When David Murray was CEO of the fast-growing business Buildxact Software, he faced the challenge of scaling up to meet the expected demand from builders for their project management offerings. David understood that scaling the business is as much a leadership challenge as a business challenge. He knew he needed to step up his leadership if he was to expect more from his team.
He learned some important lessons from his early role models that came into play. Their success in running large-scale businesses taught him to put people first by being connected to and respectful of the individuals on the team. He needed to be personable without necessarily being informal or casual and can cut through to what his team is asking him to help with. He struck a balance between nurturing his team and making it clear they have a job to do to achieve their targets. His new mantra became ‘How can I help you do that?’ His growing philosophy of leadership is more about enabling and helping his team through setting parameters about how they should think or talk. He found it particularly important to give people a sense of being valued, knowing that what they are doing matters.
David also learned something important from his role models that he might not have emphasised four or five years earlier: that it’s not all about him. He sees humility as an important part of his personal development as he reassesses what is important. Earlier in his career it was about climbing the corporate ladder, a focus he now sees as personally destructive. Now he focuses on the human touch, with humility, compassion, and respect for others paramount.
As David stepped up his leadership, he could authentically insist that he does not tolerate inflated egos in the business.
These leadership insights from David Murray are outlined in more detail in the new book, which Dean Phelan and I co-authored – The Gentle Art of Leadership. The perspectives we gathered from our interviews with 50+ leaders from around the globe and the original research we drew on, form the basis of the book.
🙋♀️ What does it take to scale up in your experience? 🙋
PS: Discover your inner superpower, develop the human touch and enhance your ability to get to “yes” faster in the Personality and Behaving Transactionally Program. Get in touch if you would like to find out more about the latest program.
Best regards, Brian