Insights: Leading People Who Are More Experienced Than You Are

Some of the participants in NPN’s Leadership Acceleration Programs recently became Executive Directors for the first time. One of the challenges they frequently face is supervising people who have been on the staff for years. They may have much more organizational and domain knowledge and serve in roles that require technical competence that the ED doesn't have.

If you face a similar challenge, you may consider the advice provided in the Harvard Business Review article “Leading People When They Know More than You Do." In a senior leader role, you don’t need to – and in fact cannot – be the expert in everything. While it’s natural to feel some apprehension about areas where you have less expertise, doubling down on mastering every detail won't work. Instead, your goal should be to bring out the best in others, which will likely involve a different style of management than you have practiced in the past. Below are tips this article offers for developing that new leadership mindset.

Focus on Relationships

Rather than following the management style of a “specialist leader” who focuses on facts and knows what to do, act as a “generalist leader’” who focuses on relationships and knows who to call. Rather than providing all the answers, view your role as bringing the team together to collectively find the answers.

Act as an Enabler

In this type of leadership role, you can't do all the work. Focus instead on enabling the work. Ensure managers are having two-way conversations with their teams and continually take the pulse of your network to understand if everything seems to be on track.

See the Bigger Picture

Much of your value stems from your ability to see the view “from the balcony” and provide that perspective to others. One recommendation for cultivating this higher-level view is to consider how a problem affects those at different levels of your organization. For example, how does this issue affect someone delivering services directly to your clients or a communications coordinator? Alternatively, how does it affect a board chair? This exercise can help you develop a perspective that allows you to continue to provide a north star for your organization.

Project Confidence

Accept that you are not going to have all the facts or all the answers. But you can and should aim to inspire confidence in others. More important than an encyclopedic knowledge of a particular area is your sincere connection to your audience. Be a good listener and reflect back what you are hearing.

Finally, remember that leadership is a learned skill. Your ability to lead will improve with practice, as will your impact as a leader.

Source: “Leading People When They Know More than You Do,” by Wanda T. Wallace and David Creelman, Harvard Business Review, June 18, 2015.