According to John Maxwell, everything rises and falls on leadership. The is still very much valid. However, today in the era of “the Great Resignation” , seeking purpose, diversity among other current issues in the corporate world, leadership alone does not cut it anymore. Good leadership does. It is a must have in organisations today. Good leadership will increasingly become important and a source of competitive advantage in this new world order. But what does it look like?
A quick example. Gbolaro is the GM of operations of a hypermarket. After doing some administrative work, he steps out of his office to carry out his usual supervision on the retail floor. Gbolaro found the long queues shocking! It was Christmas Eve and the government just called off all restrictions relating to the pandemic. Gbolaro swung to action. He got hold of 3 merchandisers that were not so busy to join him and mann the extra idle tills. That created 4 more points that reduced the long queues drastically. This in turn, motivated the existing frontline staff and the speed of service improved.
With advancement in technology, disruption cycles are much shorter. There are also many digital tools at the disposal of Marketing professionals which can be overwhelming. The marketing funnel is increasingly becoming unpredictable or evolving. Here is where good leadership takes center stage. The art of balancing the act of shuffling between the 3 critical altitudes of leadership becomes imperative. There are occasions where the leader, a good leader should get in the trenches with the group. I will share a few.
When there is a significant level of disruption in routine, a particularly tasking assignment the team currently finds overwhelming. There are also times when some high-risk projects swing by that can make or break a team. A good leadership culture will have leaders put in a shift and assist in such times.
The benefits to leaders are immense. Because leaders can use that opportunity to bond with frontline staff, figure out if communication exists in a team and get to know who the slackers are. Also, leaders that engage in this ritual occasionally do not lose touch of the reality on ground, get to respect the job and people involved in discharging it.
