Team Leader Seminar: Key management take-aways

23 February 2020

At the Professional Paraplanner Team Leader Seminar held in London this February, Jackie Boylan, Head of UK Advisor Platform FundsNetwork, spoke from her experience as a manager, and offered some key take-aways for delegates. Included in this were her 13 ‘non-negotiables of leadership.’ Here, we’ve summarise some of the key points from her presentation.    

We are taking registrations for our future Team Leader events. To register your interest please email: [email protected], with your name, contact details and company address.

You can read more about the latest Team Leader Seminar in the March 2020 issue of Professional Paraplanner – out on Thursday.

And HERE you can watch a short video about the event.

Key management take-aways summarised:

  • Have measurable goals for the team, you and your team members. Without clearly defined measurables, you won’t know whether any of you are making progress and are achieving what the team, and you, have set out to achieve.
  • There has to be a cultural fit – whether for you or team members. Are the culture and aspirations of the company ones you can believe in?
  • You don’t have to be the font of all knowledge. Successful team leaders build strong teams around them. Compile the best team you can including specialists with expertise in key areas to serve the team.
  • Treat people how you expect to be treated. Boylan said this was key to being a successful and effective leader. While seemingly an obvious one, she said, when promoted to a more senior level people can think themselves more important and will only talk to people at ‘their level’. Aim for respected authority rather than hierarchy, “have an open door, and make sure people know you are approachable”.
  • Being nice to people doesn’t mean you can’t make tough decisions when you need to.
  • Build relationships – you can’t do everything on your own. Meet people, understand what they can do and how you may be able to help each other.
  • Listening to others – this is how you learn. Bring in and nurture people for their expertise and be accepting of their advice. Be humble in terms of what you do and do not know.
  • Be known for something – how do you stand out as a leader, what makes you different and able to attract the best people to come and work for you?
  • Be aware of how you project yourself. As a leader people will take cues from you. Your attitude – positive or negative – will affect those around you, particularly in a smaller office. When you walk into the office, do you say hello? As a leader it is important to acknowledge your team.
  • As a leader it is important to know the people around you. Small things like knowing birthdays, family situation, can help bond us as people. Also, often leaders are best positioned to know when things aren’t right with a person and some support may be needed.
  • Learn from leaders you have respected and liked. This can be people you have worked for or well-known inspirational leaders. How have they approached being a leader and can you apply the same in your role?
  • Ongoing self-appraisal is important in your own development. And be honest with yourself. For example, when you come out of a meeting take a few moments to assess how you did, was your approach right, did you achieve what you wanted, would you do things differently in future.
  • Know what motivates your team and how you can inspire them to achieve goals. And make sure you celebrate wins when you achieve them. Give credit where it is due. And make sure you let other people know, so your team is recognised for doing well.
  • Finally – communicate! “In my opinion over communication is better than no communication,” Boylan advised.

Jackie Boylan’s 13 ‘non-negotiables of leadership’ are:
1. Treat people how you expect to be treated
2. Build relationships
3. Listen to others
4. Be known for something
5. Be aware of how you project yourself
6. Contagious leadership
7. Say hello…
8. Get personal
9. Recognise the leadership qualities you appreciate in others
10. Be honest with yourself
11. Inspire!
12. You need the best people around you
13. Communication is king

Professional Paraplanner