Leadership, particularly in organizations, is a highly researched and discussed topic. Companies recognize that good leadership in an important, if not the most important, factor in their long-term thriving. However, when it comes to practice, good leaders appears to be the exception, not the rule. And while there are too many aspects of leadership to be covered in one blog post, we turn to recent research to outline five leadership qualities that build trust, enhance employee engagement, and contribute to a healthy organizational culture.
What does good leadership look like?
There are many ways to be a bad leader, but the behaviours that contribute to good leadership are fairly consistent. Such behaviors have some underlying commonalities- with one of the main ones being genuinely caring about employees – therefore making leadership training a desirable service for organizations. Below are five research-informed practices that good leaders adopt, and bad leaders tend to avoid.
- Good leaders talk to employees frequently, openly, and with as much transparency as possible (Lyman, 2003). The growth, progress, and/or challenges that organizations face are believed to be management-only information. However, informing employees about the standing of the company at any given point makes employees feel connected, involved, and trusted parts of the organization. It also clarifies why certain decisions are being made at certain times, and can even increase employees’ motivation to do their part on behalf of their organization.
- Good leaders are fair (Lee et al., 2020). Good leaders follow the same standards, policies, and procedures for everyone in the company, regardless of their rank. For example, if a safety policy includes wearing safety shoes, a good leader will enforce it with every employee, manager, and executive, without discrimination. Leaders who apply different rules to different individuals in the company, whether it’s someone who is above them in the hierarchy or an employee that is also their friend, contribute to an atmosphere where trust is broken, rules are not respected, and employees become resentful.
- Good leaders are reliable (Wasden, 2017). Reliability should be indistinguishable from leadership; a good leader is one that does what they say, shows up and works hard with everyone else, takes ownership and responsibility over failures, and is considered trustworthy be their employees.
- Good leaders are vulnerable (Hungerford & Clery, 2021). Vulnerability is an important aspect of work in teams, as it allows to make progress despite the inevitable mistakes and failures that come along the way. When a leader publicly admits that they made a mistake, that they don’t know the answer, or that they need help, they signal to their employees that these are healthy and acceptable behaviours, and build trust along the way. On the flip side, many leaders believe that vulnerability equals weakness, therefore avoiding such practices. This often results in fear and shame among employees whenever they make mistakes, and covering up their faults in whatever way they can. Understandably, this can be detrimental if not devastating for an organization, resulting in anything from loss of capital or growth, to a complete collapse.
- Good leaders care about their employees’ work-life balance (Bataineh, 2019). Numerous studies have demonstrated that employees who are more satisfied with their work-life balance are also more productive at work. Good leaders recognize the role of the organization in assuring the optimal functioning of their employees. Part of this role, is to encourage employees to disconnect from work, and spend time nurturing the other aspects of their lives. Therefore, a good leader will encourage their employees to disconnect from work on the weekends and during their time off, while also expecting them to be fully engaged and productive while at work.
About the author
Dr. Anna Sverdlik is the founder of Melioscope. Since 2011, she has been specializing in uncovering organizational structures that shape motivation, engagement, and well-being.