PERSONAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
HOW CAN YOU SPOT A LEADER ?
In recruitment , you get to know the signs of someone who can manage others effectively . Good leadership is a quality that every growing business needs to drive success but how do you spot it ? Dan Barfoot , Operations Manager at CMD Recruitment , says you should consider these key questions of your candidate , to work out if they possess leadership qualities .
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Can they be inspirational about a goal ?
What ’ s crucial in leadership , is getting the people working for you to buy into a shared vision – whether that ’ s in the army – to fight together , on a construction site to build to a high quality , or in an office , to provide an outstanding service . Workers on the shop floor , or in the call centre or representing your company in a pitch , will make or break your business depending on their motivation – so being able to inspire others is essential for a leader .
From a worker ’ s perspective , when it looks like the leader is just there to make life difficult , to take credit for your work or to undermine you , then you can expect problems in your business .
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How do they react to stress ? Stressful problems are what leaders deal with day in and day out – interpersonal problems , failures in tasks , confrontations , testing conditions , unexpected challenges . So , what coping strategies and problemsolving abilities does an applicant have ? You are looking for the mindset that says , ‘ every problem can be an opportunity .’ For recruiting businesses , challenges can be set at interviews or difficult questions can be asked – designed to catch the interviewee out of their comfort zone . The real leaders will find innovative solutions or cope without flapping . There may be clues in someone ’ s background – maybe they have sought challenges in a sport , or have had personal challenges to overcome . Those who refuse to panic at any hurdle and instead calmly rely on their intelligence – those are the ones you want heading up projects . |
Can they really communicate to different kinds of people ?
We have heard a lot about Emotional Intelligence or EI , in business in recent times , as a good indicator of someone who makes things work . People can have very different approaches , dispositions and peers in life . To get on with , understand and manage a large group of people you need a degree of empathy and to be able to adapt to people who see things in a different way to you . If you can still break through and engage effectively with people who are different in their outlook to you and others in the team , then you have that X factor of leadership .
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Are they able to differentiate between what is important and what ’ s not ?
It ’ s all too easy to get tangled up in tasks that are meaningless to the overarching goal . Good leaders are often visionaries who always see the big picture and keep on target towards it . Having 20 meetings about other meetings , working on details that add no value to a goal , wasting time on irrelevant problems – these are pointless exercises which will bore and drain a team . You do not want someone who cannot forge ahead because they have created a swamp of red tape or they simply manage the office rather than lead the team . A good leader creates momentum .
For more info : www . cmdrecruitment . com
01225 805080
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The essence of good customer service
By David Rigby , Smart Coaching and Training
Every customer service professional is the key touch point in the customer ’ s experience with any brand . Customer Service is ...
“ the act of taking care of a customer ’ s needs by providing professional , helpful assistance before , during and after they buy a product ( or service ), and rendering this assistance in a manner that enables the customer to have an easy and enjoyable experience ” ( Institute of Customer Service )
David Rigby , Smart Coaching & Training
Among their list of skills required to do the job well are :
• Good communication skills
• Empathy
• Knowledge of body language and active listening
“ A good understanding of body language as well as the art of active listening is necessary . Without these skills , you cannot communicate effectively with customers .”
But nothing is said about interpreting what you see . A C-me colour profile will tell you how you prefer to be ( introverted or extraverted , detailed or intuitive ), and how you like to be communicated with .
Using this knowledge you can also use your skills to interpret body language and actively listen for key words and characteristics such as :
• Do people glaze over when you try to give them product details – but you insist anyway ?
• When you ask customers to imagine what it will be like when they are in their new car and the neighbours are watching ? Does that get a positive response ?
• Does the effect on the environment affect your customer ?
• Are you bored when the customer wants to know every detail in the product brochure and asks for more ?
• Can you tell whether this is decision day ? – the customer has spoken to you five times already – so you avoid when he comes in – and another assistant gets the sales commission ?
Understanding yourself and learning the skills to understand others is the difference between not getting the commission or clinching that sale .
For more info : www . smartcoachingtraining . co . uk
0333 566 0067
@ SCT4success
Some tips :
1 . Ask someone you trust to observe how you are and what you say , your language and gestures , in a chosen interaction and see what they say about how you tend to communicate .
2 . Watch a sales person in action – what do they say , how do they hold themselves , how do they move , what is their tone and manner of speaking ? And …. what was the result of their selling effort ?
3 . Do your C-me Colour Profile – it will give you the best insights into your own preferred ways of being and doing , and some ideas and clues as to how to better negotiate with and interact with your customers .
14 THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2017