The Workplace Coach

This is not a new question, and academics and business experts have been debating this for some time, and I’m not sure that we have actually landed a definitive answer that satisfies everyone.  Here is a fun little article from HBR about the transition from manager to leader. I don’t necessarily agree that it’s a journey of development but let me offer the following thoughts. 

I feel like a being a manager has more to do with the management and control of projects, processes, inputs and outputs, budgets and resourcing. As manager your focus will be centred around KPIs and milestones, productivity and service delivery.  You are concerned with the client and what they think about whatever it is that your people produce.  

As a leader you will be more focussed on your people.  You want your people to be engaged with their work, have clarity on what they are doing and why they are doing it.  You want them energised and working well as a team, you are looking for the discretionary effort that high performing teams and individuals bring to the workplace.  You are concerned with ensuring that your people are okay, knowing that when they are being looked after, they will also be looking after your clients.

Now there are a lot of textbook definitions of leadership and management but I think one of the easiest ways to tell whether you are a manager or a leader, is by identifying what it is that you reflect on after the work day is done.  When you go home and you start to unwind, what is it that you think about?  Is it the metrics?  Is it trying to find a way to get your people producing more output, with less input, in a shorter time, without affecting the quality of the product?

Or do you reflect on your interactions with your people during the day?  How could you have been more effective?  Did you get the result you were hoping for?  Did you positively or negatively impact that person’s day? What are some ways that you can make it easier for your people to do a great job?

I’ve worked with lots of managers, as well as a few leaders.  Leadership is not a title, and just because you’re in the C-suite doesn’t necessarily make you a leader.  I’ve seen amazing leaders at a team level that energise and motivate and positively influence their teams, and on the flip side I’ve seen people in leadership roles, who manage their people into the ground. 

If self-reflection is not really your thing (but I do suggest that you spend a little time each day doing this) and you want to get a quick snapshot of the ‘leadership’ in your organisation, branch or team then pull out your last staff survey results.  This will tell you exactly how your people feel about working for you.  High engagement scores suggest good leadership, low engagement scores are more suggestive of a management rather than a leadership culture. 

If your staff engagement survey is old, out of date or never been done, then contact your HR department and ask them for the HR metrics report.  You are looking for the hot spots which will tell you where there is a leadership vs management issue.  Work areas with any of these indicators might have a problem with poor leadership: high separation rates or turnover, high usage of sick leave or unplanned absences, high numbers of complaints or workplace conflicts, high numbers of WHS Incidents, high levels of EAP usage. 

Now I know that it feels like I’m bashing managers a little bit here and that’s not my intent at all.  Every organisation needs great managers to actually ensure the work is getting done and the bottom line is being taken care of.  My point is that we need both great management and amazing leadership, and if we can find both in the one person then that is a rare gift to any organisation. 

The good news is that with some self-reflection and a little guidance, we can all absolutely get better at both.  That’s what The Workplace Coach is all about, helping you find and develop your own leadership style. 

The Workplace Coach