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3 Attributes Leaders Should Embody to Inspire Employee Growth

3 Attributes Leaders Should Embody to Inspire Employee Growth
by Rachel Ernst

By the pure nature of how they conduct themselves with every touchpoint, executives are influencing – for better or worse – the next generation of leaders. That’s why integrity and understanding the power of influence are so important when it comes to professional development. Much of the success of people programs rest on the example leaders set by their words, actions and decisions. The mistake that many HR leaders unintentionally make is asking leaders with busy schedules for additional support of people initiatives.

What actually matters is that leaders are more mindful of their behaviors in real-time during the course of day-to-day business. These behaviors establish the model for what is tolerated, expected and valued at an organization– whether it’s a team of 5 or 250,000.

In my observation of many leaders I’ve collaborated with over the years, there are three key attributes that I believe the top, most admired leaders embody to inspire and scale employee growth and leadership. Top leaders work with genuine curiosity, enable the power of people, and instill humanity in the workplace.

Work with Genuine Curiosity

I remember working with an executive at a prior company who transitioned from leading one large business to leading a newly-created business. He didn’t have in-depth knowledge of this new group but was a strong and well-respected leader.

During his first several months in the role, he asked many questions in meetings, listened intently, and learned from his new direct reports by taking notes and sketching ideas whenever possible. This inquisitive approach set an example for his new team that in order to lead and make good decisions, you do not have to know all of the answers. Leading is being at peace with the knowledge you have and showing the openness to learn from others.

Read full article on HR Daily Advisor.