Modern people leadership: new role, new focus, new skills.

In this episode, Maggie Clinton the Founder of Trinity Leadership Coaching, shares how expectations of people leaders have changed and provides practical ideas on how organizations can better prepare and support their people leaders.

• Leadership is a relationship between those who aspire to lead and those who chose to follow[1]. Leadership is not about the title or position it is about the relationship between two individuals. It’s aspirational – leaders are choosing to lead and aspiring to get better. It’s about followership – people are choosing to follow an individual.
• Our environment is changing at an unprecedented rate. Digitization, AI, remote/hybrid work, generational shifts, etc. are influencing a shift in what people need from their leaders.
• People want more from their people leaders. They want inclusive and holistic leadership so they can bring their whole self to the workplace. This requires leaders to communicate in ways that are inspiring; to be able to make sense of the changing context; to be able to articulate clear outcomes and hold employees accountable to clear expectations.
• For new people leaders, a big mindset shift is from being the “doer” to being the “enabler”. The first role as a new people leader is a big role. It requires a shift in mindset from the person who does the task to the person who creates the environment for others to get the tasks done. 
• The ability to understand your impact on the team and those people around you is important. People leadership requires deep self-awareness and humility. Self-awareness can be built through psychometric testing, gathering feedback, self-reflection, and coaching.
• Great organizations invest in selection, preparation, and support to create strong people leaders. Organizations need to think carefully about the leadership traits they want in their people leaders – and then to select people with intention into the roles. They also need to prepare people leaders earlier in their careers – ensuring they have the skills and mindsets to be successful. Finally, they need to ensure that people leaders can access ongoing support to learn, develop, and grow.
• Peer networks are an effective tool to support people leaders. Connecting people leaders together as peers is a low-cost, effective tool to help people leaders grow their confidence and skills.

Connect with Maggie Clinton on LinkedIn here and Trinity Leadership Coaching here.

Interesting reads on people leadership

Managers are burned out. Here’s how to help them recharge (HBR)

Investing in middle managers pays off – literally (McKinsey)

What does it meant to be a manager today

Google spent a year researching great managers. The most successful ones shared these traits.

Meet Maggie Clinton

Maggie is passionate about building better people leaders by designing and developing high-impact leadership programs and through effective 1:1 coaching. Maggie has an MA in leadership from Royal Roads University focused on post-leadership programs sustainment where her work convinced her of the power of peer coaching. Maggie is also certified in MBTI, Hogan Assessments, EQi-2.0 and EQ 360.

Thought pieces by Maggie:

What I learned in my first year since launching Trinity Leadership

4 ways to drive impact in your leadership programs-Part I

4 ways to drive impact in your leaders programs – Part II Prioritize community over content

[1] Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2012). The Leadership Challenge. San Francisco: A Wiley Brand.