Effective leadership: With empathy

The age-old question around nature or nurture was the starting point for an interactive discussion on the first day of the HR Indaba Conversation, with a star line-up of HR leaders from diverse industries focusing on the indispensable role that HR professionals play in spotting and harnessing talent within the organisation.

BY ANG LLOYD

An interactive HR Indaba Conversation on leadership featured panellists Pamela Xaba, human capital head at Netstar, Steven Teasdale, Discovery group head of organisational development, change and transformation, and Tshidi Anya, regional HR director, Africa and the Middle East, at Weir Minerals, who all contributed valuable insights on the role HR professionals play in leadership.

CHRO South Africa editor-in-chief Georgina Guedes started the discussion by introducing the age-old question of “Are leaders born or made?”

Most participants believed that it was a bit of both – with overwhelming agreement that anyone can be a leader with the right support – and if the person is willing to take ownership of their development journey. Pamela shared that leadership went beyond management, to a selfless calling not focused on power and control as “one doesn’t need a title to lead; it’s about how you show up”. Effective leadership requires specific skills, experience, and, most importantly, self-development. Pamela added that career coaches teach that leaders must be comfortable giving up the limelight to let others shine – something she fully agrees with. According to Tshidi, leadership is a skill that can be developed and learnt. She shared four key points that HR leaders should consider when nurturing leadership potential in others: • Be intentional when creating leadership training, • Help employees create career paths, • Give emerging leaders opportunities to grow, and • Create an environment of mentorship.

Steven Teasdale

Seen in the chat ....

“The pandemic brought out the best in people. I saw it across our business: people achieved greatness through this stressful time, and leaders started to emerge – a call centre agent became a leader, for example. People learnt new skills; millennials who are tech-savvy showed Gen X employees how to use Zoom. It was wonderful.” - Janine Conrad, human resources business partner at Old Mutual Finance. “Self-awareness and the awareness of others is so important. I lead from a place of empathy, but empathy is lacking in business; the bottom line is of course a factor, but you can still make a profit while driving your workforce using empathy.” - Tshidi Dabula, consultant at DPS

“After all,” said Tshidi, “We all stand on the shoulders of giants.” She added that a natural ability to lead couldn’t be ignored, however it’s more important how HR leaders build on talent – and how they nurture potential talent.

Steven dug deeper into what leadership really means, and how leaders can now be found across multiple levels of an organisation. In a hybrid world, the notion of leadership is broader and more encompassing, and there are now more diverse teams solving highly complex problems. “We’re also seeing people taking leadership roles who aren’t formal leaders – they are leaders of disciplines,” he said. “The modern leader has a far greater role in mentoring people, but that doesn’t necessarily come naturally, and it needs to be developed.”

Leadership isn’t linear, it’s a privilege

The participants discussed how becoming a leader doesn’t always express itself in a clear career trajectory. Tshidi shared a personal story illustrating this: “If you talked to my teachers, they’d tell you I am a born leader; I was a prefect. But I needed training and hard work to become the leader I am today.” Leaders should always be learning, and undergoing formal leadership training was pivotal for her development. “In HR, we think we can’t lead change, but we can – if we develop the skills,” she added. Pamela discussed leadership as a privilege and a journey, with no one being entitled to the position they have. She emphasised that people place their trust in a leader and it is a huge responsibility, and that leaders must remain humble.

“You started somewhere. At some point, someone gave you a chance. It may have been through hard work, but in business someone usually sees the potential in you,” she said. “Once you’re there, you need to consistently look at those who are behind you; you need to constantly carry them forward.” Steven explained that his leadership journey had been tough. He discovered that self-awareness is fundamental and once he realised that he didn’t know everything, there was a shift. “Maybe someone who is younger than you, who has less experience than you, has something very important to offer,” he said. As a leader, one must ask tough questions that are uncomfortable, and the best leaders are willing to accept they’re wrong and leave their ego at the door. “In meetings, I often find that when someone says something I’m automatically composing an answer; I’m not listening,” admitted Steven. “I’m trying to demonstrate my own intellect and competence and that’s my ego at play. We do this unconsciously, but we need to have far more control over ourselves to embrace the wisdom of others.”

After a fruitful breakaway discussion that focused on courage, having difficult conversations and holding people accountable, attendees returned to the main session.

Steven summed up the session by noting that leaders must step into difficult moments and not ignore them. He added that the pandemic had resulted in leaders having to create moments for people to step forward, like asking team members how they are coping during Zoom meetings. “We’re getting it right more often,” he said. “We’ve always known that leaders need to be empathetic, but we’ve finally realised that conversations that don’t matter, matter the most.”