Summary
I believe the challenge ahead of us is beautifully captured in this slightly adapted quote from Abraham Lincoln:
The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate for the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new so we must think anew and act anew and we must disenthrall ourselves and then we shall save our
(company).
Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States.
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Followership
Engaging our workforces and leaders in the 21st Century
Each and every one of us are followers and although there is much talk about leadership, there is considerably less chatter on the topic of followership and yet it affects all of us all of the time.
Votive Leadership LLP have developed a unique award winning approach to developing ‘followership’, improving engagement and developing authentic leadership.
We have divided typical followers into five categories. These are evident in all organisations and tend to be a consequence of the style of leadership and corporate culture which prevails. Our own research shows that the level of awareness within an organisation of the followership traits is very poor and that increasing the level of awareness has a direct positive impact on the bottom line.
SHEEP: Complete tasks in a functional manner, but do not question nor are they proactive. They contribute little beyond directive task completion. Loved by weak leaders and cultivated by dominant leaders.
YES PEOPLE: Never question what they are doing and complete the task. They will actively support their manager and seek their favour. Weak leaders confide in them as they see them as their allies.
ALIENS: These are alienated from the organisation, the manager or the task and as such moan about the problems. They use a lot of blame language and rarely take responsibility for their own emotions. Disliked by weak leaders because of their negativity, but rarely challenged. If left unchallenged, can have a corrosive influence on the team.
SURVIVORS: Politically astute in that they will run with which ever pack they are currently with. Rarely put their heads above the parapet and unwilling to volunteer or take measured risk. Typically the most common group of follower found in business.
EFFECTIVE: These followers challenge decisions with the intent to understand. They contribute well beyond the task in hand and seek to engage on many levels. They are fundamentally supportive and loyal, but are willing to question. Weak leaders hate them, because they highlight the weak leaders flaws. Their existence is threatened by corporate culture and a high dependency on target driven management. Tend to be an aspiration rather than common practice.
The development of effective followership:
- Improves employee engagement
- Drives the development of a dynamic environment
- Improves agility
- Improves the taking of greater levels of responsibility by all
- Develops the key managerial and leadership traits required for effective followership to thrive
- Generates a clear strategic plan for the future based on sound people based needs rather than abstract targets
- Improves team work, cohesion the development of discretionary behaviour
- Has a direct impact on productivity, impacting the bottom line numbers
People do not follow leaders, they follow effective followers
Around a team meeting table the leader asks a question and, although there may be many with questions, no-one will speak, until the effective follower asks their question first, thereby giving permission to everyone else to follow - not the leader.
This does not mean the leader’s role is redundant, but it does question the main focus of the leaders’ attention. Leaders need to be highly aware of the followers they are creating with their management style and spend greater levels of energy and focus in nurturing the environment to allow Effective followership to flourish. Without this they run the risk of failing to achieve authenticity, a key leadership trait.
Followership is a new concept and is specifically aimed at improving engagement of the workforce at all levels, through the development of the employee and those in a position to lead them. All programmes are bespoke and tailored to fit the context within which the company operates. They are highly interactive, motivational and designed using the latest accelerated learning techniques. The style is very much a coaching style, where we aim to raise awareness and create ownership within the individual through effectively challenging the hidden rules which currently drive behaviour, thus creating lasting change.