When it comes to the balance between retaining employees and boosting productivity...
The latest research from Hays Australia and NZ indicates that 77% of employees are looking for or planning to look for a new job in the next 12 months. Why, you might ask?
rising cost of living
lack of promotional opportunities in their organizations
poor management style or workplace culture.
One of the most important factors in considering staying with their current employer is
team culture, followed by
continued remote or hybrid working
(75% of employees across 26 industries work in a remote or hybrid arrangement). Hybrid working is here to stay.
Productivity is a priority for most employers. What does the research say about this?
The biggest obstacles to productivity include
lack of resources, poor processes, and outdated technology on the one hand;
and poor communication, ineffective leadership, unclear goals and strategies, resistance to change, lack of training, low morale, micromanagement, and poor work-life balance on the other hand.
These obstacles could be summarised as poor systems and ineffective leadership.
And how do we increase productivity?
Well, effective communication and collaboration lead the way, for both employers and employees. What surprises me is what comes next.
Employers are looking at strategies for aligning employee objectives with organizational objectives, streamlining processes, and fostering a sense of purpose. There is no mention of leadership development from the employer’s perspective.
If everything rises and falls on leadership, are we not missing something?
poor management style is a key factor leading to employees planning to look for other jobs
ineffective leadership is a major obstacle to productivity
team culture is an important factor in retention
... why is leadership development not prioritized?
Employees say productivity will be improved by incentives and rewards, improved recognition, and empowering employees. In other words, more effective leadership.
What kind of leader are you?
Here’s the thing, if you live from a place of pride, where you feel you always need to promote or prove yourself, where you need to control to look good, and where you feel like you always have to be the best, the smartest, the funniest, where you win at all costs, you will find it hard to admit you need help and that you don’t know it all, that you don’t have all the answers. It can be challenging to embrace a growth mindset and pursue continuous learning and personal development.
If you live from a place of fear, you may be desperate to have the approval and validation of others. You may be easily offended and take all feedback as criticism, you may feel insecure and threatened by anyone who might be better than you, and you may tend to avoid difficult conversations and conflict and be defensive all the time because you feel the need to protect yourself.
Effective leadership is challenging if you live from pride and fear. It’s time to trade up. It’s time for a change of heart. Your business, employees, and even your family need you to step up and choose to live from courageous humility and love, where you can be your authentic self and lead from a place of positive self-worth, with respect and compassion for those you lead.
Research indicates that one of the most important skills needed over the next 5 years is agile leadership. Agile leadership is not just about driving and promoting change, it is also about being the change.
Leaders who lead by example and actively engage in their development, inspire people. As Gandhi said, “Be the change you want to see”. You will need a good dose of humility and love to be effective.
So, what kind of leader do you want to be?
For more information about the Heartstyles ‘Leading with Heart’ program click here: