Expectations regarding corporate leadership have changed a lot, haven’t they? Today, in addition to managing teams and work, both companies and employees expect more from managers. For example, it is essential for leaders to connect with their subordinates to ensure greater engagement, productivity and a human approach to professional relationships.
But how do you do this? Is there a secret? Is there a specific guide on practices to follow? How do you organize your ideas? Should the approach be the same for all professionals?
In reality, there is no single way to create a connection with your subordinates. With a lot of empathy, active listening and dedication, you will find the right way to deal with each of your team members. However, we can help you get started on this journey.
Recently, a survey conducted by Dow uncovered many interesting questions about the job market. And some of them are precisely the main practices for generating connection between leaders and their subordinates.
So, if you want to know more about them, continue reading the text and discover everything the study revealed about actions in organizations.
6 ideas for leaders to connect with their followers effectively
1 – Have more informal conversations about both professional and personal matters
Firstly, the practice most cited by leaders in the survey was making time available to talk to employees, mentioned by more than 72% of respondents.
The idea is to have more informal chats with the professionals on your team, covering personal and professional issues. This way, you can get to know the people on your team better in all aspects. Consequently, you begin to understand them better and create bonds between vulnerabilities, affinities and values.
2 – Give constructive feedback frequently
For 60% of leaders, another very interesting initiative is to create the habit of offering feedback.
Here, evaluations and feedback on professional performance need to be in a safe environment and be constructive. This way, leadership can establish this routine and demonstrate their care and commitment to the development of their team.
3 – Nurture an open and welcoming environment for employees
Let anyone who has never kept anguish at work to themselves for fear of harm cast the first stone. Due to this unhealthy and uninteresting history for employees, almost 60% of the leaders interviewed in the survey revealed that they do everything they can to change this stigma.
To achieve this, they work constantly to ensure that the workplace is an open environment. In this environment, employees can speak up, express concerns, point out problems and act collaboratively. All this without fear of retaliation.
4 – Hold individual meetings focusing on well-being
Speaking of a healthy environment, promoting well-being is also a top priority for leaders who want to connect with their teams. The School of Life study revealed that, to achieve this, more than 44% of them have the habit of holding one-on-one meetings, on a regular basis, to talk about well-being.
This is also a way to create a safe space for employees to feel comfortable and at ease expressing mental health concerns. This can also help build a better workplace for all employees.
5 – Offer emotional support and guidance to employees
Complementing the previous points, almost 35% of leaders also offer emotional support and guidance when the team goes through difficulties. Going beyond the professional side and understanding that it is not possible to divide people into the “personal” and “professional” sides is one of the keys to being a good manager today.
This way, you create connections that go beyond work and increase productivity indicators. At the end of the day, professionals only want to work in places that respect them, recognize them, and understand that all relationships in a job need to be partnerships.
6 – Organize team building activities
Finally, 20% of managers also like to organize team building activities. They are great ways to create multiple connections that go beyond the leader and subordinate sphere and include all the other professionals who are part of their day-to-day work.
Furthermore, the idea here is to make leaders interact, get to know each other and further strengthen the team spirit, which is capable of delivering impressive results for any company.