Effective Leadership #2 - Focusing on Quality

Hello Steemians, hope you are all wonderful. Welcome to yet another article on effective leadership. Leadership aims at both personal improvement as well as helping others do their best. It may not be very easy to achieve the personal best without good quality in work. Setting goals are very important for both yourself and your team. This will help in finding areas of improvement in the process as well as operating procedures. By doing this we will be able to achieve high-quality output in all the areas. Goals will be helpful doing a self-analysis to make sure the expectation is met.

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Setting up Standards

We cannot expect quality in work straight away. The first step is to define the quality that we expect. Setting up standards helps in clearly defining the expectations on how things should be done to achieve high quality. By setting up standards and adhering to it, the team will be able to work towards the standards defined to be able to deliver high-quality work. It is everyone's responsibility to achieve excellence. Communicating effectively with the staffs in your team and setting the expectation can help in working as a team to achieve the defined standards.

Explaining your staff about your commitment towards quality will also be necessary to create clarity and transparency. A leader should communicate frequently with the staff members to discuss possible areas for improvement in the standards that were defined earlier. Continuous analysis and update to defined standards will help in keeping the team members aligned. With effective communication with the staff members, achieving goals as a team will be easier.

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Improving standards of quality

Target Standards	Description	How To Achieve Quality
Leadership	Lead the team towards high quality by standardizing and by streamlining the process and product.	Ensure that all staff drives towards continuous improvement in all aspects of performance. Recognize and appreciate individuals and teams for the success of their efforts.
Strategy	Seek to uphold and develop the organization's vision, mission, values, and direction.	Determine all objectives with the aim of reaching the highest quality standards. Communicate strategic aims clearly to everybody and review and update them regularly.
People	Ensure that staff are motivated, well-managed, and empowered to improve continuously.	Train all staff in the skills and capabilities they need to meet their quality targets. Practice two-way communication, top-down and bottom-up, through all available media.
Resources	Aim to use financial and other resources efficiently to achieve the organization's objective.	Ensure money is managed effectively and everyone understands what is happening financially and why. Use the best technology available and consistently update it to state-of-the-art levels.
Processes	Ensure that all vital processes, including management, are consistently highly effective.	Develop performance measures and feedback to maintain the improvement momentum. Stimulate people to formulate innovative and creative ideas for improving processes.

Raising Standards

Setting up standards is just one part. Maintaining a good standard operating procedure is something that will need regular monitoring and update. Exceeding standards can also happen with team efforts. A good leader to should motivate the team members to analyze pain areas and work as a team to find a proper solution for the same. It is always good to think as a team. So, involving the staffs in discussions regarding process improvements, product improvements, and performance improvements can help in effective utilization of team capabilities. This idea not just brings innovation to the process, product and performance but it also helps in team building. The staff members will feel that they have been given enough space for participation and that in turn increases their motivation. All the above points will finally improve the quality of standards and provide good results for the organization.

Previous articles in this series:

Effective Leadership #1 - An Introduction

Stay tuned for future articles on effective leadership.

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