Culture is a composition of 'Intellectual Activity'. In this competitive world, a key factor behind a company's success, apart from product differentiation and quality of service, is its culture.

One of the most important aspects of culture is the pursuit of transforming employees into leaders. So, how does a company go about achieving this?


Give Ownership- Ownership plays a big role here. Believe and let employees own their role, make them accountable for the tasks in hand and see how they develop. Responsibility imposes the mind to think beyond the visible horizon. It enhances productivity since bringing the outcome is in the hands of the owner which necessarily mean it has to be the best.


Role Rotation- Role rotation or switch is another feature in transforming employees into leaders. This would essentially mean that high potential employees should be exposed to a set of functions and not just one. What is expected of a leader is that he should be abreast of all the nuts and bolts of the company. He should hold a holistic view of the company and be able to examine the different facets of the business through his knowledge and understanding and therefore, it is important that employees of the organization are allowed exposure to all inter-linked functions.


For instance, an employee in product development should also be exposed to product marketing to understand the market trends, competition and in turn use that information for enhancements. It will prepare him for an elevated role by making him a better developer.


Find Your Core- However, giving opportunities like these cannot be random for there are possible chances of confusion and unilateral decision-making. Hence, this should be properly planned and structured keeping the Vision of the company and most importantly the core business in range. So, if you are in the business of developing software for the hospitality industry, every person in the product team must feel responsible towards the design and the product getting developed. Focus cannot just shift away from the nucleus of the company and the culture should thoroughly imbibe it.


Leader Shows the Way- Having emphasized on the theme of empowerment, it must be evident that we rule out the process of 'micro-management' completely in the company. What works is leadership of participative style, which is to say that leaders show the path, trust and delegate responsibilities, create ownership in roles and stay juxtapose to guide if required. He must see the picture through the company's eyes.


Liberty to Speak Your Mind- When you say you have a workforce who is empowered there is a level of liberty which is a must and should be bestowed upon them to make an expression of their thoughts.


Define Clarity of Purpose- Creating a culture of leadership comes naturally for a startup when the team is small and everyone swims together. It is only when you start reaching scale that you need to start talking about creating a culture of leadership. The clarity of purpose as to why it is important to create such a culture must be established.


Walk the Talk- Merely defining and laying down components of a successful culture is not sufficient. In fact following and believing in it is very crucial for its success, which is why should be - 'Walk the Talk'. A culture of leadership thrives best when employees are recognized for their contribution and where applauses and rewards follow suit.




Content Source: Internet