What Leadership Qualities Are Required to Help Leaders Sustain an Engagement Culture?

[Judy McLeish]

Terry Seamon, just posed a great question to me. I think it is worth a discussion.

If we want to sustain a culture of engagement, what qualities should our leaders possess to ensure that they are able to continually motivate and engage their staff?

Here are some characteristics that we believe that leaders must possess in order to sustain a culture of engagement:

Contagious enthusiasm for what their company, what they are doing and the people they work for.

Overly attentive to their employees and their individual growth objectives and dreams.

Proactive nature with the tendency to create or influence the work environment.

Hard working, ambitious, confident and resourceful individuals. Leading the way!

Engage in activities for their own fulfillment rather than for specific gains or rewards.

[Terrence Seamon]

I like your list, Judy. To add to it, I'll convey a story from one of my past employers.

In the 1990's, I was with a small but rapidly growing telecom company. The CEO had started the company in the 1980's after the breakup of Ma Bell. The company was truly "his baby." He cared about every detail and was passionately engaged.

His total engagement was translated to every employee and every new hire in various ways, chief of which was the company's values:

- have an entrepreneurial attitude and act like you own the business

- be continuously close to your client so that you are in touch with their needs and can provide solutions

- work collaboratively with others across functions

- take the initiative; don't wait; just do it

- have an "open door" (for open communication), an open mind (for new ideas), and an open book (share the financials and build financial acumen in all employees)

- never rest on your laurels; always look for a better way; always improve

Taken together, these values reflected the CEO as a person, totally engaged with his company.

These values helped the company flourish.

Terry

[Judy McLeish]

Terry, what a wonderful list! Thanks for sharing,

Judy

[David Zinger]

Terrence:
I like the list embedded within a story...a powerful way to communicate engagement..."oh baby..."
David

[Varadarajan]

Terrence,

When i read , " Taken to gether, these values reflected the CEO as a person ' , I felt that you had a direct expeience of seeing Value in Action .. It is Lived Values NOT just Espoused values .
On a ligher vein I want to point out to a Leadership Syndrome called MAFA ,.. it is Mistaking Articulation for Action .... When you have MAFA syndrome you are caught up in the Style and miss out on the Substance...

Thank you Terrence for an insightlful story ... Please tell us more about this Leader
cheers
Rajan

[David Zinger]

Rajan,
Those are new initials for me MAFA but the experience is very familiar in my teaching work and also even for myself.
David

[Raven]

Hi Varadarajan! What a great take away - MAFA! I've heard it phrased less eloquently as "don't confuse activity with action", but MAFA is a great acronym.

To the rest - great discussion! I'm absorbing tons of great information and excellent insights from the discussions, forums and groups here at EEN.

Keep spreading the knowledge,

Raven

[Phil Haussler]

Hey Terry and Judy. Loved this. Thanks for sharing it.
Phil

[Judy McLeish]

Thanks Phil - it has been a great discussion!

Judy

[Mike King]

I like the topic and the lists presented. I have a couple items I think are important to add:

-Willingness to challenge others in engaging conflict
-A sharing / training attitude instead of a self-protecting, self-promoting one
-Willing to take on risk and never accept complacency

[David Zinger]

Mike,
I think you have more to offer on this topic.
How do you sustain engagement with a mountain on a unicycle?
Probably many of the network members are not familiar with this part of you.
Any thoughts you'd like to voice from that experience that would be vivid and concrete and have implications for leaders and engagement?
David

[Denise O'Berry]

Good discussion.

I'll add the ability to identify individual team member strengths and put them to work for the good of the employee AND the organization.

Denise

[Scott H. Span, MSOD]

I agree with much of what is already mentioned. For leaders to really sustain a culture of engagement they need to be/feel empowered and engaged. In most of my experiences the organizations that have had the most engaged employees, have also had the most engaged and empowered leaders.

Leaders themselves:
-Must have an adaptable and situational style
-Exude trust
-Maintain open communication and feedback both up, down, and lateral
-Be Committed, adaptable and transparent
-Offer performance based rewards
-Provide clarity of mission and vision
-Not have a one size fits all approach to engagement

To have an empowered, engaged and sustainable organization those who work in the organization must feel that way first. If leadership models the attributes then it is more likely that employees will begin to exude elements of engagement themselves.

Then again, on a personal note, the real things I look for in a leader who is able to motivate and engage me are a genuine interest in my ideas and well being, a good sense of humor, and a firm foot grounded in reality!