Daily Archive

Brian Sadowski, CTO of ACS on Transforming IT Leadership.

Much has been said and written about Transformational Leadership recently and the value this approach can bring to business. To many, this is still an abstract concept that seems beneficial but remains difficult to put into practice. When broken down to its basic tenants, transformational leadership is about caring for the individual team member no less than caring about the mission of the company, the satisfaction of the client or the value returned to the shareholder. It is through the genuine concern and care for the team member that extraordinary results can be achieved. Information Technology team members are no exception to this approach, however buried in the data center, telecom closet or cube maze they may be.

Throughout the evolution of technology over the past several decades, one thing has remained constant. Change. Protocols, languages, toolsets, you name it. Very little if anything in technology is exactly how it was 20-30 years ago. It takes great effort to keep pace and to seek out opportunities to leverage innovation for business benefit. From a personal perspective, technologists must continually pursue ways to stay current with their specific discipline. For many, this is a source of great anxiety and can breed a sense of insecurity in the individual IT team member. A worrisome and insecure staff cannot be expected to deliver extraordinary results. In these instances, it is the role of the transformational leader to help his/her team change their view of their contribution to the organization. To be sure, technology endeavors require a minimum level of required skill in order to execute. However, business stakeholders crave a technical staff that truly understand the business and the nature of the challenges and opportunities the business faces. In the end, a technically elegant solution has little value if it does not clearly address business objectives. By connecting the technical staff with the business and its objectives, one can expect a technology solution that does not reflect a “technology for technology’s sake” approach. Rather, business stakeholders will find a better partnership mentality present within IT and may be surprised to have IT present new ideas, models, product offerings, etc… From the IT team member’s perspective, the value that they have attached to themselves drifts away from a specific tool or technology expertise and more towards the knowledge they have of how their technical discipline contributes to the goals of the business and perhaps delivers a competitive advantage for the organization.

It is also the role of the transformation leader to place equal value in understanding elements of the IT team member’s personal life that may contribute to their performance at work. For many, this is where the principles of transformational leadership become difficult to subscribe to as this type of leadership requires a degree of personal touch and sincerity that may feel out of place at work. When it comes to IT team members, it may seem even more foreign as technologists have generally been characterized as introverted technical “geeks” who fear communicating with the business world, let alone exposing what may be happening in their personal life. A truly transformational leader finds a way to breakthrough this veneer and connects with the individual, identifying the things that make that person tick. The key to it all is sincerity. Going through the motions will only drive a wedge between the leader and the team member. Demonstrating genuine care for the team member, how they feel about their place in the organization, their contributions, career path, personal life, etc… can also offset the negative effect an economic downturn has on an organization, manifested as frozen salaries, reduced benefits, diminishing bonuses, etc… When a team member knows that his/her leadership truly cares about the impact these type of steps have on their lives, and when the team member is more in tune with how they contribute to the results of the organization, both good and bad, there is a greater degree of acceptance and understanding as opposed to the typical negative backlash that occurs. Again, this is something that cannot be faked.

Are you behaving as a transformational leader today? It’s really an easy question to answer. Put yourself in your team members’ shoes. Do you speak with them about topics outside of their immediate work deliverables? Do you truly have an open door policy even if it requires that the door be open on a weekend or in the middle of your vacation? Are you helping your team understand their contribution to the business objectives or are you focusing them simply on technical deliverables on a project plan? Granted, a traditional, transactional style of leadership can be very effective. But if you desire to lead and be part of a truly extraordinary team delivering truly extraordinary results, consider altering your approach. You may find it benefits not only your team, but it also delivers real fulfillment and satisfaction for yourself.