We sat down with Vicki Flindall, Director of Financial Management, to talk about the significance of authenticity to her leadership style. Vicki shares some great tips on developing a coaching relationship with your team, knowing your leadership style and any personal traits that may impact this and how to build the right team around you to promote innovation and success.
3 Quotes to lead by...
1. Be Authentic
‘My brand has always tried to be authenticity, and that would always be the thing that I would try to achieve more than anything else. That means you’ve got to be a really strong critical friend with the people you work with, your colleagues and your stakeholders. To be able to challenge appropriately and challenge at the right time but also to understand and to listen to what the challenges are from that individual’s perspective and work through together what you think is the right response to that.’
Q. Vicki shares that her brand has always been authenticity. What would you say your brand is? What does that mean for you and the people you work with?
2. Know Yourself
‘I think for a first line leader and individuals moving into leadership, it’s about knowing yourself. I don’t pretend to know myself perfectly, but I think as I’ve developed my leadership style over time, you do start to understand yourself better. Similarly, asking for feedback from your teams is incredibly powerful.’
Q. Do you have any personal traits that may impact your leadership style? How can you manage these traits to help you be a more supportive and successful leader?
3. BUILD THE RIGHT TEAM AROUND YOU
‘I think it’s really important to build the right team around you and to have confidence in the team around you. There are a number of things I’ve read over the last few years about diversity of thinking and diversity of teams, and there’s a wave of evidence that suggests surrounding yourself with the same kind of people doesn’t drive any innovation or any way forward. Challenging yourself to bring in different people around you who will challenge you and think differently is incredibly important.’
Q. When recruiting new team members, how do you ensure that you are not recruiting in the shadow of yourself?
External Resources
Authentic Leadership: What It Is & Why It's Important
The 1st Step in Building Great Leaders: Knowing Yourself
4 Lessons for Building Diverse Teams
