…the choice is up to you.

Getting off on the right foot as a new leader is no easy task.  The assumption many executives and partners make is that the firm has given them a group of willing followers.  Actually, what you’ve been given is an opportunity to create followers.  And, if your successful, gain their trust as leader.

John Gardner writes in On Leadership, “…They have been given subordinates.  Whether the subordinates become followers depends on whether the executives act like leaders.”

How do leaders act when they step into a new role?

1.  The leaders first order of business is to initiate meaningful conversations with key people and groups.  Yes, there are many tasks to be done and plans to be made; however, leaders connect with people first. It sounds rather simple to be encouraging you to talk to people.  But, most new leaders overlook or minimize the power of this simple action.

2. Leaders listen twice as much as they speak.  You might mesmerize them with your words, but you mobilize them with understanding.  Grasping where they’ve been, what they’ve been working toward and what they hope is possible, prepares their minds and hearts to follow your lead.

3. Leaders show that they know the business and intend to conduct business in a manner that will sustain and grow the business.  People follow leaders who put the wellbeing of the business ahead of their personal ambition.

Take the time to create followers.  They rewards will extend far beyond your current assignment.

…they lead.

The managing partner explained that he had not developed a strategy for his national service line because “leadership” had not yet decided if the service line was strategic to the firm.  I couldn’t believe what I had just heard.  Here’s the way I see it…

First, it is highly probable that leadership will never view your practice as strategic if you, the leader (if only by title), do not passionately believe it yourself.

Second, why hold the leadership position of a national service line if you aren’t going to lead?  Resign immediately and let someone step up who has a vision for that practice.

Leaders do not wait to be told what is strategic.  Leaders think and act strategically, especially when everyone else is managing through minutiae.

Professional service firms are crowded with bright people; However, the brightest do not always make partner. Why is that?

In my experience, highly competent professionals often think their technical dominance guarantees getting on the partner track.  They fail to understand that competence only gets them to the dance.  To be invited into the partnership involves several important and often unspoken expectations.  If you aspire to partnership or higher leadership within your firm, consider these for starters…

1. You may have talent, but do you have a pleasing personality?  Highly analytical people often undervalue the importance of being able to connect with and influence other people.

2. You may have expertise, but are you sophisticated?  Organizational savvy and how you represent yourself directly impacts how other people view you.  Make it your business to expand your understanding and knowledge of things beyond your work.

3. You may have the work ethic, but can you leverage the time and talent of others?  Demonstrate your willingness to let others do the work and the ability to restrain your tendency to do it yourself.

These three things may not get you an immediate advancement, but they are a great place to start.

Business results and achievement come from the ability to organize and mobilize other people for productivity and effectiveness.

Doug achieved respectable success in a commercial construction firm through his estimating skills.  After being promoted to Vice President, he struggled with letting go of estimating.  He explained to me that he believed his credibility and value to the company was directly tied to his technical ability.

There was one problem.  The president of the firm viewed this as Doug’s inability to work through others and build a team around himself.  The president said, “Doug can’t be a leader because he still wants to be an estimator.”

There is a time in one’s career when people skills become more critical than technical skills.  A choice will need to be made.  Leader or technician?

Success depends on being capable of anticipating client needs. The ability to probe and anticipate opportunity is a critical skill to develop.  Here are a few tips to practice for those who are insight challenged…

1.  Step back from the task at hand and reflect on what issues the client might encounter once this project is complete.  What is the next logical step or phase?

2.  Listen to the chatter and concerns the clients employees are talking about.  How can you help?

3.  When the client makes a statement or shares a problem, ask yourself, ”what are they asking of me?”

4.  Schedule time regularly to think about the client needs and how you can position your firm’s expertise.

5.  Do not assume the client will connect their issues to your firm’s capabilities. That connection is yours to make.

6.  People do not like to admit a problem until they know you have a solution.  Build a reputation for having solutions and resources.

