More ruminations: Are you a leader or a boss?

Over the last couple of years, I have talked to many trucking industry colleagues and have been fortunate enough to play a business coach’s role to a number of leaders. For me, and not to oversimplify the process, these folks all fall into one of two categories: bosses or leaders. Determining which is necessary as it dictates my approach to our future discussions. One way of finding out is simply to ask for an organizational chart. The conclusions revealed are influenced by the size of the business and through experience gained over the years. A boss will have far more lines coming off their names than a leader. The one to watch out for is an organizational chart that appears to be a leader, but in reality, the boss’s instinct is to be a fixer, and they will circumvent their senior managers’ authority and go right around them to get at the issue. Bosses just can’t help themselves and will continually circumvent the managers’ authority and minimize their roles. This is usually not a productive environment for anyone working under this type of structure. 

Definition: A boss is an individual who believes that the success of every effort in their business needs their direction and stamp of approval for it to be successful. They may require input from others, but rarely and when they do, it is usually taken in a cursory manner, and often it is asked only to support a decision they have already made. They determine their self-worth by the direction they give others. They look at themselves as THE problem solvers in the business and beware to any individual below them that were to make a decision on their own, successful or not, to move ahead without approval can be disastrous for the individual. Usually, these folks are not malicious in any way. They may have just not been exposed to anything that might vary from their version of what they see as leadership. I believe that most people’s natural inclination would be to be a boss, to take charge and get ‘er done!

When facing these individuals, my approach begins with trying to open them [RH1] to the value that others will bring to the table if they’re allowed. A leader looks at the organization from a different paradigm; they see their people as the key to success, not the obstacles to success. The difference leads to a workforce who checks their brains at the door and follows as best they can the role they were hired to do. I say as best they can because many companies run by bosses do not even have detailed role descriptions for their employees. The leader’s workforce not only gets a detailed role description; they are encouraged to think outside the box, express ideas, and challenge the norm. 

Definition: A Leader is an individual who sees delegation as their best friend. Leaders think long term whereas bosses think short term, leaders put people first where bosses put results first. Leaders understand that they must dedicate a significant amount of time working on their business, where a boss spends almost all of their time working in the business. In other words, leaders think and act strategically instead of spending all of their time bouncing between putting out fires that happen regularly. A leader will surround themselves with competent senior managers and then allow them to take action and manage with a considerable measure of autonomy to get the most out of their staff, coaching and encouraging the best from them while supporting their development. I have seen some relatively large companies, run by bosses, work very hard at trying to attract bright young minds into their companies only to lose them in short order. These new folks become frustrated very quickly if they are in an environment that does not allow them the autonomy to try new things and to learn. Being restrained from coloring outside the lines will have them looking at new opportunities as soon as they perceive a roadblock to advancement by a boss.