There is a question circulating in a growing number of organisations right now, usually framed as a cost-saving conversation: do we actually need team leaders?
With flatter structures becoming fashionable and middle management under ever-increasing scrutiny, it is a reasonable thing to ask.
But it tends to get asked in the abstract, away from the specifics of what team leaders actually do on the ground. When a business is going through changes, the gap between theory and reality becomes more visible than ever. So, what is the actual value of a team leader today, and how can a team leader implement change in the workplace successfully?
Why change in the workplace fails without the right leadership
Sometimes, there comes a particular type of change in the workplace. One where a new initiative or process is announced, usually with great enthusiasm, lengthy discussions in all-hands-on meetings, only to quietly get forgotten about by the time the next month rolls around.
Not all issues with change come from rebellion to the idea, or sabotage even, but simply because it does not stick. And this is usually down to leadership, or the lack of it. An email may announce the change, but there needs to be someone leading the change consistently, with the tools and time to do it properly.
Why team leaders are so central to change
Sometimes things need a proper change. This could come from management above, or a new management team, a new service or product or simply a shake up to ‘how things were always done.’ Whatever the variety of change, a good team leader is crucial in implementing these changes, in a way that even a strongly worded email sent to everyone simply cannot replicate.
This is because team leaders occupy a position that no one else in an organisation does – they bridge a gap between two worlds. They are close enough to the work to understand what a change actually means in practice on a Wednesday morning when the new process does not quite fit the situation in front of them, rather than merely in theory. They are also close enough to the people to know which concerns might surface before they actually do, which anxieties are reasonable and where more time might be needed. This combination of proximity and trust is what makes a team leader so valuable when change needs to stick.
There is also the matter of credibility. A team leader who has spent months building a reputation for honesty carries real weight when they stand behind something new. People extend trust to their leader way before they extend it to the initiative. It may be obvious by now that investing in team leaders is one of the most practical things an organisation can do to make change actually land.
Leadership through change: what team leaders actually do differently
Knowing that team leaders matter during periods of change is straightforward enough, but knowing what they should actually do differently is where it gets more specific. Here’s our guide for any team leader being asked to spearhead change within the workplace:
Be honest about what you know and what you don’t
One of the most common mistakes made during change is faking certainty when there may not be any. Hollywood is away with the idea that you need to keep a straight face in times of uncertainty, but in the real world, people want real people. Be strong, but be real.
Team leaders who present a confident front when the picture is still forming above them tend to lose credibility quickly when reality diverges from what they said. However authoritative you think you’re being, teams notice.
A more effective approach is simply being straightforward. “Here is what I know.” “Here is what I am still waiting to find out.” “Here is what I will do when I have more information.” This kind of honesty does not undermine confidence in the change, but it will show that you are in this with your team, and this can only help but inspire them to face it together with you.
Get ahead of the concerns
When change happens, there is nearly always resistance in some form, and this tends to come from a place of fear. This is to be expected and is not entirely unreasonable, but pretending they don’t exist or that they are invalid will only lead to the concerns escalating.
Concerns could arise around the new direction, about uncertainty for job security, about improper training, or even frustration over the disruption, being felt left behind or out of date.
To get ahead of these, ask the team frankly if they have any questions and acknowledge that things have been or will be difficult. A concern that is spoken out loud early on is a lot easier to address than one that festers and comes out after the pint of being able to fix it..
Keep the team connected to the reason
Change rarely happens in a vacuum, and thinking that your team will carry on without knowing why is probably the worst course of action. People will adapt to a surprising amount of change if they are aware of the reasoning behind it.
Equally, be precise. Vague organisational rationale tends to produce vague commitment.
A team leader’s job is to translate the reasoning into something meaningful at the level of the actual work. Not “the business needs to be more agile,” but “this means we can respond to client requests without three rounds of sign-off.” One lands with the people who have to live with the change, the other undermines them.
Watch for the people who go quiet
As with any change in life, those that are the loudest tend to get the most attention, but in the workplace it pays to watch the ones who have nothing to say on the matter. They rarely have no opinion. Going quiet during uncertainty can signal disengagement, anxiety, or a quiet decision to look elsewhere. Good team leaders notice who has withdrawn from conversations and make time to check in, not in a pushy way, to make it easier for those people to raise what is on their mind.
How a team leader can implement change in the workplace
Even the best designed change management plan can under-estimate the power of having a team leader there on the ground, once the announcements have been made and the procedures shared. The embedding of these changes can take months and having a leader to help facilitate this is crucial to the success of change itself.
How a team leader can implement change in the workplace is by being there once the initial excitement and energy has faded, consistently checking on procedures, people and results, constantly realigning when things don’t hit the mark and acknowledging when they do, because change is not a single event, it is the accumulation of the small moments that happen after the announcement.