Few things are less tolerable to high achievers than a “do-nothing” leader.

If you hold the leadership position, have the power to lead, and have earned the people’s permission to lead, but fail to lead…that is a recipe for disaster.

A few years ago, the new President assumed his leadership role in the firm with great promise and vision.  He did a masterful job of rallying together a fragmented partner group and painting a vision of what was possible. Unfortunately, he had one fatal flaw.  He failed to execute. He did not empower his team to act, and subsequently, could not stay the course.  His team became frustrated from lack of support and being second-guessed. The president did not lead.  He did not stand with conviction when representing the group with the parent organization.  They lost hope.  In less than 18 months the firm had a new leadership team.

Lead to their expectations and they will exceed your expectations.

Leadership is dynamic and thriving organizations require that dynamic from every member, at every level, in every relationship.

Edgar H. Schein wrote in Organizational Psychology: “Good leadership and good membership…blend into each other…in an effective organization.  It is just as much the task of a member to help the group reach its goals as it is the task of the formal leader.”

For this to happen, formal leaders must demonstrate faith in their members.

What is often obvious to the leader may not be quite so obvious to others.  Ever find yourself wondering why your colleagues or team can’t grasp the simple task required of them even though you’ve explained what they need to do?  Were you tempted to find a way to motivate, manipulate or, for a fleeting moment, malign them into the producing the results you wanted?  These tactics may get reaction, but they are shortsighted and can be costly.

Patiently building loyalty may be a more effective strategy.  Consider this…

Paul David Walker, in an interview with CIO.com , observed that one characteristic of Steve Jobs success was his ability “to gain the loyalty of brilliant engineers.”  According to Walker, Jobs primarily did that by turning the engineers ideas into a product that would sell and, therefore, becoming the engineers best ally.

Leadership engenders loyalty when the leader is selfless enough to help others benefit from their knowledge, talent, ideas and effort.

Next time you need an individual or a group to perform or produce a specific task, ask how you might become their ally and cooperate in a manner that helps them succeed.

Diligence is important in unfavorable times.

Diligent leaders have the ability to bring consistent energy and effort to their work.  They bridle the urgent demands with a single-mindedness on strategic movement while carefully and persistently increasing their work.

A leader recently learned through 360˚ feedback that his peers perceived him as having slacked off in his commitment.  They noted that he wasn’t demonstrating hard work or putting himself out to address the economic challenges of his office.  He explained his behavior as a result of the economic downturn saying, business just wasn’t there.

During unfavorable conditions diligent leaders show up with greater persistence and determination.  In the words of Jim Collins, they “display a workmanlike diligence – more plow horse than show horse.” They refuse to use these harsh economic realities as reason to coast.

The characteristics of diligence are:

1. Demonstration of energy and physical stamina required to get things done in the midst of long and extreme conditions.

2. Insistence on making every hour of every day productive.  It’s more than good time management, it’s expanding capacity for leveraging resources and activity.

3. Follow-through on commitments made.  Leaders who fail to deliver on commitments forfeit the right to be followed.

Research indicates that 95% of leaders and managers are not living up to their potential. Extreme times call for extreme leadership.  How will you show up?

Pragmatism is basically considered a virtue in the world of accounting, finance and consulting. But there is a risk of being too realistic and over-relying on how you’ve always done things.

My son, who works for a financial firm, shared his recent experience.  A group of mid-level managers in that firm, leading a new initiative to expand the client-base, is displaying close-mindedness to new ideas from the staff.  He mused, “I think you can become so realistic that you can’t see new possibilities.”

When staff observe managers and leaders squelching creative solutions they shut down.  They  think, “If the manager doesn’t want to hear my ideas, I won’t share them.” That manager just unknowingly cost the firm possibilities that can only be realized from having all brains in the game.

Are you a realist?  Don’t get stuck in the predictable behaviors and solutions of the past. Listen to the dreamers around you.