The Power of Comments by Leaders (Part 4) - Trends

Companies are beginning to notice the mounting research proof that leadership is the single most powerful force for results at every level in every part of the organization. This is driving a trend toward more positive leadership styles.

Someone remarked at a meeting recently how only 20 years ago or so it was unacceptable in most companies to talk about stress as a problem. You'd seem "weak." Slowly but surely it's been recognized that stress causes expensive absenteeism and poor work results, often with devastating consequences for projects that are ever-more time-sensitive, a problem if key individuals are absent or turn over. Conscious efforts at reducing stress in workplaces are now well-underway though still not the standard everywhere. Companies achieving less stressful environments are starting to show clear leads in results over average and poor players.

The same is occurring much more rapidly and decisively with bullying. This is accelerated by the developing stress-reduction programs as well as ever-more powerful legislative penalties driving it more urgently. Again, talking about harassment problems was considered odd a couple of decades ago, now but it's taken for granted that it should be eradicated.

Does this mean the days of the rampaging, ranting or hyper-critical manager are numbered? Well, yes, actually it does.

There's a huge difference between a hard-driving manager who steadily and urgently presses and encourages speed and excellence among team members while pulling people along with them toward project completion and a sharply critical martinet who tries to force everyone else to faster, sooner, "better" results that they believe this alone will produce. The line can get blurred, but employees absolutely know and feel the difference.

The martinet believes people are lazy, to be ordered and threatened. The effective hard-drivers drive themselves first and foremost and recognize people working at their best need some slack from time to time to continue to produce superior results. Employee attitude surveys are increasingly being used to measure and find departments where managers have stepped over the line into dictatorship and are losing critical support from their people.

The majority of people not only have no objection to working hard, they enjoy it and lose themselves in it. They know they'll benefit, too, in many ways, sharing profits and growing in experience and skill from the challenges they overcome. Trying to force them beyond their speed limits, though, with no rest stops, is a formula for increased employee turnover and resistance.

The primary skill of leadership is knowing how to maintain balance while encouraging and assisting a building momentum toward the goal as people's skills, commitment and excitement about it grows. It's finally being recognized that out-of-balance managers can't help employees find their most effective balance and momentum either... with the ultimate result that some or all of the team members come off the rails. 

Remember the dodo? Some managers qualify... and the same fate awaits. It takes brains to help people find the right dynamic balance. Managers who think it's a waste of time will get taken out as stress reduction, anti-bullying and harassment programs blend with a better understanding of the value of positive environments in producing outstanding results. Already some companies are demonstrating this completely conclusively... and it's not being missed by analysts, investors and researchers that it works.