Have you been entrusted with a leadership position in the workplace? Developing your career prospects by aiming for that kind of role is a common goal for most employees, but it’s important to remember the level of responsibility involved in working with a wide variety of people.
Perhaps this is why platforms such as Allybot, which heavily promote the use of inclusive language in professional settings, have exploded in popularity in the last few years – especially as remote work has become more commonplace, leading to the globalization of businesses around the world.
With only 48% of employees currently viewing their company’s leadership as “high-quality,” it’s easy to see how ubiquitous poor management can be. To avoid hearing this feedback from those around you, read on as we cover the most pertinent ways to improve your approach to leadership at work.
What Are Leadership Values?
Leadership values are the beliefs that shape your actions and decisions when leading a team. Leadership values can change from person-to-person, as they’re often based on personal values and behaviors.
For example, a leader may have personal values like ethical practices, or approaching all situations with empathy. While they may be personal values, they often inform how they interact with team members and how they direct workflows. This could include things like making sure every team member feels included within a workplace (which tools like Allybot can help with), or ensuring that employees feel comfortable voicing their concerns within a safe space.
Now that we have some background, let’s explore specific leadership values and how they can improve your workplace.
- Implement Strong Leadership Ethics
Studies have shown that up to 28% of high-development organizations have a strong leadership bench, which stems from the core principles and beliefs that aid managers in being able to supervise and lead others professionally. This can include consistently promoting positive qualities in the workplace such as:
- Respect
- Equity
- Honesty
- Dedication
- Integrity
Focusing on these attributes as an individual in a position of management is a guaranteed way to ensure that the working environment remains pleasant and productive. It’s obvious that showing mutual consideration and understanding for others is key here. This is exactly why inclusivity tools like Allybot and DEI challenges are so conducive to being a great leader.
- Prioritise Accessibility and Inclusivity
A diversified firm is a more valuable one. When there are a variety of different viewpoints, stronger decision-making occurs, and better ideas pop up more efficiently. Numerous studies have shown that ensuring all of your employees feel valued is vital to the well-being of your staff and the trajectory of your brand.
However, since inclusion and diversity is such a delicate topic, there are often small challenges that arise regarding it for those in leadership positions. Below are a few steps you can take to address these obstacles, allowing you to create a more inclusive workplace:
- Optimize Your Equality and Diversity Approach – Reviewing and improving your team’s overall approach to equality and diversity in the workplace on a regular basis will make a huge difference to the team’s morale. Ensure that there is a relevant policy in place that protects, values, and encourages marginalized employees, whether they work remotely or on-site.
- Collect Relevant Data – Collecting information on the diversity of your organization, for example, the workforce or your main demographic, is a great way to keep track of how accessible your brand is to both the public and the employees. This can be achieved in a number of ways, whether it is by conducting audience surveys or utilizing online tracking.
- Represent Your Brand’s Ethics and Values – Think about what type of image your business would like to publicly project, and internally support. A workplace that truly appreciates employees and clients of all backgrounds and abilities is critical to the success of your company in general. Making inclusivity a part of what your business stands for is a strong foundation to build off of.
- Emphasize Inclusivity As A Company-Wide Goal – Though prioritizing equality and diversity may be high on your personal to-do list, it won’t work unless everybody within the team is on the exact same page. Make sure to get the message across to all employees that a lack of inclusivity will not be tolerated on any level, as part of your form of leadership and ethical code.
This is especially important if you’re leading a remote team. Ensuring that each of your team members feels valued and included will be crucial to your success.
One way to prioritize inclusion is by using a tool like Allybot, which is a handy Slack add-on that provides useful suggestions for inclusive language in your Slack messages. It can be a great way to educate team members on inclusive language and address microaggressions within the workplace.
- Learn From Your Peers
Learning from the experienced leaders around you can help you identify your preferred leadership style, which is a big part of what makes a manager effective in their role. It’s always good practice to take note of how they utilize and implement their managerial prowess, in order to advance your own skill set in the same way.
This method of observing your team doesn’t need to remain limited to your superiors, either. There is a lot to gain in a leadership position from being aware and respectful of those you lead. This can be achieved by modeling your approach to management and guidance based on your team members’ beneficial characteristics.
- Develop Your Listening Skills
To expand further on the previous step, understanding how to develop your own listening skills and why doing so should be relevant to your leadership values is certainly recommended. As a manager, expressing significant feedback and showing persistent support is necessary in order to create a long-lasting, trustworthy bond with your team. It can also help you improve your communication style, by listening to feedback from your team.
When you make the effort to listen, it makes the other party feel recognized, seen, valued, and respected. Learning how to be an active listener may take time, but it’s okay to start small. Maintaining strong eye contact, smiling, nodding, and asking relevant questions are all minor ways to ensure your co-workers are being heard. Doing so will build a feeling of loyalty between yourself and your team, which can help reduce employee turnover.
- Find Your Leadership Style
Everyone is different, which means it is only natural that we all have a unique leadership style. The innate aspects of our individual personalities often dictate the approach we take to asserting authority.
Understanding this personal insight and being able to use it to your advantage can be super helpful when trying to excel at work. Below are a few top tips to consider when looking for a place to start when identifying the method of leadership that would be most productive for you:
- Know Your Strengths – Being able to identify the positive points in your own work ethic is a vital part of finding your true leadership style. Being able to utilize your successful qualities fully comes from that self-awareness, which will help a lot with the whole process.
- Take A Leadership Assessment – Leadership assessments and tests have become increasingly prevalent in recent years, in large part due to their level of accuracy and convenience. There are an array of digital tools available online that will allow you to find a productive managing technique.
- Welcome Feedback – Ultimately, the most valuable insight you will ever receive into how your leadership skills work will come from those around you, particularly those you manage. Ensure that you are always growing as a professional by taking on feedback consistently and adjusting your behavior to it accordingly.
Wrapping up
It’s clear to see that improving your own leadership values is a constant responsibility, but it is definitely worth it if you’re looking to thrive as a manager. Whether you begin by prioritizing inclusivity and diversity, or by working on your listening skills, your team will surely appreciate the effort in the long run.
If you’re leading a remote team, consider using a tool like Allybot, which can help you promote inclusivity within your remote teams easily. We check for other 400 non-inclusive words, providing suggestions that can help educate your team and ensure that every employee, whatever background or walk of life, doesn’t feel alienated by the language used. Add us to Slack today and start building a more inclusive workplace!