Imagine a company where everyone communicates freely. Everyone leads and co-leads each other and helps to improve the culture of the company. Traditional leadership patterns, previously driven by hierarchy and power, have now been replaced by a shared sense of shared responsibility.
Sounds almost too good to be true. But in fact, it may be possible to get a good distance out of the way. The situation described above is a small reflection of what it means to work in a work environment characterized by employees who lead upwards.
What does it mean to head upwards?
Leading upwards is about influencing and having co-responsibility for the relationship with your superiors in the organization. One might be tricked into thinking that because there is leadership in the title, that it then only involves an effort by management. But that's not actually the case.
Leading upwards requires a proactive approach where you as an employee help your managers make better decisions and together understand needs and challenges. Leading upwards can be an improving element of the employee-manager relationship and can improve employee well-being in general.
The fact that a culture of regular, mutual and evolving feedback is created can have a huge positive impact on your organization - not only internally, but also externally.
Read more: Feedback & Dialogue
Why is it important to look upwards?
The ability to lead upwards can have a huge impact on your career development and the overall success of the company. By ensuring clear communication, mutual understanding and ongoing collaboration, you can create value for both yourself and the organization. For example:
- Improved decision making:
By leading upwards, everyone can more easily contribute to more informed decisions at the management level. This improved decision-making can lead to faster adaptation to market demands and better response to competitors' movements. This also increases the company's ability to compete effectively. - Innovation and adaptability:
A culture in which all layers of the company actively contribute with upward leadership, at the same time fosters an open dialogue about ideas and innovation. This can result in improved processes, giving the company a competitive advantage by differentiating itself from competitors and meeting customer needs more efficiently.
Read more: Distributed Management: Increasing Autonomy and Innovation
- Better and broader communication:
By communicating across all layers of the company, a better communication culture is created. Regular conversations or feedback thus help to normalize and effect a communication culture that becomes easier for more of the company's employees and managers to follow.
Read more: Relational management
How to Lead Upward — 5 Practical Tips for Employees
You may be thinking: that sounds good, but also unrealistic. The answer is no! It can actually be done and we want to help you understand how.
It can seem incredibly cross-border to have to start implementing and using upward leadership. It can also feel completely unnatural or even uncomfortable to mess with. But nevertheless, it is incredibly important to have some level of upward leadership in a company.
Employees usually make up the majority of a company. Just as an anthill does not function without the labor ants, neither can a business function without employees. It is a typical misconception that managers are more competent than their employees. Employees are the ones who know the most about the challenges the company can face. Therefore:
- Don't hold back on ideas and inputs
The creative process that happens when we go into 'solution mode' is healthy for the development of both you, your manager and your colleagues. Your ideas can help improve and develop the culture of your company. For example, you can start by asking:
“Is it okay for me to share some ideas and input that I've been given to...?” - Prepare
Ideas and solutions can make so much sense, but no value if they are not properly supported. Without proper preparation and sufficient data to support your input, it is both a waste of time for you and your manager. Be sharp, prepared and at the same time open to mistakes and shortcomings. It's not always that we see all the pitfalls for our own ideas. - Keep your leader safe
Understand your leader's needs and familiarize yourself with their specific situation and challenges. Come prepared, substantiate your claim, and empathize. Approach your manager the way you want to be accessed by them.
For example: “I have noticed our challenge with... and I have had an idea to meet it in the best possible way. Are you interested in hearing my input?”
Read more: What is assertive communication? - Show confidence and don't be afraid to take charge
While it feels unnatural to take on a guiding behavior towards your leader, it is incredibly healthy for both yourself and your leader. This creates a dynamic that fosters a solution-oriented approach instead of a traditional one-way solution. Here it is a good idea to prepare how you want to formulate yourself so that you appear empowered and confident. For example:
“I have observed that we have a challenge, and I feel confident that the solution is found by...”
Here is tip #2 on preparation essential for you to appear trustworthy.
- Take the lead for everyone's sake
If there is no one to start the wave, nothing will ever happen. Don't be afraid to challenge the norm in your workplace. Ideas that are well prepared, well substantiated and well communicated will rarely be badly received. It takes courage to be a first-mover and we know that anyone can, if only they dare. Be humble for the process. It can take some time to reshape a culture, and it takes reassurance and balance in the company to succeed.
Read more: Psychological reassurance
Let your employees lead you - 3 practical tips for the manager
As I said, it takes effort from employees to lead upwards. However, it can be incredibly challenging as an employee to implement a successful upward leadership style on your own. It requires an open and curious approach from you as a leader. Therefore, as a manager, try to understand what is behind your employees' actions and make them confident in being able to come to you with improvements, suggestions, ideas and input.
Read more: Strength-Based Leadership: Unlocking the Potential of Your Team
We have collected 3 tips for you as a manager or middle manager to help you on the path to fostering an upward leadership:
- Share your or your company's improvement and development points
In this way, you make your employees aware of where they can contribute and the purpose is clear. At the same time, it helps to express both vulnerability and strength in being transparent about possible points of improvement and development. - Be open, curious and active
Employees who show signs of wanting to improve or develop at something within the company are worth gold. Some employees don't take the step themselves, so be sure to invite them onto the active pitch when the opportunity arises.
Read more: Coaching & Curiosity - Italeset that you are open to input
Put in words and be clear that you are open to new input and that you trust that your employees have the skills to help with any challenges in the company. As mentioned above, it is a regular misconception that development and improvement ideas come only from management. All inputs and angles can help to find the best solutions.
We hope this article has given you blood on the tooth to implement upward leadership and to learn how to lead upwards. If you experience a lack of communication, a low level of psychological security or are curious about feedback culture, do not hesitate to contact us.
