ARE YOU A MANAGER WITH THE COURAGE TO FOLLOW YOUR CONVICTIONS?
How many managers have you worked for with the kind of COURAGE that earns the loyalty of their people by doing the right thing by them… and of course, can you or will you count yourself in this number?
Although this blog is intended predominantly for management grades, the examples laid out in it demonstrate that anyone can in fact gain in terms of achieving ‘out of the ordinary’ results from having the COURAGE to follow their convictions and do the right thing rather than being just another average manager who follows the herd mentality.
Managers with such courage often earn the accolade of hero to their people but what does it mean exactly and how can it best be applied to lift people and results?
Contrary to common belief COURAGE is not just the way someone deals with fear but a character trait that ensures people know what you stand for, that you have their backs so to speak and that they can be sure you’ll do the right thing, even though it might hurt you personally at times.
A manager who demonstrates such character not only sets the standard that people are happy to follow (true leadership) but can also earn levels of unshakeable loyalty and significantly lift team or company performance.
TAKE THE FOLLOWING TRUE LIFE SCENARIOS OF LEADERSHIP COURAGE (NAMES CHANGED)
BUCKING CONVENTION
These are managers who have the COURAGE TO BUCK CONVENTION and conventional management thinking, which tend to deliver conventional (average) results.
Chris is a head of unit working in an environment of market decline as traditional revenues are being migrated to digital alternatives. Despite the severe challenges, Chris is asked (a polite way of being told) to make up ground that other channels within the company are forecasted to miss.
Chris is told in no unlikely terms that his team will need to get off to a fast start as ‘speed is critical’ and then keep driving the team to reach the finish line.
Chris stops all activities, pulls his people together, outlines the requirements, gets buy in, agrees on a route forward, i.e. slow down, plan all client accounts thoroughly, identify ‘any & all’ opportunities to defend and add to revenues… then implement with power and persistence. Chris’s attitude is that his team are not slaves to be driven but people to be guided, supported, developed, inspired and he does this from the outset, thereby cementing the trust he’d already built over the previous 5 years leading the team.
RESULT: Rather intense pressure is felt from above because early results don’t show but momentum builds and improvements come, until the team ended the year with 111% achievement of the multi-million pound stretch target. Quality proved more important than speed, Chris knew this, held his nerve and had the courage to defy ‘conventional’ thinking’ that would have damaged results instead of improving them.
What ‘conventional’ management practices do you follow that just don’t sit well with you or get the results you want? Why not challenge them, what would happen if you did the opposite or at least took a new perspective to an old way of doing things?
BEING CALLED OUT
These are managers who have the COURAGE TO BE CALLED OUT by the people that matter most as a way to improve themselves, their direct reports and ultimately the collective results.
A team of over 2-dozen sales managers take part in a coaching program where they’re asked to rate themselves (self-image) against core competencies and then get their people (reality) to rate them. This wasn’t the typical 360% type surveys that provide superficial results but collaborative 121 conversations between managers and direct reports, without the fear of senior management looking down their microscopes or interfering.
The managers feel in control and know they have the coaching back up of the change manager and that they will be challenged respectfully and constructively. Key development areas are identified, the sales managers enlist the help of their people to keep them on track but also identify areas that their direct reports can improve on too.
RESULT: Collaboration, moral, productivity and culture all improved at lightening speed and sales revenues jumped by 9%, equivalent to over £4m on the bottom line for the business. The majority of improvements came from the 60% of the previously middle performing managers and team, and not the top 20% or bottom 20%, a factor many businesses ignore.
Here’s a challenge of your courage in this respect if you’re up for it…
How would you rate your leadership skills on scale of 1 -10 (10 being top notch) against competencies like Organising, Planning, Communication, Delegation, Coaching, Counseling, Directing, Supporting, Problem Solving, Decision Making, Inclusion & Team Participation, Stress Management, Motivating, Inspiring or any others relevant to your role.
And then, are you courageous enough to ask your people to rate you and what they value most from you as a manager or in fact, value least?
Ask the question from a forward looking perspective though rather than one looking back, i.e. what could I be doing better rather than what am I doing badly or how can I help you rather than what do I do that demotivates you.
STAND UP
These are managers who have the COURAGE TO STAND UP for what they know to be right and do ‘the’ right thing, even through it may be uncomfortable.
Two senior executives pull a team of professional account managers into a room for a grilling about their results. The team leader’s told to stay quiet and let them handle it.
RESULT: It became obvious in the meeting that the aim was to ‘frighten’ the team into action, old-fashioned BS scare tactics. After the meeting, one particular account manager promptly went off sick with stress.
Emily, the team leader was advised by one of the senior execs to ‘sack him’ when and if he returned to work. She did exactly the opposite and a) kept in close contact with the account manager whilst he was off to understand his situation and intentions b) based on this understanding, she re-assured him that she would cushion any pressure going forward so that he could concentrate on his own performances and c) set up a rehab plan for when he got back.
