7 Leadership Steps to Ensure Success

By Mary Kelly

1. Think about resource allocation as though they are the owners of the company. In economics there is a theory called the principal agent problem. It happens when employees, the agents of the organization, think more about their own best self interest than they do about the principal, or the organization.

In small ways, it means that employees don’t worry about walking  out the door with company pens, because they don’t consider that stealing.  On larger levels, it can manifest by padding an expense report, skimping on hours worked, and habitually using company time for personal use.  On a grand scheme, it means defrauding the organization.

Great employees think as though they are the principal, or the owner of the company.  They would not steal from themselves.  They would work 100% while at work.  They would consider, “If I owned this company, what would I want to happen next?  What do I need my people to do, plan, and act upon?”

2. Be empathic while still holding employees accountable.
Show compassion to employees while holding them accountable.  Leaders who do not hold employees accountable are doing them a disservice.  Employees believe they are fulfilling their role, because no one has advised them otherwise.  Then they are surprised, hurt and angry when they are fired. 

3. Turn uncertainty into action by breaking up large tasks into manageable chunks for their direct reports. Give people chunks of projects so they experience more wins at work.

4. Streamline internal processes.
Every organization has processes that are cumbersome, outdated, and irritating to those who have to work within those confines.  Examine everything for efficiency.  Simplify processes to better reflect reality.

5. Adapt rapidly to the changing needs of customer demographics.
Leaders have to understand and know their customer base as well as their emerging buyers.  Real market data is critical.  Leaders need to base decisions on reliable data. 

6. Simplify the buying process for customers and clients.
Make it easy for buyers to make the buying decision.

7. Focus on developing future products and services that enhance the lives of customers and clients. We exist to deliver better products, provide innovative solutions, and create solutions to problems before our customers realize that they have those issues. 

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