Being Supportive of Your Employees Reflects Your Leadership
Running a profitable company isn’t just about making your clients happy; it’s also about making your workers happy. When it comes to inspiring hard work, happy employees are much easier to keep productive and motivated. They look to you, the management, for guidance and support. The way you engage them reflects back on who you are as a leader.
Forcing employees to bend to your will isn’t the hallmark of a supportive leader. A manager like that will only increase stress, propel unhappiness and produce an overall slump in productivity. Great leaders are supportive of their employees’ individual workplace needs and learning styles. Though it may sound tedious, you can’t just take a blanket approach to supporting your workers. You have to understand what each individual needs in order to be successful in their role. Here are a few ways being more supportive of your employees can empower you as a leader.
Focus on people, not profits.
If you want to be a leader who inspires employees, you can’t look at them with dollar signs in your eyes. Make the development of each individual worker a priority, letting them tell you the kind of support they need to do their best work. When your leadership prioritizes profits, you focus more on cutting costs and less on improving productivity. Try shifting your priorities to the people, and you’ll see a way to do both. When people feel valued, they work harder. When they work harder, your business booms.
Get off their backs.
When managers breathe down their employees’ necks, micromanaging their every move, they may think they’re being supportive, but the reality is far from it. Micromanaged employees are not empowered to be responsible for their work. If you want to be more supportive, try explaining to your staff the outcome you want, and let them take control once they’ve shown they’re capable of making the best choices.
Be approachable.
Your employees know their job duties and have access to the tools needed to accomplish these tasks. However, sometimes this isn’t enough. Employees may need help with big-picture skills, like communication or time management. Other times they need support with small tasks, like learning how to use a specific word processing software. Either way, a supportive leader is one who is approachable, one that can be asked for help without hesitation or anxiety.
Motivate instead of dictate.
While everyone needs to understand the objectives for a new project or process, supporting your employees will motivate the entire team. When leaders dictate duties, workers cease to be inspired to achieve success. Your support means you inspire loyalty and dedication, which are both more lucrative than any compensation. Turnover can be reduced and better quality work can be produced when management focuses on motivation.
Being an effective leader comes easy to those who look for ways to support their employees. Having the best workers can set the course for the success, but it’s ultimately up to management to pull everything together. Make sure your workforce is high-quality by teaming up with Burnett Specialists and Choice Specialists. We have access to top talent in Texas, many of whom are ready to work right now. Contact one of our experienced recruiters today to talk about our customized staffing solutions.
