Leader = Advocate

I recently met with an old friend over a cup of coffee. He still works at our old place of employment. During our conversation, he shared a story of one of his supervisors. During a meeting about resources and the need for newer equipment, his boss said to his team, "I'm not your advocate. Your lucky to have your job so deal with it." Suffice it to say, he and his fellow team members were not happy. They felt uncared for and abandoned. Many are now looking for a new place of employment. His boss was quite successful in communicating her lack of desire to assist them to do their best work for the company. As a leader, you need to be very careful about the message you send out to your people.

Five Things Leaders Do

1. They inspire others. Leaders influence others to help move the company towards its goals and objectives. They do this be effectively communicating the mission and purpose of the organization. The mission is what the organization does, and the purpose is why they do it. Good leaders know how to share their enthusiasm for the organization's mission and pursue in such a way that others catch the fever too.
2. They provide guidance and focus. A good leader knows that having a mission and purpose is important but not enough. They must maintain a laser-like focus on the goals and objectives of the organization. They do this by keeping the mission and purpose in front of themselves and their people.
3. They desire to solve the real problems their customers and individuals face.Strong leaders know they are in business to solve the problems of the customer. The good or service is of value to the client because it solves a problem the customer is facing. But a leader also knows that the employees of the company also have problems as they work towards that objective. The leader works to help the employees accomplish the business purpose by helping solve the real problems the employees face will doing the work of the company. They know that allowing problems to continue to exist in the employee’s world will only hinder the business in completing its objectives and following its mission and purpose.
4. They provide the needed resources. A good leader works to provide the tools and resources the employees need to accomplish the goals and objectives of the company. They know what resources are needed because they have spent time and energy solving the real problems. If they can’t acquire the resources, they do their best to advocate for the employees.
5. Advocate for their people. Merriam defines advocate as a person who argues for or supports a cause or policy. They are backers, champions, promoters, proponents, and supporters of a cause, policy, person, or group of people. Leaders are constantly advocating for their people. They fight to get them the resources they need and the support they desire. A critical part of being a strong leader is advocating for your people.

A good leader works to help their people do their job of helping the customer. That involves vision, guidance, and advocacy. Leaders don't say, "I'm not your advocate" to their employees. They instead ask, "How can I serve you? What do you need to accomplish our mission and purpose?"