In short: The rehab plan worked, the account manager outlasted the senior execs in the company, he became a solid ally for Emily, including taking on extra responsibilities AND he made sure his colleagues knew how he been supported and treated by his team leader, which built massive respect and loyalty across the team because they knew the team leader would to the right thing by them, regardless.
As Confucius said: “Perceiving what is right and doing it not, reveals a lack of Courage”
Have you ever stood down when you knew in your heart that you should have stood up, what will you do next time, will you be the person you want to be on the inside and have people respect you on the outside?
ETHICS OVER PERSONAL GAIN
These are managers who have the COURAGE TO FOLLOW ETHICS OVER PERSONAL GAIN by way of example in setting the standards to be known for within the organisation.
Glen ran a team of senior advertising sales professionals and any customers that grew into large value accounts from the local sales channel got transferred into this team to be managed.
One particular customer valued at £60k per annum hadn’t paid a single invoice in 12 months since signing up with the company. Glen was advised by his sales director that his team could renew the business for the coming year even though the finance department was up in arms about it.
Glen questions the ethics behind this conflicting approach bearing in mind, the company is carrying bad debt and it hurts profitability. ‘We’re only responsible for sales so you can re-sign the customer and report the revenues against your targets’ said the sales director.
Glen decided to meet the customer with his account manager, give them the opportunity to pay at least some of the debt to show willing and subject to an agreed payment plan on the old debt, be able to continue with some advertising in future publications.
RESULT: No money was forthcoming so Glen cancelled all future advertising for this customer. It didn’t stop his team from meeting their sales quota but still impacted on the level of over-achievement, which meant Glen was out of pocket by £600 based on his bonus structure.
Finance used this as an example to gain more power within the business so that sales could not just ride roughshod over ethical practices and importantly, Glens team set an example of acting like true sales professionals and not the greedy, self-serving kind of people that some believe they are.
If you find yourself in a compromising situation, you have to ask yourself ‘Is the short-term gain really worth the inner pain over the long-term gain?’
COMMIT TO
These are managers who have the COURAGE TO COMMIT to their convictions and a cause or purpose, one that is far bigger than themselves or their team.
Stuart joins a start up business unit within a major corporation as head of sales and recruits a team to take on two dominant market leaders. Contrary to the ‘norm’ he hires account managers considered as ‘over the hill’ by these two competitors and fights off pressure from his bosses to hire younger, more energetic account managers. He sticks to his convictions because it’s based on his experience rather than listening and buckling to pressure form his bosses who don’t and the same experience but just theoretical opinions.
He goes ahead and hires the ‘old guns’ and paints a picture of creating the most professional and successful team of its kind in the industry, a tight group of renegade groundbreakers who will be recognised for their achievements.
RESULT: These ‘over the hill’ account managers take the market by storm, generate nearly £18m in annual revenues within just 3 years, take over position as №2 in the market, make a big dent in the market share of №1 and receive CEO recognition with a one-off award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Business’.
APOLOGISE
These are managers who have the COURAGE TO SAY ‘I’M SORRY’ and mean it or ‘I WAS WRONG’ and correct it.
The MD of a marketing agency has major issues with staff turnover and continually loses good people, including two people who left to set up in competition. Exit interviews are conducted and feedback on the MD is scathing.
They hired Claire, a culture change consultant and part of the advice Claire gave was to hold ‘staying interviews’ with the staff to get a wider view and help in diagnosing the ‘real’ problems within the business rather than just ‘leaving interviews’ after people have already left.
RESULT: The staying interviews are just as scathing and the MD is deemed to be the single biggest reason that people ‘want to leave’ because they feel under valued, under appreciated, over worked and over looked in terms of work-life balance.
Feedback is shared with the MD, he’s shocked but ‘open to suggestions’ because the loss of staff is proving very stressful, with workloads, client delivery and costs of hiring and training new members of staff spiraling. Advice included holding 121’s and group meetings to effectively apologise and outline how he could work with staff to improve working conditions under him.
The advice wasn’t followed, Claire was let go, staff turnover continued, client relationships were compromised, profitability was impacted and the MD maintained his stress levels. And this is what happens when managers or so-called business leaders lack courage, everybody loses!
Ego or Ignorance is what gets in the way, would you be able to put either aside and be the bigger person that gains respect from the people that matter, i.e. those you rely on to get the results you need?
There are consequences to courage or lack of it (cowardice) and as human beings we don’t really need to be told what’s right from wrong do we, it’s instinctive in all of us.
Having the courage to do the right thing though is not always easy and especially if the power of authority from above makes the pressure unbearable, and believe me when I say that I’ve felt it plenty of times.
At times, you will inevitably question yourself but doing something on the outside that’s inconsistent with how you feel on the inside is just not worth it and at worst, it can affect your self-esteem and your self-respect as well as the respect and loyalty of those you lead.
With this in mind, I’d be interested to hear about the biggest acts of courage you’ve experienced in the workplace or that you’ve demonstrated yourself so please comment or drop me a line.
Best,
Reece
Author & Creator of Strong Minds online personal & professional leadership self-coaching courses and podcast for + change
Originally published at reecepye.com.
