For some, the term “Proactive Leadership” means being aware of gaps, obstacles and faults before it becomes noticeable to others. The problem though, is that noticing a problem and even taking care of it, doesn’t mean you’re being perceived as proactive leader.
Let me explain – do you remember the last time your boss jumped by and said something like “you noticed that X is stuck right?” or “what are you going to do about Y?”.
“OF COURSE I DID!” you reply, “I’ve talked with Joe, and he’s taking care of it”.
This doesn’t feel like you were perceived as proactive leader right?
Proactive leadership is about being communicative when you spot these faults, as soon as they happen. So here is my secret trick – next time you see it coming, follow the “I’m on it” template:
TO: [relevant people: your boss, your peer, your teammates etc.]
Subject: Saw that [gap], I’m on it! (EOM)
For example:
To: myboss@mycompany.com
Subject: Saw that Joe left angry today, I’m on it! (EOM)
I tend to add EOM (“End of Message”) if it’s a short status update. If you feel that you’ve got more to add to this email, feel free to add to it, but never wait with the first email! It’s perfectly fine to use something like “Saw that [gap], I’m on it! More details to follow… (EOM)”.
Being communicative will reduce the need of your boss, peers and teammates to double-check everything with you. They will get custom to the ritual of “when shit happens, she’ll raise a flag”. This is how proactive leadership should be – being aware, communicative and setting the tone.
Now I pass it to you – which tricks are you using to let everyone know you’re in control?
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photo credit: TORLEY
When my boss asks me if I’m on top of things – I yell at him not to micro-manage me and to get a life.
Seriously though, don’t you think that enabling your boss’s “snooping” fetish does more harm than good in the long run?
:)
Good point Ariel.
I think that building software and business is not like playing Tennis, you simply cannot win it by yourself. What I’m offering is exactly the opposite – being proactive will completely vanish this need of what you are calling “micro management”.
Here is why – when you are active and setting the tone, others will know that you’ll raise the flag and let them know if something change or even if everything is on track and you did a nice progress.
I’m suggesting to change to “push” mode rather than “pull” mode (by your manager).
Now, some people think that micro-management is when you, as a manager, ask someone for status. I think that it’s rarely the problem, usually the real issue is simply being too quiet thus forcing your manager to constantly ask around. Your manager’s responsibility is to make sure everything is moving forward and without you being active, you’ll always feel “micro-managed”.
Not sure I agree.
His/her job is to be on top of *things*, not of top of *everything*. If one developer is missing a deadline – that shouldn’t be something that my manager wants to know. The notion of “big picture” is key – just like you wouldn’t want one of you developers to send you emails regarding “Saw a bit of undocumented code. I’m on it!” – had I been the “big boss” – I wouldn’t want to harass my QUALITY, HAND PICKED middle managers with those issues.
Try to remember the last time you worked with someone that was over-communicative, reporting on every little thing. From my experience, it’s maybe 0.01% of the people out there. So my assumption, not relevant for all teams (maybe not even to your team), but for most of them, is that you probably under-communicative as a team, thus making “big boss” seeking for information rather than getting it directly.
Once communication becomes an habit for the team, then you can decide how to reduce noise factor down. What I’m saying is that optimizing it (or trying to) early on will do more damage than good.
Regarding “If one developer is missing a deadline – that shouldn’t be something that my manager wants to know” – don’t think about the cold output, of success or failure to reach a deadline, but rather think about the opportunity for growth. Great managers will help people learn from failures – by asking questions, guiding, change structure, tools, process etc. So let’s say you manage team of 3 people, which one of them failed to deliver something on time and you’re “pushing” it to your boss – maybe s/he can take this opportunity to talk with *you* about making the best out of it and better mentoring your teammates.
Having the “big picture” in mind is crucial, but dramatic innovation usually comes from understanding the little details, so every passionate “big boss” will care about those too. I simply suggest to create a culture of communication and sharing rather than ones that prefer filters and strict efficiency.
I agree with Oren here. Undercommunication is a far more common problem than over-communication. Plus the former is difficult to remedy, while the latter is much easier.
Plus, in larger organizations, it is easier for managers to lose context and focus on the fact that you are, actually, on top of things, if you do not bring it into attention. I have painfully learned (and re-learned) that during my career, a certain past manager of mine who is a part of this discussion can attest.
and @Oren – great to see that you are back on the writing wagon.
@Ken – thanks :)