1. Leadership…..and Followership, one without the other… is neither.
By: Joseph Erba, Jr.
Much has been and will most likely continue to be written about the topic of leadership.
We have centuries of material to fall back on. The word inspires many to exude
definitions, mantras, opinions and predictions (of its continued importance in business or
its ultimate demise).
Yet, with the ever-changing business environments, the begrudging eventual retirement
of the baby-boomer generation, the rise of the replacement generation of milleniums and
all the “tweeners”, one business axiom remain true. Without followers, we have no
leaders.
In many corners of business today, focus is being placed squarely on the rise of power and
influence of the “follower”. These omnipresent individuals or groups are usually the
closest to the product or service being offered, and those paying for them, i.e. the
customer. They tend to be the ones in the organization with the “expert” power, the
technical skills and experience to understand how to get things done, most effectively.
What we do understand and accept is that the changing organizational structures in
businesses today are squarely placing more decision-making and responsibility at the
hands and feet of followers (defined as all of us that report to someone, somewhere in an
organizational structure). Today we have more “matrixed” corporate structures where
teams and team dynamics rule the processes of “work”. We have multiple reporting lines,
multiple and concurrent bosses and teams for projects and the ever-present and
frustrating “lack of’s”…time, energy & resources, to meet all the objectives established.
So with followers who have multiple reporting lines to deal with (horizontally & vertically
in a company), contact with their social networks internally and externally, as well as
customers or key partners, the real pulse of the business, on a daily basis, is in their
hands.
Beyond the challenge a company faces of codifying the knowledge and information of the
follower (before the eventual departure) the leaders should also be bold enough to
address this power shift of sorts, and align their leadership skills to better serve the needs
of the follower.
How should leaders react? Listen first. Various studies for decades have consistently
reinforced that recognition and support are the primary motivators for a follower to stay
put. Offering challenging and rewarding opportunities also sits high on the list for
followers. Move people around the organization, give them a chance to see the business
from many viewpoints to gain different perspectives. Financial aspects continue not to

2. make the top 5 “keepers”. Provide training and encouragement. Better understand what
motivates each of your contributors and communicate openly and often. You can’t solve
all their problems or give everyone everything they want. But when they feel you’re
listening and truly understand, they’re more likely to support you, too.
Leaders need to be better aware of these dynamics and adjust their styles to better
accommodate the needs of these individual, yet critical contributors in their business.
Today followers are more loyal to their social groups than their companies. Followers will
change companies many more times, during their working lives than previous
generations. Followers have gained more power and authorities based on their skills and
knowledge. Individual contributors don’t define success only in terms of “moving up” in
the organization, to positions of managing or leading others.
With less opportunities for “upward” movement in organizations today and a general
lack of desire for “leadership” positions, these individual contributors know their value
rests with their knowledge base. Unlike past generations, they’re willing to move this base
of power more freely among companies.
What is true is that these organizational methods are ever-present and will continue to
redefine the role of leadership and followership across companies today.
This discussion takes us back full circle to an old business axiom, the only thing constant
in business is…change. Yet now the change is squarely focused on the leadership
dynamics in play.
Today, most successful leaders are strong communicators. They share knowledge rather
than hoard it as a power base. They build valued relationships throughout their
organization and beyond, to better understand and appreciate what motivates their key
assets. They focus attention on listening, realizing that they are not the technical experts
of their business and need to empower others more than ever.
With the baby-boomer generation riding off into the sunset of their business careers and
the Gen X and Millenials taking strong hold of business today, the leadership landscape is
again shifting. It used to be that only the strong survived….today is more about the
“emotionally-aware” ruling the day.
So is the role of leadership so different today? Yes….and no. Leadership should be about
inspiring, influencing and persuading “the group” towards a common, agreed upon goal.
So, this generalized definition is not the issue of contention, but rather the new role that
followers play in the process. It’s not just the goal that we’re worried about today, but the
process of leading the team towards it.