The respected consulting firm, Hay Group, has just announced the release of its 6th Annual Best Companies for Leadership study. The top 20 are major corporations with a global presence. Collectively, over the last five years, they have generated shareholder returns that are 36 times better than those from the Standard & Poor 500 companies.
To start with, it is worth noting the overall conclusion from the survey:
“The Top 20 Best Companies for Leadership are at the forefront of a significant shift away from hierarchical organizational operating models. Leadership in the twenty-first century is about leading at all levels; not restricting it to title.”
While the survey covers a lot of ground, including elements like diversity, HQ/regional office relations, work/life balance, and collaboration required across a global enterprise, I want to isolate four findings that speak to all managers, regardless of their organization’s size, sector, or industry.
The percentages compare the top 20 with the rest of the organizations Hay surveyed. I think these serve as both a reminder and an inspiration for all managers, including mid-level ones:
- Everyone at every level has the opportunity to develop and practice the capabilities needed to lead others. (100% vs. 69%)
- Leaders in my organization create a work climate that motivates employees to do their best. (100% vs.68%)
- Our leaders personally spend time actively developing others. (96% vs. 56%)
- There are a sufficient number of qualified internal candidates who are ready to assume open leadership positions at all levels in my organization. (100% vs. 55%)
These best companies are clearly ones that see “leadership” as permeating potentially every nook and cranny of the firm and not restricted to people with formal titles like manager or supervisor.
They see two key roles of their managers to be:
- Foster motivated staff (dare we call this “self-leadership?” Yes, I think we dare.)
- Dedicate some precious time to personally attend to developing and coaching their employees.
And they regard having a pipeline of ready or emerging leaders to be a core strategic element for their continuing impressive business growth.
What these four elements do is unleash the tremendous potential within staff. Of course, you can adopt them in your small or medium sized organization too. A pipeline in a small firm can be succession plans in place for the critical management positions. Managers can be given a key result area to spend some time attending to the individual development of their people, coming up with assignments and projects that will stretch them, and coaching them along the way. And progressive management training will show your managers how to bring out the very best in their people.
If you are not emulating the Top 20 where you work, what are you waiting for?
