Independent Banker - October 2019 - 24

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your staff . Remember: You set the tone that allows
employees to feel a sense of belonging. And, ultimately,
this strengthens a company's culture.
We all know how easy it is to get caught up in
the daily grind and forget about company culture.
There's enormous pressure to increase productivity,
and there are constant fi res that need to be put
out. However, one of the most important steps
you can take toward greater productivity-and
avoiding igniting those fi res in the fi rst place-is
remembering to connect with your team.
Ways to connect
Start by showing you care. Say hello and smile
when you enter a room. It may sound like common
sense but when you're busy it's remarkably
easy to forget. Then check in with employees.
Spend the fi rst 15 minutes of each day doing
the rounds of the offi ce, or schedule regular staff
meetings to keep everyone in the loop. Meet with
new staff and get to know them.
Leadership at All Levels
By Lindsay LaNore, ICBA
Ways to be a
daring leader
n her book Dare to Lead, author Brené Brown
writes, " Daring leaders must care for and be
connected to the people they lead. " It's a simple
idea but one that can't be overstated. Again and
again, studies have shown that the more invested
employees are in an organization, the more productive
they will be.
I
Lindsay LaNore
The same is true for leaders. Perhaps even more
so, because leaders have a direct eff ect on the productivity
of everyone around them. As a leader,
your role is as important for the teams you lead
as it is for the customers you serve. It's too easy to
spend all your focus and time on customers without
enriching the experiences and development of
24 Q ICBA Independent Banker Q October 2019
(lindsay.lanore@
icba.org) is
group executive
vice president
of Community
Banker
University
Take the time to connect on a personal level
whenever you can. Emails-or, worse still,
texts-can be very impersonal. Personalize your
responses and add specifi c messages that you
know will motivate the recipient. A handwritten
note may be even more eff ective.
Be intentional with your questions. It may be
as simple as asking about somebody's weekend
plans or what project they're working on. Then
follow up with a question or two after the weekend
or project is completed. Remembering names
and the things that are important to those around
you is invaluable. If it helps, jot down some notes
and write relevant dates down in calendars.
Schedule time to talk about professional development.
Helping a staff member develop their
potential is a key part of eff ective leadership. Ask
your team how they feel about their workloads
and if there are new things that they wish to learn
or experience.
Finally, give them permission to interact and
communicate outside of the day-to-day minutiae.
Plan some unstructured time together to let
everyone decompress, whether it's a happy hour
or an annual retreat. It's easy to see interaction as
wasting time, but that chatter can also foster collaboration
and creativity. If we want employees to
show up fully, it's critical to make them feel like
they can be themselves.
Independent Banker - October 2019

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