6-Followership

Five Insights on Collaboration

Dr. John A. Kline TROY Institute for Leadership Development 2020

Note: This information overlaps that given in the 10-page paper on Servant Leadership

Groups must collaborate (work together) if they are to succeed. Effective communication—verbal and nonverbal—is essential. If leaders communicate willingness to collaborate, followers will be much more likely to take the stance of collaboration. If leaders can’t foster collaboration, few good things will happen. In other words, followers must “buy in” to the leader, before they will “buy in” to working with others to accomplish the objective. Here are six things I have learned from decades of leading and following—I learned from my successes and from my failures.

· Know the objective. It is important that all members of a group or organization know where they are going and how to get there. The Troy Leadership Development website http://www.troy.edu/leadership gives the three things every leader must know. The first thing must happen—and be communicated to followers—before the next two things can happen.

1. Know where the group needs to go.

2. Know how to get there.

3. Know how to get others to follow.

· Be a listener. After years of leading and observing others, I conclude that the most effective leaders and followers focus on being good listeners. Listen first to understand; then you will enhance your understanding of others and their ideas, you will be able to know when and how to respond, and you will build essential relationships.

· Build trust. Without mutual trust between leader and followers—as well as among followers—failure will result. If others don’t trust the leader they will not follow. Without trust, group productivity and satisfaction will “go down the drain.” Once trust is lost, it is difficult to regain.

· Admit when you were wrong. You can’t hide it and you shouldn’t deny it, others will know. The sooner you admit you made a mistake, the sooner you can move on and the group can be productive. While this advice is most important for leaders, followers must also admit mistakes—and the leader sets the example. If leaders are willing to admit their mistakes, followers will be much more willing to admit theirs.

· Encourage others. Somebody said, “Praise in public, criticize in private.” But encouragement is more than that. Demonstrate you care, want to listen, want to help, and appreciate their effort and dedication to the group and the task. These things encourage others. And another thing to do is call the person by name. People like to hear their names. This makes it real and personal.

Others may add things to consider. But you should come up with your own list of how to promote collaboration. This will help you be a collaborator. Leaders must collaborate.