Supportive Behavior
I absolutely believe that supportive behavior is appropriate at all levels in an organization. In the textbook Yukl states, "Supportive leadership (or "supporting") includes a wide variety of behavi0rs that show consideration, acceptance, and concern for the needs and feelings of other people. Supportive leadership helps build and maintain effective interpersonal relationships." (Yukl, 2013, p.63) In my opinion, this explains why it is applicable at every level of the organization; it is courtesy and respect or more simply, treating people right. Without solid interpersonal relationships between the leader and followers, communication would falter. Leaders are many things and being good communicators is among the most important. In general, followers can be intimidated by the leader's position power. To be effective, the leader needs to ensure that followers will bring their issues and their suggestions without hesitation. Using common sense and following a couple of guidelines will help keep the lines of communication open.I studied these things as a young supervisor and diligently tried to apply the principles in all of my communications. I still do. I learned that it is not as easy as one might think, but after a few sessions I got the hang of it. Honesty and sincerity are a must. Otherwise you will be seen as fake and/or patronizing which will shut down communications.
The guidelines are written to establish trust, eliminate intimidation, and build a report which is the foundation for a relationship that will grow over time. The guidelines require the leader to be accepting of the individual (not condemn), keep a positive attitude about the individual and the situation, be sympathetic and supportive to calm the individual down, help the individual gain a sense of belonging and confidence when they are unsure of themselves or they have made mistakes, and be willing to help them resolve personal problems. These guidelines are discussed in the textbook in a manner that will help the leader remember that he is working with a human being that needs help. It is too easy to condemn a lesser performer by comparison to good performer only. The fact is the problem might be that the leader has not done everything needed to set the individual up to succeed. There could be personal problems that are stealing sleep and destroying concentration and focus. Yes the answer could be that the individual is a substandard performer and needs to be dismissed. But more often than not, the problem is more than one thing on top of a set of circumstances that are out of the individuals control or beyond their ability to understand or correct. Most people want to do the best job they can. When a leader takes the time to help one of the people who are struggling, they appreciate it, feel like an important member of the team, recommit themselves to their work and often become outstanding employees. The individual will not forget it, ever.
Companies spend a lot of money recruiting, interviewing, and acquiring new talent. While it is true that some people are simply not cut out for some work, the majority just needs to be grown. As I stated earlier, leading and developing their people is arguably the most important role a leader has to take on. Once a leader understands how to interact with people using the guidelines, it is time to help them grow in their jobs or profession. Again, each plan will be different. The text provides excellent guidelines for developing subordinates. Honesty and sincerity are still the foundation when working with people. As I read the section on developing subordinates I reflected on my time in the military and recalled making this far to complicated. Yukl (2013) describes nine specific behaviors that a leader should use when developing followers. I remember taking this to extremes that eventually made my job impossible. After my supervisor talked with me, everything made more sense. You do not look for events that will provide growth for your people. Leaders find ways for growth in the things they do everyday. It only takes a little creativity and the opportunities are endless. I can say that I have used each of the guidelines listed while I helped develop junior personnel advance into greater leadership roles. Most of them went from performance team leaders to administrative leaders within the unit. A couple progressed into unit leaders. I enjoyed this work very much. I got to be a part of people working toward a specific goal, reaching that goal, and achieving the next level of responsibility. I found it to be extremely rewarding. The guidelines listed in the textbook may be all inclusive or not, but I could not think of another one. One of the rules I had as leader was each person needed to be training their replacement. Someone else needed to know the job and if the leader is planning to be advanced out of the job, I needed some one to fill the hole. It was more of an expectation than a behavior but it worked very well in my organization. The guidelines are described on pages 66 and 67 in the textbook. Not all of them will be used for each individual, but could be . If used,they will work.
Praise and recognition are valuable tools that often are overlooked and poorly implemented. Praise is just that, a pat on the back for a job well done. I prefer public praise but it is effective privately too. Leaders should do it more often. It revitalizes commitment in the person being praised and inspires and motivates others to increase performance. Beyond praise, the supervisor does not have the flexibility to give out recognition or rewards. Organizations control these programs, but the supervisor should know what the criteria is for each and submit personnel regularly. Recognition is an important part of taking care of the people as long as it remains respected and fair. When someone receives and award it should mean he or she accomplished something. It should not mean it was their turn.
Being a leader is not an easy job. The demands are too many to name, the hours are long and the frustration level can get high and remain that way for extended period of time. Of all the stereotypes and cliches on leadership, I agree with-- leadership is a calling, not a job. Most do it because they love it and would not have things any different. They have to know themselves, and they have to know each of their subordinates to be able to best take care of them. Seeing your people succeed makes it all worth the price.
Reference:
Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in organizations (8th
ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall
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