Avionics News January 2015 - 48

series

BUSINESS BASICS
B Y

G R E G

L A S L O

Team effort

How to help your people be better followers

A

colleague recently vented about the treatment
Most employees will always be followers - they're
of one of her co-workers named Tammy, who
happy doing what they do, their skills lay in working on
too often flies under the proverbial radar when
things and not people, or they don't want to complicate
it comes to receiving recognition. Tammy's diligent and
their lives by managing friends and co-workers, and they
responsible, committed to her team in spirit and duty, and
will likely always have some sort of boss. There's nothing
confidently competent in her job. But in a company culture
wrong with this, but each employee will still be required
where everyone blows his or her own horn, she prefers to
to be part of a team, and savvy employees don't leave their
hum along.
brains and hearts at the avionics shop door.
In return, she hears crickets from her supervisor and
Creating followers, then, means looking at what
department manager.
separates the good from the bad,
Ironically, while they don't
understanding how your leadership
seem to notice when she's there,
can shape the flavor you get, and
A leader without followers
they almost certainly would if
considering how you might teach
she weren't. Workers like her
the skills that prepare your staff
is just a guy talking to
- ones who take responsibility
members for this role. And just as
for their work and self-manage
importantly, you must recognize that
himself, so there's something
their productivity as dependable
you need followers to get where you
cogs in the machine - account
want your avionics shop to go.
to be said for turning the
for as much as 80 percent of
the success of projects and
Follower faults
conversation around.
organizations, according to
A good leader recognizes that
Robert E. Kelley, author of
he or she is participating in an
The Power of Followership
interactive relationship between the
and adjunct professor of management at Carnegie Mellon
leader and the followers; the leader understands he has
University.
authority because the employees agree to follow. In an
In spite of that division of labor, we spend a lot of time
imperfect world, though, not every subordinate does so.
in business talking about good leadership - the virtues that
Bad followership takes several stripes, according to Kelley,
create good leaders and how they influence the success
and each does wonders to muck up the works.
of their teams - but not much time on good followership.
Passive followers, for one, aren't engaged in the task
Yet a leader without followers is just a guy talking to
of learning new skills or motivating themselves toward
himself, so there's something to be said for turning the
exceptional work. They go through the motions, and they're
conversation around.
dependent participants. They need their leaders to provide
48

avionics news

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january

2015
Avionics News January 2015

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