Leadership Nugget # 8: R.E.S.P.E.C.T. – How Do You Measure The Value Of A Leader?

How would you answer the question: “In your current or most recent job, do you think you could do a better job than your manager?”

4,800 people in a Monster.com survey responded, and 84% of them said, “Yes!”

The belief of respondents that they could do a better job than their managers was a widespread phenomenon.
• France: 72%
• Netherlands: 74%
• Germany 83%
• U.S. 84%
• India 87%

Monster.com’s conclusion? Many employees don’t have respect for their boss.

Merriam-Webster defines respect as “a feeling of admiring someone or something that is good, valuable, important, etc.;
a feeling or understanding that someone or something is important, serious, etc., and should be treated in an appropriate way

Leadership Lesson: This survey makes the point that terrible managers and leaders exist today but it also raises a critical question: How does one measure the value of a leader? If the evaluation is an individual interpretation of each follower, no leader can ever earn universal respect. Objective criteria must exist that guide the evaluation of the leader in order for there to be a fair assessment.

Leaders add value in four major areas that guide how the leader should be measured. Two value areas have a time focus: the future state and the present operations. A third value area involves the results the organization achieves for its customers. The last value area focuses on the growth, engagement and contribution of the people who are entrusted to the leader.

Each of these four is impacted by the leader’s consistency. This consistency is best described be the key factor the Google found to be the leading indicator of leadership success: predictability.

“The most important character trait of a leader isn’t where she went to school or her IQ. It’s one that you’re more likely to associate with a boring person than a Silicon Valley star: predictability. The more predictable you are, day in and day out, the better.”
http://www.inc.com/walter-chen/google-isn-8217-t-looking-for-stanford-and-mit-grads-it-8217-s-looking-for-this-.html

Each of the four contribution areas has specific indicators that define the value which leadership should provide in that area.

Future Focus
• Does the leader define clear direction?
• Does the leader encourage innovation?
• Does the leader identify future growth areas (markets and products)?

Present Focus:
• Does the leader establish alignment among individuals and parts of the organization?
• Does the leader create efficiency of operations?
• Does the leader prioritize activities so that what is worked on is high value?
• Does the leader model and reinforce core behaviors and practices that create the espoused culture?

Results:
• Does the leader ensure what is produced is high value to customers and staff?
• Does the leader ensure sufficient quantities of product or services are produced in order to ensure the organization can meet demand?

People:
• Does the leader ensure that followers grow their capabilities, talents and capability to contribute by providing meaningful learning opportunities?
• Does the leader provide opportunity and incentive for staff engagement in the mission and work of the organization?

Leadership disrespect comes from three main sources.
1. Neglecting or not adding value in one of the leadership value areas
2. Neglecting or not adding value in one or more of the indicators in each leadership value areas
3. Being inconsistent in any or all of the areas because of action, inaction or lack of integrity (words and actions do not match).

Earning respect requires the leader to keep multiple balls in the air. Skilled leaders make this juggling act manageable and meaningful by accomplishing several of the areas during one action. For example, engaging people with meaningful opportunities to learn and grow while achieving high quality results.

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