12.6 THE SKILLS YOU NEED TO BE A GREAT BOSS: Standing Up for Your People

(SHORT NOTES FROM TEAM MANAGEMENT:

Difficult Management Situations at http://www.mindtools.com)

 

Showing Support When It Matters

When you stand up for people, you show that you're "on their side" when they need help.  This builds long-term loyalty, trust, credibility, commitment, and morale in your team and it gives the people a confidence boost.  It also shows that you are focused on your team's well-being and interests.  This helps to create a positive working environment and shows everyone that you're a leader worth following.

The responsibility of a leader is to support the people appropriately, and to make sure that they have everything they need to do their jobs effectively.  When things go well, all share the credit and rewards.  The same should be true when things don't go well.  However, you shouldn't defend your people's actions in all circumstances.  It can be difficult to know when you should or shouldn't stand up for your people.

Know when to Stand Up for Your People

Know Your Values ·        know what you'll stand up for, and what you won't ·        fully understanding the organization's values and mission ·        prepare yourself mentally by thinking about what you'd do in certain situations

Analyze the Situation and Assess Risks ·        trust your own good judgment to make the best decision ·        gather facts about the situation ·        explore the behaviour ·        analyse the person you're defending

Decide on Action ·        If you decide that the person doesn't deserve your support, it's important to explain to him why you're not going to defend his actions, using the information that you gathered in the previous step

Defend Appropriately ·        plan what you're going to say in advance ·        Explain why you're standing by them ·        highlight the steps they've taken to remedy the situation ·        explain what you're going to do the make the situation right ·        make sure that it doesn't happen again ·        maintain good working relationships with the person you're speaking with, so be diplomatic at the same time that you're assertive ·        use empathy   to see things from his or her perspective ·        Communicate clearly and calmly ·        stay professional, even if criticism is unjust

Feedback ·        If you defend your people after they've made mistakes or performed poorly, make sure that they understand what they did wrong, and that they commit to ensuring that this doesn't happen again

There will likely be times when you need to defend your people from criticism, or stand up for them if they've made a mistake.  Make sure that you stand up for everyone on your team when appropriate, not just the team members you have a good connection with.

Defending team members will increase the sense of loyalty that they feel, boost their self-confidence and contribute to high morale.  If the problem arose because of a mistake or poor performance, make sure that you take appropriate steps to remedy the situation.