WOW what an inspiration!  Our Director, Jo Eady attended the recent Australian Cotton Conference and came back to the office raving about the key note presentation from Rachael Robertson.  Rachael was one of the youngest people to ever lead an Antarctic expedition and one of the first women.  In this pressure cooker environment, Rachael was forced to develop strategies to deal with the isolation, scrutiny and demands of extreme leadership.  With no way in and no way out she had to make it work.  Rachael is a down to earth, authentic, resilient and innovative leader, highly regarded by those she leads.  Read on to find out the six things that she believes led her expeditioners to rank her as 'inspirational'.  And then apply these to your own situations...... 

 

The following is an excerpt from Rachael's book Leading on the Edge.

VISION

The ability to tell and sell a compelling story is crucial.  Inspiring leaders are those who can articulate the big strategic directions of the organisation while at the same time clearly explaining how each individual contributes to these larger goals.

Feeling valued and recognised for the work you do is bedrock of employee morale.  The Ranstad report reveals: '38 per cent of respondents said being valued and recognised was their top motivator, followed by a strong understanding of how their role contributes to achieving organisational goals. Salary and remuneration were not as highly 'valued'.  Our 'Day in the Life' sessions gave people the opportunity to show us the tasks they completed in an average day.  This simple social ceremony turned into something vastly more important as each person came to fully understand, and value, the contribution of his or her peers.  The question 'What do they do all day?" was asked and answered.

SELF - AWARENESS 

Inspiring leaders know themselves and their capabilities.  They dedicate time each day to reflecting on their decisions and evaluating their own performance critically and honestly.  This ability to reflect enables leaders to learn and develop; more importantly, it enables them to correct a decision that may have been incorrect, no matter how well intentioned or how well considered.

In the 'Footy killed the radio star" episode, I made the correct decision, but I made it the wrong way.  There were some strong opinions about the broadcast, but by not reflecting on this issue for several days that I realised my role in creating this mountain out of a molehill.  The self - analysis improved my self awareness and, without doubt, my leadership ability.

CONSISTENCY

Leaders must be consistent on both their decision making and their emotions.  A leader who displays appropriate emotion is powerful and human and demonstrates a strength and confidence that is inspiring. Disappointment at missing out on an important job the team pitched for; delight over an unexpected success; sadness over the departure of a valuable member of the team; relief at the closure of an event - these are all appropriate emotions.  Expressing them consistently ensures your team can predict with some clarity how you will react and respond.  

It is even more critical during the tough times that leaders respond consistently.  During the plane crash incident, leading the rescue effort was just one part of my role.  To ensure the remaining 116 people felt confident that their peers would be brought home safely, and to keep the rest of the community focusses on the rescue, it was critical that I was consistently seen to be leading.  Choosing my words with care, providing regular updates on the situation and, most of all, carrying myself with poise and calmness, were all vital.

Whether its a plane crash in Antarctica, a financial crisis, a merger or a restructure, while the context changes the principles remain the same.  The leader needs to be seen to be leading in a calm and consistent manner.

EMPATHY 

Knowing and understanding the individual differences of each of your team members will inspire and motivate them. Appreciating their skills and capabilities means you can match individuals to tasks, increasing productivity as staff undertake work they are good at or enjoy, or even both.

Similarly, understanding that different issues affect people differently, and empathising with that, will improve motivation.  On the surface, the Bacon War was one of those trivial issues that arise in any workplace, irritations like dirty coffee mugs left lying around or people routinely arriving late for meetings.  After I had listened and empathised with my people I realised there was a deeper problem that was distracting people from their work and therefore affecting our productivity and team work.  it requires empathy to address these little things that emerge in every workplace, ignore them at your peril.

CELEBRATE 

An inspiring leader will find reasons to celebrate, regularly and at times spontaneously.  During the long, dark Antarctic winter it was important that we celebrated along the way, not just birthdays and midwinter's day, but also the smaller successes such as a month without a power blackout, significant scientific data collection or uninterrupted internet access with a fully functioning server.

During long projects, or even in times when it's business as usual, an inspiring leader will find a reason to stop and salute even small accomplishments.  Whether its with an event, a reward or a simple than you, the acknowledgement and recognition will inspire and motivate.

RESPONSIBILITY

Inspiring leaders fully appreciate the responsibility that comes with the leadership role.  They realise they are accountable for developing their team members and growing capacity.

Randstad reports: 'traditionally managers have risen through the ranks purely based on logical progression from one level to the next as opposed to their qualities and skills as leader'.  Developing leadership skills for the next phase of growth is the key productivity challenge for 51 per cent of Australian businesses.

Emerging leaders should understand that along with promotion comes greater responsibility.  Leaders are under intense scrutiny, their behaviour interpreted often in ways they could never imagine. In Antarctica, where I sat at meal times, what time I left social events, how often I took my turn doing the community duties of cooking and cleaning were all closely noted.

Managing performance is also a key responsibility.  Rewarding great work and counselling after poor performance are both core parts of leadership.  yes, it's tricky stuff that requires mental robustness and lots of energy, but try doing it in Antarctica where there are no sanctions or rewards and the HR team is based 4000 kilometres away.

Mapping out a development plan for individual staff is also a critical role of every leader.  Inspiring and motivating staff by showing them future possibilities and the route to get there is more important than ever.  The World of Work report found, 'half of al respondents intend to leave their current role citing lack of opportunity for growth and development, (which is) more than double the number that will leave due to uncompetitive salary and remuneration.'