ARE YOU A LEADER WHO IS OUT OF TOUCH?

Reality TV programmers are making a tidy income with highlighting leaders who are out of touch with the popular show Undercover Boss, which is now broadcast in 8 countries across the globe with more to come.

I stopped watching this program after the first few shows, when it was first aired in the US in 2010. Why? Because I was disgusted about how little the leaders of these organizations actually knew about what was going on at the grassroots. The show makes these "undercover" leaders into heroes, when they should be flailed for living in an ivory tower for so long.

I get that the CEO of a corporation can't be picking up garbage or busing tables everyday. Yet both they and their senior leaders should,  at minimum on a yearly basis, be out amongst their people, working along with them and create venues where they can obtain regular input in a non-threatening scenario from the floor-sweeper on up. This doesn't mean a town-hall meeting, which can be quite intimidating for many folk who are not keen on speaking in public. It means going onto their turf, whether a warehouse, a call centre, a restaurant and speaking to them in a small intimate gathering. You'd be surprised by what you hear.

I've made a point in my corporate iterations, as well as in some consulting gigs, to work side-by-side, picking orders, riding on trucks, unloading heavy boxes, cutting a purchase order and so on. I didn't have to go undercover for people to talk to me openly about the opportunities and challenges, and it ensured that the staff would feel comfortable with approaching me in the future. The Undercover Boss show suggests that team members will not tell the truth to a senior executive unless the latter's identity is hidden. That speaks more to the lack of connection the leader has to the organization as a whole vs. the staffs' openness.

I also had regular "coffee" meetings with all levels of my staff. I will admit this was tough sometimes to schedule and more than once I had to cancel my attendance, but often my direct reports would take these meetings in my stead. That way, the staff became comfortable with all levels of leadership. I will however say that the areas for improvement and suggestions that came forward were amazing. And not only did we act on many of them, we involved the entire team in the implementation and recognized them. 

Take a few moments and ask yourself "how much do I really know about the inner workings of the team/organization that I lead?"; "how much does my leadership team know?" If the answer is not that much, then it is time not to be the Undercover Boss, but be a leader and go roll up your sleeves and get your hands "dirty." You'll not only glean information that will keep you from making ivory tower decisions that are unrealistic, but you will gain lots of respect from your staff. You've made them feel that their job and opinion is important. 

And your business will soar!