Leading from the front: realities of modern management

Leadership may be a current buzzword, but an age-old issue. Laozi, the 6th century BC Chinese anti-authoritarian and founder of Taoism, had a philosophy of leadership that would fit into any modern business manual: “A leader is best when people barely know he exists. When his work is done, his work is fulfilled, they will say ‘we did it ourselves’.”

Old and new leadership ideas

Old – who a leader is

Over many years, a great deal of research has generated insights into the values, qualities and behavioural styles that make for good leadership, and these have formed the basis for development programmes and executive coaching. Such programmes tend to be quite generic and are often detached from what companies stand for in the eyes of customers – in the veterinary profession’s case, the pet-owning public.

The implicit assumption tends to be changes in values and qualities ultimately translates into high performance. However, when people look back on these programmes, many struggle to find evidence of notable change.

New – what a leader does

Focus has shifted much more to what a leader does, rather than what type of person he or she is, since this has been shown to have much more of an impact on how effective a leader is (DeRue et al, 2011). The interactions between leaders and their teams are also crucial – leadership is becoming seen to be a two-way process, rather than “top down”. There will still be times when someone has to take decisive control, in an old-fashioned, authoritarian style, or when a failing business needs the intervention of a transformational, charismatic leader. However, research points to more collaborative styles of leadership resulting in more engaged teams and better business outcomes.

This has led to the concept of the “servant leader”, where leaders create conditions so people within the organisation develop to be the best they can be (Christman, 2007). Employees who are consulted and encouraged to take an active part in decisions are more intrinsically motivated and creative, and will put in effort in excess of what is asked of them. Contrast this with an autocratic leader whose team does what it is told because it has to – what happens when the leader is not there to monitor the team and enforce compliance?

A key requirement of a great leader is to initiate change when it’s needed, but it is estimated up to 70% to 80% of change initiatives fail (Kotter, 2007). Why should this be? The reasons are often multiple and complex, but it is natural for people to be suspicious of change, and many will resist it. Consulting with the team and actively involving it in the discussion about why things need to change, and the decisions about the best way forward, has been shown to lead to more successful, sustained change (Choi, 2011).

Developing as a leader

The first steps in addressing leadership in any business should be to canvass internal opinion on leadership to establish a common understanding of where leadership stands and is falling short. Any sort of leadership development can then follow from this practice-specific leadership audit, rather than trying to use a “one size fits all” leadership programme. The process of involving the employees in a leadership audit not only gives a relevant picture of the business, but also helps with “buy in” and ownership of changes that might be implemented as a result of the audit – the team is engaged in defining what leaders should do. Trust and voluntary cooperation need to be established in what will become a successful leader-follower relationship.

360° feedback has been widely used and abused in business. Done well – and with a stated aim of development, as opposed to appraisal – it can be a valuable tool, since any progress plan needs to start with self-awareness (Hogan et al, 2010). The person being appraised should have a say in who the appraisers are, since this increases trust in the results, and they should include people from all areas – co-directors/managers, nurses, reception and other support staff. Having an external coach collate results and provide feedback has been shown to enhance improvement following 360° programmes (Hogan et al, 2010). There needs to be a balance – the natural tendency to focus on weaknesses can lead to neglect of natural strengths and a drift to mediocrity in all spheres. However, too much attention on strengths can lead to them being overplayed, and cause problems, while important failings go unaddressed (Hogan et al, 2010).

Leadership development

Common areas for leadership development include:

• Establish a coaching and feedback culture, openness to admit mistakes, lack of blame culture and learning environment.
  • Practice scenario: a new graduate accidentally gives a cat a ten-fold overdose of furosemide. If this is covered up, no progress or learning results. An environment where open admission and discussion of mistakes is encouraged will enable new protocols with checks to minimise risk of future errors. Ongoing feedback, both positive and negative, is essential if the team is to develop and grow.
• Communication – remember to listen as well as talk.
  • Practice scenario: the practice owner announces at a meeting she intends to open for longer hours at weekends to remain competitive with other local vets. The reaction is negative and resistance ensues. Prior communication with the team with explanation and consultation, asking for input and suggestions, would establish a collaborative approach to the problem. If everyone really understands how serious the threat is, they are likely to be more engaged and committed to finding a solution.
• Delegate and relinquish control to increase autonomy.
  • Practice scenario: a practice manager gives responsibility for the running of the pet health club to one of the senior receptionists. He leaves her to get on with it, checking in monthly for KPIs on uptake and attrition. The receptionist enjoys the responsibility, becoming an enthusiastic advocate for the scheme, and, as a result, Pet Health Club statistics improve dramatically.
• Play to your team’s strengths – focus on what people are good at and enjoy.
  • Practice scenario: a practice has a nurse who dislikes being in theatre, but who is great with clients. Consultation with her and the nursing team results in the decision to maximise her time in clinics, where she can generate more work and bond clients. This ultimately leads to her being in charge of the nurse consults, which becomes one of the strengths of the practice compared to its competitors.
• Encourage a good work/life balance for you and your team.
  • Practice scenario:  the senior partner of a practice regularly works until after 4pm on his half day – what message does this send to the rest of the team? There is nothing more demotivating than working for a workaholic. As a leader, your team needs to see you lead by example when it comes to down time.
• Be proactive – plenty of evidence exists that “laissez-faire” leaders, who only react to situations as they arise, have a less engaged team and poorer business outcomes.
  • Practice scenario: the reception team feeds back to the practice principal that one of its team members is consistently rude to clients and has a poor attitude to work. Despite these team concerns, the principal takes no action and the receptionist is allowed to “get away with it”, which demotivates the rest of the team. This ultimately leads to a client complaint and negative reviews on social media and Google, which further demoralises the team.

So, what is leadership like in your practice?

A leadership audit is a great way to start improving leadership in your practice. Getting the right balance between when to step up and when to step back is key to good leadership. Maximising autonomy is a great goal, but, at times, a leader has to step in, take responsibility and make tough decisions. Remember – no single “best” style of leadership for every situation exists. A leader needs to be adaptable and it may be training is required to learn the necessary skills, or you need to recruit to fill the gaps.