f you think leading employees in your small business is hard, try being responsible
for opera divas, television news reporters, egocentric physicians, mercurial musicians
or high-strung brides. You know, the types whose pictures could appear next to "high-maintenance"
in the dictionary. It takes special skills to get such
folks to perform at their best. After all, the most accomplished and talented people
don’t think they need guidance.
"A lot of them, one way or another, have always been
able to get what they want," says James Redeker, chair of the employment services
department at Wolf Block Schorr & Solis-Cohen, a Philadelphia-based law firm. "They
have never tasted failure."
The challenge in leading such personalities—if your
small business is lucky, you’ve got them—is that they are often extremely sensitive.
Use the wrong approach and they may work against you.
Knowing that, Workforce Management sister publication
Crain’s Chicago Business went looking for people across Chicago who are adept at
managing these types, figuring their techniques to get the best out of difficult-to-manage
employees and clients would apply to the wider world of entrepreneurship.
As it turns out, the five selected have a lot in common,
and those shared characteristics seem to be the very ones that explain their effectiveness
as leaders.
For starters, all are willing and able to demonstrate
genuine respect for their employees and clients—no matter the industry or area of
interest.
All are refreshingly unassuming about their abilities
and effusive about the skills of the people they work with and for. If anything
goes wrong in one of Chicago conductor Cliff Colnot’s rehearsals or recording sessions,
for example, he blames himself and not the musicians. Marina Vecci, aide-de-camp
of Lyric Opera of Chicago stars, considers the word "diva" a compliment. And you
couldn’t pay Angela Rosemond, WMAQ-TV/Channel 5’s managing editor, to say a bad
thing about her charges, even those whose prickly reputations are no secret.
All of them also are able to establish credibility with
those they lead. They do it by demonstrating excellence in their field, and by being
transparent about their goals. The "what you see is what you get" approach engenders
trust. And it takes many forms.
Marina Birch, who plans high-end weddings, doesn’t accept
commissions from vendors, unlike most in the industry, so her clients trust she
has only their interest at heart. Joe Garcia, chief of medicine at the University
of Chicago, shares what he values and what he’s after with anyone who asks. "He
has great authenticity, and from that launches trust," says his boss, University
of Chicago Hospitals CEO James Madara.
These leadership skills are, no doubt, difficult to
acquire. But they are crucial to running a business and retaining staff, says Beverly
Kaye, co-author of Love ’Em or Lose ’Em: Getting Good People to Stay.
Talented people aren’t as motivated by money as they
are by the opportunity to improve themselves and their work. They are always asking
themselves, "Am I getting what I need?" Kaye says.
If the answer is no, they won’t hesitate to leave, which
could leave your small business in big trouble.
So here they are—leaders to learn from. Let the class
begin.
Workforce Management Online, October 2007 -- Register Now!
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