Below are a few key points I found in an article titled Five Leadership Skills that Increase Engagement. These points may seem elementary and something we have heard before in our various development sessions, but are we really exhibiting these skills with everyone, every day? Something to think about….
Ø Build Trust-trust does not happen because you are trustworthy. We build trust by trusting others. This requires a basic belief in people, a belief that people are essentially trustworthy. If you have untrustworthy employees, why did you hire them and why are they still there?
Ø Mentoring-employees need feedback; they need to know how they are performing regularly, not just once a year at review time. They need to be able to discuss their needs for growth and development with a Manager who cares about them.
Ø Inclusion-whether people feel like an insider or outsider impacts their level of engagement. Effective leaders know that everyone on their team has strengths the team needs and they know how to get the best out of each person regardless of their ethnic background, gender, age or sexual orientation. They understand that people with different personal values can work together effectively when they commit to the same values about trustworthiness and standards of work performance.
Ø Alignment-engaged employees feel aligned with the organizations purpose, values and vision. Their work is meaningful to them because their leader helps them see the connection between what they do and the success of the organization.
Ø Team Development-effective leaders understand the potential for significant increases in performance through high performing teams. They make sure that all team members understand the strengths they and other team members bring to the team and work at developing a process that capitalizes on all of these strengths.
