Of the five leadership categories, I rated myself the lowest in the
"inspire a shared vision" category. I rarely speak of long-term future
at my job and when I do, it is typically in a negative way. Therefore, I
determined that the goal I could focus on is starting to speak
positively about the future. I identified self-awareness and self-
motivation, two emotional intelligence skills, as behaviours to work
towards developing or utilizing. Self-awareness requires inward
reflection to identify emotions. Self-motivation will be critical to
remaining committed to achieving success.
Self-awareness will be necessary for company leadership as well in an
effort to improve employee satisfaction survey scores. Specifically
questions regarding fairness, such as "provides leadership who act in
just and ethical ways," will require a level of self-awareness.
Company leadership will need to re-evaluate their behaviours and
notice what actions could imply injustice.
Leadership behaviour: Creating a rewards program for employees
Leadership skill: Motivation
Employee survey: “When people work extra hard to meet our goals
they are rewarded accordingly.”
When employees feel their accomplishments are appreciated, they
are more likely to work towards new goals and achievements. The
reward program would help motivate and inspire employees towards
reaching individual and team objectives.
Leadership behaviour: Addressing potential issues before they
become problems
Leadership skill: Communication
Employee survey: “I believe the company mission and vision drive
the decisions that are made.”
Closely monitoring your staff, you will notice areas that have the
potential to develop into a problem. Leaders can establish a steady
flow of communication by making themselves available to discuss
issues and concerns with employees. Employees would feel more
engaged and embrace the organization's strategic focus.
Leadership behaviour: Attending to the needs of the employees
Leadership skill: Creativity
Employee survey: “My Supervisor talks with me to help me
determine my training and development goals.”
By monitoring your team members for potential issues, leaders can
attend to employees' needs. Supporting professional development
and growth would allow employees to develop their skills and
capacity to be more productive. Leaders can use their creativity to
approach problems and deliver innovative solutions and ideas.
Leaders can act by keeping employees in the loop about the survey
results to inform them about the shortcomings and the steps to
achieve a way forward for improvements. This will demonstrate how
valuable their insights are while showing that the organization is
forward-thinking and dedicated to advancement. Employee feedback
would improve positively, they would feel encouraged to take the
next survey, and the organization would achieve better favourable
results. Overall, enhancing leadership behaviours and skills in all
categories would increase employee quality of work and improve
their productivity and performance, thus improving the organization's
performance. This can positively impact the next survey since there
would be an increase in the number of employees who take the
survey and positive favourable responses. The organization will
benefit from stronger leaders and a more engaging employee
experience.
