Transparency
Leadership in time of Co-vid
Transparency in leadership is a must for any leader, especially in the current context of Co-vid. I believe that all leaders should have found the way of being honest and open with their team members, but for some reason many leaders have felt it better to keep teams on a need to know basis. This has always lead to a them versus us mentality.
That kind of structure is usually followed by a, ‘it doesn’t have to make sense, I just need you to do it’ type of attitude. The companies crying about ‘labor shortage’ are really letting people know that they lacked transparency with their teams and couldn’t change their work dynamic from boss employee to team and team leader.
Team comes before leader, and any leader un aware of that is why people are quitting their positions in large numbers. Now more than ever is when good leadership is needed, and it’s in moments like this that leadership has to be redefined. One of the main things about the leadership dynamic that needs to be redone is in regards to transparency.
How much do we tell team members about what's happening? Why we are making these decisions? What are our short comings that we as a company are facing? What are we doing well? It’s not easy, but it is now necessary.
We have to give full disclosure to team members. In a time when people feel that they have no control, they need to have all the information as it 1) helps them understand what the company is doing and why, 2) gives them the information needed to stay or go, and 3) helps them understand that we are, as corny as it sounds, in this situation together.
For more on my thoughts on this please refer to an earlier article I wrote about the last leadership position I had and why I resigned.
“The best way to get them to internalize is to be honest. There is no need to con them with lies, or bully them with threats. I have had very honest and practical conversations with team members. No, not every job is a forever position, not every company the dreams of the team, but how do you make the work they do relevant to the dreams and aspirations that they do have? That’s the question that good leaders ask.”
I’ve since been hired on by a new larger company. I have been executing on the points made in that last article and have been successful in managing my department. Leaders everywhere need to be asking themselves what it is to be a leader in this new work environment, especially folks that, like me, find themselves in the customer service sector.
Transparency with the team is something that I have backed in the past, and now I am doubling down on it. I hope you do too.
