up? Think of one way to make this an easy conversation and share it with us here.
Let’s get this discussion moving forward with more intent.
