Being a leader can be difficult, especially as you transition from an entry-level employee to a management position. There are many moving parts to be aware of, interpersonal dynamics to manage, and ultimately, a lot of responsibility to ensure your team is productive and fulfilled. In an internal poll, we asked our ATCO management team what advice they would give a new leader. Of the 21 responses, we’ve compiled the 5 most common and essential pieces of advice into a list of best practices! 

5 Best Practices to Become a Better Leader

1. Open Communication

• Maintaining open communication was by far the most common tip from our leadership team. Over half of the respondents cited its importance, and it’s easy to see why!  

• Communication is the backbone of leadership. A leader’s job is to communicate visions from the higher-ups, provide feedback on projects and tasks, listen to concerns, and troubleshoot issues. 

• Don’t forget that open communication is a two-way street. It’s vital to express your wants and needs clearly to the team, but listening to their wants and needs is equally important. Everyone needs to pull in the same direction to work effectively as a unit. 

2. Use the feedback from your team members

• Another common tip from our leaders is to not just listen to your team; act on what they tell you! Listening to your team’s feedback and opinions is a step in the right direction, but if you don’t act on the valuable information they give you, it doesn’t help improve the work process for anyone.  

• Listening to and using your team's feedback builds trust and helps refine work processes so that they are smoother for everyone. 

• If your team feels unheard, they might stop giving feedback or only offer minimal responses. This can erode trust and breed resentment, neither of which is helpful in a professional environment where teamwork is paramount. 

3. Use your colleagues as resources

• Another typical response in our leadership poll is to use all the resources at your disposal. In addition to listening to your team, listen to and confide in your peers! 

• As a manager, asking your colleagues what they would do in a situation or what has worked for them in the past can inform your leadership techniques and interpersonal relations. 

• Your fellow managers can also help you solve specific issues and answer specific questions with their professional experience and connections.

  
  

4. Recognize and celebrate your teams' successes

• Everybody works and feels better when they feel valued, so, unsurprisingly, many of our respondents mentioned the importance of praising the team’s successes. 

• In addition to the morale boost that comes with this practice, it sets an example for what you want to see. It’s generally better to show a great example, recognize the employee who did the great work, and ask that others work similarly than to single out a problem or mistake.  

• Significant mistakes should be addressed privately with the individual, not embarrassingly brought up in front of the team. If a common mistake keeps happening, it’s easy to address the whole team without singling anyone out. 

5. Be your authentic self

• The last big tip from our respondents is to be honest with your team and yourself. Be realistic in your expectations, and always be as open as possible with your team. Doing so paves the way for mutual respect and understanding, a cornerstone of an effective team dynamic.  

• Being straightforward with your team encourages them to be straightforward with you. The stronger your team’s relationship and chemistry is, the better you’ll fare during stressful/difficult work periods. 

• Being your authentic self also entails owning up to your mistakes. This vulnerability from a supervisor can go a long way and encourages team members to do the same with you. 

• Lastly, if you have your team’s back and advocate for them, they will see and value that fact and go the extra mile for you, making a world of difference. 

These are 5 of the best practices to become a better leader. Becoming a good leader will not happen overnight, and you will surely make mistakes along the way.  

Our Director of COE Engineering, Justin Evans, drove this point home in his response. He said, “A Manager is a leader, and to be a good leader, you must be humble, willing to listen, and willing to learn. Leaders are made; they are not born. It takes effort, patience, and a passionate drive that will help you and your team succeed.” 

By remembering Justin’s tips, using these 5 best practices, and leaning on your community and resources, you can become an effective, valued, and respected leader in your team and industry. To learn more about ATCO’s leadership team that helped us create this list, check out our Leadership page and read about their personal stories!