Sustainable Excellence Xtras #133 - How To Choose A Leader

What do you look for in a person who will lead your company, organization, or team?

Leaders come in all shapes and sizes. Many, who have strong character, don't even realize they are leaders.

Position, tenure, or titles don't necessarily make a leader.

Many times, especially on teams, the senior members are selected by the coach as captains and the position of captain is acquainted with being a leader. But that isn't always the case.

When I was coaching high school basketball, I determined captains a different way.

I would hand each player a sheet of paper with ten questions. Each question had a space for the team member to choose up to three of their teammates. 

The questions asked things like: Who would you seek counsel from if you had a problem on or off the team? Who has the best relationship with all the members of the team? Which member of the team holds their teammates accountable? Which member of the team would stand for what is right even if it wasn't popular with their teammates?   

The person who was listed first for each question would receive 3 points, second, 2 points, and third, 1 point. Usually, the top two players with the most points were the people selected as captains.

Interestingly, almost every season, the two captains, chosen by their teammates, were not the most senior players on the team.

Choosing team captains this way accomplished many things: It allowed every member of the team to have a say in who led the team. It showed the captains that their teammates believed they were the best leaders and weren't chosen based on seniority.  It also gave the coaches a good understanding of who the real leaders of the team were. 

When you are looking to hire or promote someone to a leadership position, resist the temptation to choose the most senior people. Find a way to ask the subordinates who they believe displays the qualities of a leader and would be someone they would follow and listen to.

Please check out the video below to learn five traits to consider when looking to fill a leadership position.

Also, leave me a comment about how you determine who would make a good leader in your organization.