Inspiring leadership among your team is more important now than it ever was before. Your employees need excellent leadership – and they need to be able to strive for more within your business.
Your company is providing stability for both customers and employees. However, your business can also create a space for employees to excel and bring their best to the table. It’s a place where great work can be appreciated and rewarded by increased responsibility and higher roles within the company.
How to Inspire Leadership in Your Company
Employees don’t want to “clock in and clock out” – and that is more true at this moment than it’s ever been. Your employees want to create a balance between their work and their home life. They want to create a result that will be admired and they want to advance their place in your company.
Acknowledging the above is the first step in inspiring any one of your team members to step into greater responsibility and, in the future, take on a leadership role. As you continue to grow your business, it’s vital that you galvanize your workforce to take on greater responsibility.
Here are ten strategies that you can use to get the best out of your employees:
1. Give employees the time and resources to increase their on-the-job knowledge
Employees need support and improved on-the-job knowledge to stay relevant. This means that they need the time and resources to take an educational Webinar, take additional classes, or buy the latest industry text. They need to be able to study the ins and outs of that new software or understand the more recent industry innovations.
The only way your employees will gain the knowledge that they need to do their jobs effectively – and potentially move up within your business – is to have the time and resources to gain that knowledge. You can provide this in several ways, but ultimately your team must stay up-to-date. So, ensure training time is on the calendar each week, no matter what else is going on.
2. Provide a clear path to move up within your company
It is vital to create defined infrastructure within a business if you hope to retain employees and keep them moving up within your company’s ranks. Not only does the potential path of promotion need to be laid out for a specific title, but the overall leadership and structure of your business must be set up so that all employees can see a path forward.
3. Share the vision with your team
You have a vision for your company. You have goals and milestones that need to be achieved. Talk to your team and share the overall vision and the individual steps necessary to achieve your goals. Not only will this allow them to contribute more effectively when they do their jobs, but it also allows the team to provide additional methods for achieving your overall vision.
Allowing employees to contribute will enable them to showcase how they might lead a particular effort and give them the opportunity to do so.
4. Set up a clear reporting system
Creating definite measurables allows employees to showcase how they are accomplishing tasks and overcoming challenges. This also provides clear accountability that poor performers cannot bluff their way out of. Either way, having defined measurables means that an employee can step up and their efforts can be seen and appreciated.
5. Have employees create knowledge transfer documentation now
Documenting the role an employee plays is vital as they plan to move up within your business. Creating the documentation early and having an employee update it as needed provides them with the ability to easily move up within your company. This documentation allows them to teach their replacement and step into a leadership role without old tasks somehow still falling in their purview.
6. Talk with employees about future opportunities
Mentor employees who have the potential to achieve great things. Talk to them about their future, their goals, and how they can best move up within the company. This gives a team member a clear path forward and can instill confidence as they continue to perform at their peak.
7. Show your respect for an employee’s work
When a team member provides their best, be sure to share your respect and admiration for their performance. Employees who do a great job deserve to be recognized and encouraged. This is just one more way to instill confidence and encourage excellence.
8. Find out what your employees are passionate about
Harnessing an employee’s interests and directing them to better themselves in a way that brings them joy and satisfaction during the workday can only make them more enthusiastic and passionate about their job. So, do some listening. Have one-on-ones with potential leaders or employees who may want to step up and into a leadership role. Learn more about them and find out how you can support them as they continue to help you grow your company.
9. Delegate to a potential leader
Trusting an employee to take on more responsibility by delegating tasks that you need to remove from your plate is a win-win. The only caveat here is, make sure that the tasks delegated actually fit in their role or fall under their department.
10. Support personal and professional growth
With so many employees working remotely these days, it is vital to find ways to support your team and lift each team member up. If you have been talking to employees, you likely know the challenges they are encountering. Find ways to support the personal and professional growth of each team member as much as possible.
This support will allow employees to see what a good leader looks like and help lift them up and grow into a more significant leadership role.
Creating and supporting leaders is vital to the growth and well-being of any business. If you are ready to take the first step and establish a clear path forward for your employees, contact us today.
