10 Core Responsibilities of Leaders: Understanding Your Role

As the leader of your team or organization, are you experiencing any issues similar to the ones on the list below?

  • Product quality is declining, and costs are increasing due to rework.
  • Delivery timetables aren’t being met as staff struggle to prioritize projects.
  • Leaders are competing for limited budget resources and quibbling about the value of their different initiatives.
  • Cybersecurity attacks have hindered your organization’s ability to deliver programs and services as planned.
  • Employee engagement is lagging, and turnover is increasing.
  • Communications initiatives are more focused on overcoming negative press than touting the value of your brand.
  • Ongoing customer complaints center around several core areas, and the proposed solutions aren’t working.
  • Your recently released, long awaited product is floundering in the market, unable to gain a foothold with the targeted demographic.

And the list goes on…. You may be frustrated or overwhelmed as you try to address these issues. Or you may be optimistic as you engage experts to help you improve in these areas.

But no matter the size of your team, organization or budget, there are specific expectations, whether explicit or implicit, of you as the leader. And many of the challenges that exist in organizations are a result of failure to lead effectively. While no leader is perfect, nor are they expected to know and do everything, they are expected to ensure a capable staff and a robust strategy to run a productive business. And they are expected to, as best as possible, manage external threats and challenges beyond their control that hamper the organization’s effectiveness and success. We’ve seen many great examples of this during the pandemic.

While issues such as these may exist in pockets and are to some degree a part of each organization’s normal operations, concern is raised when there is a growing list from multiple leaders within a business. And often, the underlying cause is the capability and capacity of leadership to address problems. Some leaders are simply swamped by the daily volume of issues and need to implement a different strategy; others would serve better in different roles or organizations; and still others have an opportunity to fully understand and step into the role expected of them.

The 10 Core Responsibilities

At least ten core responsibilities of leaders play a significant role in how effectively they lead their teams and organizations. How they do it will vary based on the industry, products or services provided, financial positioning, business environment and culture, and their values and personality. But these factors must all be leveraged as part of their position. How well they fulfil these responsibilities to meet the needs of their organization will help to make them a great leader.

Here’s the list.

  1. Cast vision and purpose – Clarify why your organization exists and where you want it to be in the future. This should be a source of inspiration to current and prospective employees, customers, and investors. Key stakeholders should be engaged in its development, so that it sets the tone for responsibility #2.
  2. Build organizational culture – This includes the values, behaviors and artifacts that exist in every organization. The important point is to be purposeful in creating a culture that supports the vision, strategy, and business objectives important for success. Cultures can reflect a range of behaviors from independence to interdependence in how people interact, and from flexibility to stability in how people respond to change.
  3. Develop a business strategy – These are the plans, goals and actions that clarify how a business will operate successfully in the marketplace. It guides decisions, addresses weaknesses and threats, and leverages strengths and opportunities. It should be revisited and updated regularly to address shifts in the competitive environment.
  4. Communicate clearly and frequently – Leaders must talk about, provide examples, and model the outputs from the first three responsibilities with all employees. Repetition and clarity are important. Employees need to observe alignment in leaders’ words and deeds. Communication vertically, horizontally and diagonally throughout the organization increases understanding and collaboration to execute the strategy.
  5. Develop team members and build engagement – Employees’ increased emotional commitment and connection to the organization is generally manifested in better productivity and performance. Leaders who invest in the growth and capability development of their team generally see higher engagement.
  6. Develop leaders – Provide the specific skills needed for their functional role, improve emotional intelligence, and grow core leadership competencies through formal training and coaching. This strengthens leaders’ ability to deliver results, and to assume greater responsibilities.
  7. Prioritize accountability for results – Leaders must focus on execution, acknowledging reality, and finding solutions. Blaming, pointing fingers, and making excuses is unacceptable. Proper processes, policies and procedures must be in place to streamline operations, improve effectiveness and identify efficiencies.
  8. Manage change – Though the vision and purpose should remain consistent, how they are executed will evolve with the competitive environment. Adaptability and change agility are crucial qualities that should be nurtured to enable growth. Help the team acknowledge norms and processes that need to end and bridge them to a new beginning.
  9. Manage financial risk – Protect the organization’s assets by identifying and analyzing qualitative and quantitative risks, implementing strategies to mitigate them and maximize value. Managing assets and liabilities is a priority.
  10. Build strategic relationships – Identify external stakeholders such as investors, customers, suppliers, community members and others with whom mutually beneficial strategic partnerships will advance the business objectives.

With proper coaching, development, and consulting, over time, leaders can improve in each of these roles. Individual strengths and styles will result in leaders performing better in some roles than in others. But continued attention to each responsibility will support stronger business results.

 

Copyright 2021 Priscilla Archangel
Photo by Andrey Popov iStock