There are certain characteristics every company and recruiter should look for when hiring a transformational leader. What are those characteristics, and how can you be sure that a candidate who has them makes them “transformational?”
At TruPath, we focus on finding culturally aligned talent at the mid to senior levels of leadership. As our recruiters speak with candidates each day for open positions, there are a few things that we use to determine whether a leader can be considered transformational.
Here are eight transformative leadership characteristics that should be at the forefront of your decision making when looking at candidates.
1. Let employees find their fit
Employees have different personalities and preferences. Every employee works differently. This means that instead of creating a structured form of performance within your organization, transformational leaders allow employees to work in their comfort zone. The result of allowing employees to operate on trust produces more job satisfaction and motivation.
2. Shows the benefit of working beyond self-interest
This is a major transformational leadership characteristic. Motivation can be tough and sometimes it seems like the only way to push your team to succeed is through incentives and compensation. A true transformative leader knows that it’s not all about the money, and creates an environment where the team wants everyone to win. Organizations align when working towards a common goal, and a transformational leader knows how to clearly communicate that goal to the team.
3. Has clearly defined goals
The best leaders know that nothing gets transformed without clearly defined goals. Without them, the team doesn’t know what they’re striving, and individuals lose sight of why they work in the first place. In interviews, recruiters should ask about personal and collaborative goals to discover how clarity has lead to achievement.
4. Allows mistakes
A toxic leader punishes mistakes. A transformative leader understands that failure is part of the process. The mark of a transformative leader is allowing an employee to get back on the horse and learn from where they fell off. Believing in your team goes a long way towards how they work as a unit.
5. Leads By Example
There are managers who demand a lot from employees and are hypocritical in their own performance. Then there are transformational leaders that take their brand of success and lead by example. These leaders understand their behaviors set the standard for performance at their organization, and have the ability to inspire their team to work at the same level of engagement.
6. Encourages self-motivation/self-management
If one quality in this list trumps them all, it is putting a culture together that spurs self-management. No one likes a micromanager, but the ones that do it feel like they have to to ensure that everything is done correctly. A transformational leader lets each person be responsible for their role, and feels confident in managing it themselves.
7. RECOGNITION
This cannot be stressed enough. One of the best ways to push your team to new heights is giving people credit when they succeed. A common reason that employees can feel frustrated or stagnant is because they feel lost in the corporate ladder and their manager only cares about their bottom line and quotas. Closing big deals, creating better practices, or even just giving 110% are all extremely valid reasons to congratulate someone on their work and make sure that they know they are noticed and appreciated.
8. Passion is contagious
Leaders who lead with purpose have a contagious energy that trickles down to every crevice of the organization. Passion is one of those transformational leadership characteristics that creates excitement and drive in your employees.
The goal of a transformational leader is to develop your team into the best that they can be, both individually and as a team. Finding a leader that utilizes these characteristics not only will grow your company and make your company great at recruiting talent, but it will also grow your people. Before you make your next hire, make sure that your leadership candidate possesses these traits.
TruPath helps organizations find culturally aligned talent. Contact our team today to learn how we may be able to assist you in a leadership search.