Hero-led business stall or fail! How are you leading?
There are 28 million companies in the United States. Less than one-half of 1% make it beyond $10 million in revenue. Only 17,000 grow beyond $50 million.
What do the leaders of these companies know that most do not?
They know that “command and control practices” of the “heroic leader” minimizes the company’s intellectual capital, stifles growth, and restricts overall economic value.
Leaders of growth companies focus on creating and shaping an adaptive and highly-accountable organization. They have built a transparent, flexible, and resilient culture, driven by individual and team empowerment, by decentralizing the management authority, supported by a networked ecosystem of shared information. This empowered decision making ensures that teams and leaders are accountable for execution, freeing the CEO to focus on their vision.
“A great company transcends dependence on any single extraordinary leader; if your organization cannot be great without you, then it is not yet a truly great organization.”
What is the role of the leader in growth firms?
Leadership remains essential, merely different. The temptation [or habit] to lead as one controlling each move of the organization must evolve to a crafter of culture, structure, and process and an “eyes-on, hands-off” enabler of highly capable talent and teams operating within an ecosystem. In effect, a Team-of-Teams [tightly linked to a shared vision and mission] functioning with "smart autonomy."
The role of the leader is shifting:
Moving away from the manager who
Knows
Directs
Tells
To the leader who
Sees
Provokes
Asks
Unleashes the capabilities of others, and
Grows highly effective and efficient teams
Do you have the desire to change for the greater good of the organization, its employees, customers, investors?
The same tendencies that make you a strong individual contributor often have a diminishing effect on those you lead. As such, the mental transition from a heroic leader to a multiplier of talent and enabler of a Team-of-Teams is not comfortable. Yet, history tells us those leaders who thrive are those who have the highest flexibility.
“The critical skill of this century is not what you know; it is how you access what other people know.” C. K. Prahalad
There are two types of Leaders, driven by contrasting assumptions.
According to Liz Wiseman, author of the book "Multipliers," there are two types of leaders: Diminishers and Multipliers.
Diminishers are absorbed in their intelligence, stifle others, and deplete the organization of crucial knowledge and capability. Their core assumption is that “People will not figure it out without me.” Diminishers get 50% of the intelligence available from their talent and teams.
Multipliers are genius makers and bring out the intelligence in others. They build collective, viral knowledge in organizations. Their core assumption is, “People are smart and will figure it out.” Multipliers get 200% the intelligence and capability from their talent and teams.
Which leader do you choose to be?
Unlocking individual potential and building a networked, highly productive team-of-teams is not just a matter of personal will and particular behavior change; it is a function of entire systems.
Team-led business is an idea whose time has come!
Let Tenfold Teams help you develop the culture, structure, and processes and become a skilled, “eyes-on, hands-off” enabler of highly capable talent and Team-of-Teams operating with "smart autonomy."
Are you ready and committed to evolving from Hero-led to Team-led? Take the Tenfold Teams Growth Readiness Assessment, and a Tenfold Coach will reach out to discuss your results.
