"Cease taking on responsibilities that belong to others"
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In today's fast-paced business world, it's crucial for leaders to be effective in getting more out of their teams. Instead of doing the work for them, a leader's primary job is to build the capability of team members, setting them up for success.
According to a recent article published in HBR in 2021, filling in for others' work weakens a team and sets it up for failure. Instead, leaders should help team members identify and utilize their full potential.
One effective strategy is coaching and mentoring through curious, growth-focused conversations. Rather than giving direct instructions, leaders should ask thoughtful questions that encourage critical thinking. This empowers team members to solve problems independently and transform feedback into welcomed growth opportunities.
Another strategy is building a culture where continuous, constructive feedback fuels growth. Normalizing feedback as a regular practice helps team members understand their strengths and areas for improvement. The McKinsey Feedback Model can guide leaders to make feedback specific, behavior-focused, and emotionally constructive.
Assessing team members’ strengths and deploying them strategically is also key. Using tools like SWOT analysis helps leaders understand individual and collective capabilities to assign roles and tasks that stretch members appropriately and close skill gaps without doing the work for them.
Modeling consistent, authentic leadership that leads by example without micromanaging is also essential. Being present, trustworthy, and supportive encourages teams to take ownership. Leaders should act with integrity and provide guidance rather than taking over tasks, fostering autonomy rather than dependency.
Encouraging a learning and growth mindset through challenges and stretch goals is another effective strategy. Celebrating effort and learning instead of just results helps team members build new capabilities. Leaders should promote training and new experiences that push boundaries while providing appropriate support.
Empowering employees with ownership and decision-making opportunities is the final strategy. Engaging team members in leadership games, workshops, and problem-solving activities builds confidence and fosters proactive behaviors, making them less reliant on the leader for direction.
A leader's success is determined by the team they lead, and their job is more about identifying, nurturing, and building future leaders. A leader's goal should be to make themselves redundant in their team, building a team that can work without depending on them.
In addition, a leader should ensure team members have sufficient resources, training, and protection from distractions. By implementing these strategies, leaders can build capable teams that are empowered to solve problems, take ownership, and reach their full potential.
References:
[1] HBR. (2021, November). Stop Doing Your Team's Work for Them. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2021/11/stop-doing-your-teams-work-for-them
[2] McKinsey & Company. (n.d.). The McKinsey Feedback Model. Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/the-mckinsey-feedback-model
[3] Forbes. (2019, May 1). 5 Ways to Build a High-Performance Team. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2019/05/01/5-ways-to-build-a-high-performance-team/?sh=738f905176e0
[4] Harvard Business Review. (2018, September 17). The Four Disciplines of Execution: Achieving Your Wildly Important Goals. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2018/09/the-four-disciplines-of-execution-achieving-your-wildly-important-goals
A leader should prioritize empowering team members to utilize their full potential, rather than taking on their work. This can be achieved through coaching and mentoring, building a culture of constructive feedback, assessing and deploying team members' strengths strategically, modeling authentic leadership, encouraging a learning and growth mindset, and providing employees with ownership and decision-making opportunities.
In education-and-self-development and personal-growth literature, it's stated that a leader's success is ultimately determined by the team they lead. The goal of a leader should be to make themselves redundant by nurturing and building future leaders within their team, ensuring they have the resources, training, and support needed to succeed independently.
