How Leadership and Mentoring Will Benefit Your Company
Owning an independent business can be one of life’s significant challenges. Imroj Singh, a trucking industry entrepreneur, shares how enhancing your leadership skills and being a good mentor can help to increase productivity and employee retention in your company.
Positive Leadership Skills
Many supervisors are promoted to their jobs without a working understanding of the leadership skills they need to build a functioning company. The following are leadership skills that all employers should work on to enhance their companies’ fortunes:
Creativity
Leaders need to be able to respond creatively to challenges in the workplace. Frequently, employees rely on their CEO to be the organization’s thought leader, providing innovative plans to move the company forward. Leadership often means being the one who comes up with solutions to various problems in the workplace.
Communication
Leaders must have impeccable communication skills in all media. They must be able to communicate effectively by email, letter, phone, and in person. They need to know how to get their ideas across to people in the company who do not have their broad skill set, and they need to be able to impart knowledge to a wide variety of people.
Leaders need to know how to be diplomatic but firm. They should not come across as waffling over decisions, but instead, they should present themselves as an authority figure. Not all leaders have this intrinsic quality, and it must be developed through experience over time.
Having a Team Mindset
When a CEO or supervisor is missing a team mindset, it is immediately apparent to their employees. Leaders should value the contributions of everyone on their team, from entry-level employees to fellow executives. Everyone’s different contributions need to be brought to bear, and a leader should know how to take advantage of certain employees’ advanced skills.
Leaders should foster healthy competition in the workplace, but when the competition becomes toxic, it is time to shut down. Rival departments often spend so much time undermining each other that they lose sight of the joined vision of the company.
Industry Knowledge
Leaders need to have superior industry knowledge. They need to know as much as possible about how their industry works and how their company fits into it. When people are elevated to leadership positions without this type of knowledge, their employees are often dismissive of their contributions. Employees need to trust that their leaders know what they are talking about and how they can enhance their position in the industry.
Supporting Employees
Another important skill that leaders need to possess is supporting their employees. They need to know how to delegate work properly, and they need to be able to manage their upper leadership to better take care of lower-level employees.
Employee support can come in the form of recognition for a job well done. Employees whose work is recognized are more likely to stay with the company, creating a stable and productive workforce.
Happy employees should be the goal of all leaders and supervisors. There are many mistakes that leaders can make that lead overburdened, cynical, and unproductive employees. When leaders focus on nurturing their teams, they will be less likely to encounter these problems.
The cost of employee turnover is prohibitively high for many companies. On average, it costs between six and nine months’ pay for a company to replace a salaried employee. For this reason, companies should make sure that their employees are satisfied in their jobs.
Mentorship
Another important skill that employers should exhibit is mentorship. When employees see their supervisor as a mentor and a boss, they are more likely to build strong bonds with the company and work harder in their jobs. Supervisors who can mentor their employees can share parts of their careers and relate their personal experiences in the course of their jobs.
Happy Employees Equal a Productive Business
Studies show that 49 percent of professionals have left their jobs because of problems with their direct supervisor. This is a serious problem that must be addressed to preserve the productivity and continuity of your company.
When employees are happy in their jobs, they are likely to work harder because they want to please their supervisors. They also view their work as a personal project that helps to enhance their professional skills. Giving employees a sense of ownership over their work can help with this issue.
Understanding How to Enhance Leadership Skills
Imroj Singh believes that all supervisors and CEOs need to work on their leadership skills. Having advanced leadership skills means that employees will be happier and more productive, leading to better results and higher profit margins.
When employers take the time to enhance their skills, they will solidify their company’s position in their industry and help to ensure that their company will be healthy far into the future.
Originally published at https://foundersguide.com on May 20, 2021.
