Know leadership basics to streamline team and improve outcomes

Patti and Dr. Jack each have many years of training and experience in business leadership, including multiple and varied training workshops and graduate coursework, and have each written academic papers and published articles on leadership. In addition, they’ve each led many successful teams throughout their careers. They are working on combining all of their knowledge to publish a book on leadership, to help others learn from the vast knowledge and experience they’ve amassed.

The basic understanding of leadership is that there isn’t one definition of leadership. No particular set of criteria universally agreed upon in the industry among experts defines what best leadership practices comprise. And it is necessary to use different leadership styles in different situations based on the goal of the team and its members. 

There are differences between transactional versus transformational leadership and what that means when put into practice. Transformational leadership is based on developing people and empowering them. “Transformational leadership [is] – getting subordinates to transform their self-interest into the interest of the group through concern for a broader goal” (Wren, 1995, pg.150). Transactional leadership has a more military-style approach to the leader-team member dynamic. “Exchange rewards for services rendered or punishment for inadequate performance “(Wren, 1995, pg. 150).

The basic premises of good leadership are, in fact, necessary across the board. You inspire your team members and instill a sense of trust and the importance of listening to them with genuine compassion and understanding. Empathy plays an integral role in successful leadership.

Understanding the principles of being a leader helps instill confidence. Learning the proper tools to communicate as a leader is critical for your success. Some of the most useful frameworks we’ve found that put leadership paradigms into perspective are the IDEALS, HALT, and FIRE frameworks. 

The best way to understand the premise of the IDEALS leadership framework is when a subordinate comes to you with an issue they would like you to address, the conversation should ideally go something like this:

• “Would you be willing to talk about x?” (Invite to partner.)
• “I’d like to review the situation and get on the same page.” (Disarm yourself.)
• “If we have different perspectives, that’s cool, but we can discuss them to understand where we’re coming from and develop a plan moving forward.” (Eliminate blame.)
• “Does that sound ok?” (Affirm.)
• List facts you know.
• Synchronize with them and figure out the best way to move forward.

HALT is an acronym to remind leaders never to attempt to give subordinates feedback when you’re Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired. You can use the acronym FIRE to guide you in conversations with team members. Focus on Facts, offer your Interpretation of the situation, touch upon the emotional Reaction that ensued, and remember before you get to the End of the conversation, be sure to ask them if they have any additional information they wish to provide.

Patti discussed the IDEALS, HALT, and FIRE frameworks in her blog Patti Is Still Learning. For more information on these acronyms and related leadership insights, visit:

https://pattiisstilllearning.com/2018/10/21/providing-feedback/ and 

https://pattiisstilllearning.com/2019/01/06/empowering-others-to-resolve-their-own-conflicts/

There are different categories that your team members may fall into, and you should manage team members based on their type. An excellent way to build trust is to build credibility by treating your team as if they are a group of people that you, as a manager, are there to protect and encourage. There are high performers who get results or have great skills, live the values, and have a good attitude. They’re very easy to manage. Then there are the low performers who don’t get results or don’t have great skills, don’t live the values, and don’t have a good attitude. They’re easy to let go of. In between those types, there is another group of people who have high skills and get results but have a bad attitude or don’t live by the organization’s values, and these are the most difficult. These are the “Talented Terrors.” Even though this group of people is good at what they do, if they do not change their attitude or begin to follow the company values, they’ll begin to erode the credibility and trust of the organization. A sure-fire way to erode your credibility as a leader is to let the Terrible Terrors continue on their path of team destruction. No matter how much money they bring into your company, if they are a Terrible Terror and don’t change their ways, you’ll find that your company will actually benefit from their removal. Finally, there is a fourth group of people that Leadership IQ calls the “Bless Their Hearts.” These people live the company’s values and have the best attitudes, but they are unfortunately just awful at their jobs.

The best way to deal with the Talented Terror is to utilize the CALM approach. Cool-ly state the facts devoid of emotion, Avoid direct accusations (ie. “if we have different perspectives, we’ll discuss them and figure out a plan for moving forward”), Look for roadblocks by discussing with them things they feel might get in the way of resolving the issue at hand, and Manage their (and your) expectations by explicitly laying out how you will monitor and track their behavior and what will happen if there is no improvement.

You need to recognize what leadership style you are projecting as a team leader.   Are you consistent in your leadership style?  Are you acting more like a transactional leader, where you’re expecting an exchange for punishment or benefit? Or are you a transformational leader trying to empower your subordinates to follow by generating an interest in the final outcome so that they feel personally invested?  The priority is to become aware of your leadership style.

Also, whatever your leadership style is, ensure it aligns with the organization. If your approach is inconsistent with the organization’s mission statement, it can create conflict.  So make sure that your leadership style is congruent with your organization’s expectations and goals.

Some departments inherently gravitate towards certain leadership styles.  For example, transactional leadership is the ideal style in an IT department.  There are certain expectations in this type of department, and certain rewards are the outcome of successfully completing the required tasks.  So, in some cases, the type of work being done dictates the leadership style that will work best for that department.

But the general rule of thumb is to try not to mix and match the leadership styles within your organization. It really does confuse the kids. What you want is an alignment from the top to the bottom. The mission statement should align with what is actually being done “on the floor.”  Dr. Jack personally leans more towards a transformational leadership style, but there are times when the situation dictates otherwise. Sometimes you have to adapt your style to solve an immediate problem. In that moment of truth, the best quote is from Darth Vader from Empire Strikes Back, “We can dispense with the pleasantries, I’m here to put you back on schedule.” In situational leadership, you are not on a set path. Recognize that your leadership style needs to be situationally fluid.

So, most importantly, you have to know all the styles, how to enact them, and when to use them. You don’t get to pick the style, you lead how people want to be led. One of the greatest leadership classes Patti took was actually very focused. It was Fred Pryor’s “How to Handle Emotions Under Pressure.” And it illustrated how people act differently under pressure. And as a leader, you have to recognize when your team members are under pressure and respond to them accordingly. So you have to lead your team how they need to be led – differently for different people and in different situations.  And in all instances, self-awareness of your leadership style is key. 

To learn more from the different research we’ve conducted and learnings from our lives, check out our articles on the Resources Portal.

NOTICE: If you would like to use or cite our research for your own purposes, please email Patti@GroundedWithData.com so we may provide you with the proper citation information