Continuing our series on the dimensions of leadership, this week we will discuss “Connectedness” and how leaders can apply this principle within their organizations. We define connectedness as the following:
The ability to relate to others in a manner that builds them up, encourages, and brings out their highest potential.
Connectedness is a leadership trait associated to building and sustaining relationships. It also points to the importance of boosting the esteem of others. The connected leader seeks ways to help others develop, both personally and professionally.
Mentoring and coaching are both actions that boost connectedness. The connected leader has a bias towards caring and supporting those around them. Others prosper through the support and encouragement of the connected leader.
Being a connected leader means that even tough conversations, challenging situations and difficult feedback is handled in a caring and supportive way.
Leaders who score high on the Connectedness dimension might:
- Coach and develop others
- Engage in skill practice sessions with others
- Lead performance appraisals that have an appropriate balance between objectives and goals, and competencies and behaviors
- Give clear and timely feedback about performance
- Provide guidance around development
- Identify and grow high potential
- Build deeper relationships with others
- Make decisions that give all employees better opportunities to have a real impact on the organization
How can we determine if a leader scores high in the Connectedness dimension?
A series of 4 attributes are commonly associated with the Connectedness dimension. By utilizing our Legacy Leadership 360 assessment, we can determine the level that the person involved in the assessment is rated (by themselves, coworkers and peers) at the following attributes:
Builds Rapport
The leader that builds rapport behaves in a manner that builds high personal credibility. These leaders tend to have trusting and supportive relationships. They connect meaningfully with others. Rapport building includes going out of the way to reach out to people in the environment that makes them most effective.
The rapport building leader tends to focus on the needs of others. They care for the well-being of those around them. They consistently behave respectfully and display kindness. They do not hesitate to apologize when someone is inadvertently hurt or feels mistreated. They are highly trusted and others look to them for encouragement and emotional support.
Encouraging
The encouraging leader brings out the best in others. They show significant belief in the ability of others to make meaningful contributions to the team. An encouraging leader inspires others to work hard, seek improvement and continue to be challenged.
The encouraging leader remains optimistic and appreciative even when things don’t always go well. They understand the value of helping others get past setbacks and stay focused on the goals.
Develops Others
The leader that develops others builds strong relationships. They look for ways to help people grow both personally and professionally. Developing others requires an understanding of the current skills and competencies while actively working on ways to enhance them.
The leader that develops others trains, assigns and delegates others with the intent of long-term learning and growth as outcomes. They will offer feedback frequently, in ways that are positive and constructive. Developing others includes showing the support and growth for others while setting challenging goals with high expectations and accountability.
Likable
The likable leader gets along well with others. They listen and communicate well, in ways that make others feel connected. The likable leader can be approached during times of enjoyment and celebration and times of challenge and conflict.
Likability requires openness and approachability so others feel they can interact. The likable leader keeps calm and level-headed in most situations and does well to diffuse animosity among others. They tend to have an “open-door” policy and are available whenever possible. They show genuine concern for others.
Effective leadership is key to driving business results and becoming a more effective leader starts with awareness.
The Legacy Leadership 360 assessment is a powerful tool to assess which areas require further training or coaching in order for your organization’s leaders to become more effective.
Our 360 leadership assessment is different from other individual survey tools. Designed to provide immediately actionable feedback on the dimensions and qualities most closely linked to a leader’s ability to perform effectively in their role, it leverages the latest research from both social and cognitive neuroscience. It is simple to administer, intuitively relevant and highly cost effective. Whether used in conjunction with our experienced coaches or alone with its easy-to-understand User Report, its impact and value for your current and emerging leaders will be immediate.
If you are interested in furthering the development of the leaders within your organization, we encourage you to email or call us at 888-892-0300.
