Whether you lead a department or an organization, you should be worried about how to prevent leadership failure. This problem, which is an offshoot of the pandemic, has exposed weaknesses in previously effective leaders.
In terms of the big picture, a recent report from Challenger, Gray, and Christmas, shows that Chief Executive Turnover was up 19% in March of 2021, when compared to that time the previous year.
Some leaders fall into the category of what I would call as being good times leaders. These people are good at running a successful organization, they make sure things run smoothly, employees are happy, and positive things continue to happen.
But when there is some sort of big change that happens, like a pandemic, suddenly, some missing leadership skills are exposed. And the leader may not be up to the task of adjusting to now working in more of a crisis environment, where jobs and profits are at stake. Plus, circumstances beyond your control may have cut your workforce or operating capital. You must succeed with less.
To prevent leadership failure, consider these tips:
Focus
During times of unexpected change, it’s very important for leaders to have a clear focus on where they should be spending their time and energy. You can’t do everything at once.
Uncertainty about the future often comes hand-in-hand with an increase in distractions. Sometimes offers of help will need to be rejected because they don’t support your urgent needs.
Therefore, a leader must be able to identify top priorities. Then you need to give them most of your focus.
Don’t fall into the trap of trying to solve every problem at once. Protecting your productive time and staying focused on your most important needs will produce tomorrow’s success.
Get Ideas
If you feel overwhelmed by the business fallout of the pandemic, then you should seek out some new ideas. You may need to go outside of your industry, contact someone through networking, or find industry articles that may suggest a course of action.
This is a time when you need to be honest about what you know and what you don’t know. Letting go of your ego is a good way to prevent leadership failure.
You should also ask your team to offer ideas. Just because you’re in charge doesn’t mean you know everything about your organization and can come up with every solution.
Action Plan
You’re identified priorities, gotten some new ideas, and now you need to set some short and long term goals. This process will force you to demonstrate clarity.
It’s critical that these goals have deadlines. You can’t let them extend indefinitely, into the future. Show your team and your stakeholders that you have a response to unexpected challenges. Otherwise, the ship will appear rudderless.
Outreach
You need to be able to share and possibly sell your ideas to your employees. Think of it like a publicity campaign or a product launch. You need to share why the changes are happening, your course of action, and why their support is critical.
You may need to change your usual method of communication. If you can’t gather everyone in a room, then consider what is the best way for you to convey your message. It may not be a long email.
Instead, a remote workplace may require you to livestream your remarks or record them in a video. You should also have a process where people can ask you questions.
Any of these options may be out of your comfort zone, but you need to find out what is the best way that you can communicate concepts and ideas to people and give them the reason why they need to support your change.
If people only hear silence from your office, then they’ll start to wonder whether you are actually in control of the situation. When people don’t have a feel for what you’re doing, then they will guess. Usually that guess will not support your leadership. And sometimes rumors will start that you’re doing nothing, as the business fails.
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