Top 10 qualities of a remarkable boss

Should he lead or should he demonstrate? Lalit Jain, director and co-founder annectos Rewards & Retail (P) Ltd lists out the qualities that make an exceptional manager. Illustration by Uttam Ghosh and Dominic Xavier

Being a boss is not an easy job.

People don’t naturally wish to have one, and not everyone aspires to be one.

There is a distinct difference between being a boss and a being a leader.

You need to be a leader who inspires, motivates and instils trust and builds loyalty.

Managers should strive to become good leaders not just great bosses.

By focussing on leadership, people will learn from you, want to contribute to your success, the client’s success and their own.

The top traits of an exceptional leader are as follows:

1. Expansive thinking

A good leader creates an atmosphere of expansive thinking.

He empowers his team with time, resources and techniques, to solve big issues with big ideas instead of quick fix solutions.

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2. Right culture

A good leader builds in the right culture from the very beginning.

This culture is built by design and not by default.

It means they attract the right people and get them the right seats.

It’s also important that they ensure that the wrong people never get on, and in the off chance that they do, they get off just as quickly.

3. Delegate

Delegate substantial projects, not just simple tasks.

Most managers often give task-based assignments to people without sharing or involving their team in the long-term strategic plan or business implications.

Time and effort spent in teaching someone in your team to work their way through the project will pay off.

Your team will appreciate the increasing trust and responsibility and will work harder to prove their value.

Be accepting of different work styles or approaches.

Your team might surprise you with insightful new ideas.

4. Applaud and reward

Reward and advocate your team.

If your team has delivered and completed some challenging assignments don't forget to reward them for a job well done.

Recognising their efforts and rewarding them is very important.

Advocate for them throughout the organisation. Applaud them in front of their peers and senior managers.

5. Career growth

An effective leader integrates learning and development into every job description so that personal growth is required and rewarded.

They ensure that the company apportions time and money towards personal growth so that everyone shares reasonable expectations of commitment and success.

6. Team building

A good leader builds teams that work together to succeed and fail together (of course he also ensures his is a fail-safe leadership -- that’s good direction).

This creates a tight bond of loyalty towards the company and each other.

Successes are met with equal high praise and rewards, while failures are met with encouraging acceptance and post-mortem learning discussions yielding next-step improvements

7. Responsibility

A good leader admits s/he is human and takes responsibility for his/her own errors.

As a leader, you are also a teacher showing a sense of humility when an error happens.

This also sends out a clear message to the team about honesty and owning up responsibility when things go wrong.

8. High on ethics

A leader conducts himself/herself with high standards of morals and ethics.

It's important to inspire future leaders by living and working with integrity.

9. Passion

Leaders demonstrate passion. They have a feel for the business.

The best leaders have a solid understanding of all the key aspects of the business they are in. They understand the products, the technology, market share, sales channels, and how to read an income statement.

Those well-rounded managers make the best business leaders.

10. Decision making

Good leaders are awesome decision makers.

More than anything, management is about decision-making. That is where the rubber meets the road.

The most effective way to do that is to ask the right people the right questions, listen to what they tell you, then trust your gut and make the call.

If you’re right a lot more than you’re wrong, you’re in good shape.