Every industry and all facets of our society have its leaders. Construction is no exception. A profitable and productive construction enterprise depends on leaders in the construction business. Business leaders become industry leaders and like any business model leadership sets the path to success. We all know good leaders, but what about great leaders, who are they, and what makes a great leader?
I have worked with leaders in the construction industry for many years and as I observe and participate with these individuals there are results that all great leaders achieve. Great leaders communicate. Great leaders get desired results. Great leaders inspire success. Obstacles are opportunities for success and they all inspire their team.
We could talk about the personal characteristics of a great leader, but I want to focus on the ‘doingness’ of leadership. Talk is cheap, but action determines the results that dictate success. So, let’s jump in.
As I begin the discussion, a point of clarification. I refer to the product in an encompassing and generic sense. Your product may be a service or a tangible item. Your product may be a combination of service and an item. Second, customer support is a term that refers to a broad process that includes not only support but service that exceeds expectations.
Have a great idea? That is a start, but what takes an idea and makes it a successful business venture. How do great leaders get execution?
Here is the model we will be discussing and the words contained in the model are key to our discussion of the ‘doingness’ of leadership.
Criteria Objective
The product delivers a Solution
The plan delivers the Strategy
Process determines Success
First, a business must have a product. A product that is needed and provides a solution that is easy to use and delivers immediate value.
A business venture must have a plan. The plan is the roadmap that delivers the strategy, the specifics of how we are going to deliver our product to the market. The plan is comprised of strategies and will include:
- product development, continuing to enhance the product to meet the ever-evolving demands of the market that keep your business competitive;
- marketing, communication that tells your market about the solution your product provides;
- sales communicate to the product customer expectations and ensure that the product delivers the solution easily, and value is realized immediately; and
- customer satisfaction, following up with your customer on a regular basis as a proactive approach that exceeds expectations and pre-empts any problems or issues that will arise.
The business remains viable and thrives when customers are happy. Happy customers require a proactive process to customer service. A reactive approach to customer service means that your customers must first be unhappy or dissatisfied. Proactive customer service means keeping customers satisfied; they are the key to business prosperity.
A business must have a process implemented for every strategy identified in the plan. A process is what determines the degree of success. Developing and communicating the process to the employees of the business is a tedious, essential, and continual task of management and is the greatest responsibility of LEADERSHIP.
A successful business enterprise calls for a great leader. A leader that inspires others to action and values its most valuable resource, the human resource. Employees should expect to be successful, and leadership is responsible to this end. Leadership must know what employees are doing, where they are doing it, and when they are doing it.
Leaders need solutions for success and today more than ever before technology is the solution and is readily available and affordable. Technology solutions are no longer optional but are required if your business is to remain competitive, productive, attract and retain talent, and prosper. Haven’t explored a technology solution? Hurry, you need to catch up! Because you are a great leader, begin today. Begin by managing your people; busybusy is an affordable and easy-to-use time tracking solution that will ensure you continue to be a great leader in your company and your industry.
