Passing the Leadership Baton

I recently attended a retreat that kicked off a nine-month leadership development program for fifty women in Greater Cincinnati.

The purpose of the retreat was to help us learn more about ourselves, each another, and the leadership roles and accomplishments we’ve each had.  It was a wonderful bonding experience, as we each increased our awareness and celebrated our achievements.

One thing that made the experience especially successful was that the group was very diverse.  The participants ranged in age from 28 to 60 years-old.  There were women from a wide range of companies – large and small, public and private, non-profit and lots of profit.  There were engineers, attorneys, entrepreneurs, human resource executives, managers, directors, CEOs, salespeople, chemists, project managers and more!

As the retreat progressed, we all came to treasure this diversity and the wonderful perspectives that were shared as a result.  It was this sharing of ideas and experiences that made me think about one of my favorite leadership philosophies:  leadership at every level.  We had this at the retreat, and I enjoyed watching the dynamics.

I strongly support the notion of leadership at all levels of an organization.

Companies can gain the great advantage of engaging and empowering employees when they are asked to be leaders in their roles, regardless of how “high” they are in the organizational chart.  Not only that, but the economy has actually forced this change in many companies…whether their employees are ready for the responsibility or not.  Many companies have downsized, requiring leaders need to emerge from all departments and at all levels.  Mid-level management needs to be more strategic and visionary than ever before.  Lower-level employees are being asked to do more with less guidance.

Generational Wisdom

Because our retreat brought us together, and because there were no competitive situations, everyone openly shared challenges, ideas and success stories.  I witnessed the value of one generation of leaders passing on ‘lessons learned’ to the next generation.  I watched as highly experienced women were happy and joyful to share the things they had learned.  They wanted to help.  They wanted to encourage.  They wanted development and growth to come easier for those coming behind them.

The more youthful leaders were like sponges, asking big, open-ended questions and then soaking in the wisdom of their elders.  They were eager to understand how they could be most successful and how they could benefit from others’ experiences.  The world moves faster today than it used to, and I could see their wheels turning in their minds as they were already discovering how they could leverage their learning when they returned to the office.

As leaders, and frankly, as good humans, we should all take on a philosophy of ‘passing the baton.’  We are, in many ways, running a relay race within our companies, as well as in life.  We all benefit from taking the lessons from the generation of leaders ahead, using them to help us become better, and then passing those lessons on to the next generation of leaders.

After a weekend of being built into by some and sharing what I thought could benefit others, I feel empowered as a leader and a woman.  I have again been reminded of the power that can be harnessed when we all share and help one another to become better.  If you are a fan of track-and-field, you know the most critical point of a relay race is the baton hand-off.  Become an expert at it – give and receive.  You will find success at the end of the race!!

How have you built up professionals around you who have less experience than you do?  In what ways are you helping them to develop as leaders?  What are some of the greatest lessons that have been passed on to you?  How has that sharing impacted you as a leader? I’d love to hear your thoughts and successes!

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Erin Schreyer is President of Sagestone Partners, LLC.  She is passionate about building into people and companies and helping them to achieve their greatest potential.  Erin can be reached at [email protected].

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