Leading a technology company is not easy. Executives have to deal with all of the expected challenges of running a business in addition to the additional multipliers of; a faster pace, a typical reliance on off-site partners, accelerated product cycles, multi-generational workforces and international competitors appearing out of nowhere.
Complicating things further is the fact that many tech executives didn’t ascend to the executive suite because of their leadership and management skills, but because of their technical abilities. This is especially true for tech start-ups and small business, where the executives in charge are often the founders and original technical leads. Additionally, many tech execs suffer from the Founder Syndrome, which has several recognizable symptoms. Others have simply not had had enough executive experience to know how to avoid the traditional leadership potholes.
To explore the issue of leadership flaws in tech executives we spoke with Wally Schmader, a well-known thought leader on leadership training, CEO of Exceptional Leaders Lab and Vistage Chair for Coastal Virginia. Schmader explains that there are many dangerous leadership misunderstandings, miscalculations and blind spots that often impact tech executives. He outlined a list of six fatal flaws that he’s seen in tech executives that everyone should watch out for.
1. Not Understanding that Leadership is a Craft
Tech executives must understand that the skills required of leaders today are constantly changing. What worked for you a year ago may not work now. Executives must be deliberate about developing high-level leadership skills. Those that don't will be subject to the Peter Principal, and leadership will become a growth bottleneck for their company.
Top performing tech execs think of themselves as “works in progress”. They know that their leadership skill set should always be growing to match their opportunities and challenges.
2. Over-Emphasizing Ideas Over Execution
Ideas are the one never-ending resource for tech companies. There is always another idea, another feature, another new technology to explore. Top tech leaders know that execution is the difference-maker and they understand the delicate balance of tactics, vision and strategy.
This prioritization is especially important when It comes to recognition. Progressive teach leaders understand that recognizing and incentivizing the “doers” on their teams in crucial. Leaders who build muscles around execution, accountability and recognition create unlimited upside for their companies.
3. A Lack of Humility
Tech can be an ego-driven environment, and it breeds executives who can lack genuine leadership humility. Many executives in this space do not fully understand the relationship between humility and leadership.
Why is humility so important for leaders? There are three big answers to that question; First, humility leads to buy-in from the team. Second, humility is what makes a leader approachable, allowing thoughts and ideas to flow freely. Third, it is a leader’s humility that makes him or her a good delegator. Humility is a baseline character trait for a tech executive wanting to improve their leadership.
4. Forgetting to Self-Scout
“If you don’t eat your lunch someone else will.” This aphorism gets to heart of this issue. Tech executives often fail to look at their business through the lens of their competitors. What would you be doing to compete with your own business? Where are your soft spots? What would a lethal competitor look like?
With todays accelerated product cycles and turbo-charged product launches, tech executives need to have a healthy paranoia about what may be coming at them in the marketplace.
5. Echo Chamber Marketing
Many tech executives have a reputation for positioning their products and services in the way that is most attractive to them and their development team. They want to emphasize the features that they believe to be the most important or impressive. This is fine, except that it doesn’t work.
The first rule of selling anything is to be able to answer the question; how will this benefit my customer? Tech execs need to embrace whatever their target customer sees as the most valuable aspect of their offering. Features don't sell, no matter how impressive they are. One must always recognize and sell to a customer’s pain points.
6. Spending Too Much Time Working in Your Business, Instead of on Your Business
Many tech execs are usually elbow-deep in their projects. In many ways, they are the ultimate owner-operators. This is a positive in many ways, but it also creates a kind of leadership myopia that can create risk.
Tech leaders need to have a 360-degree view of their business. The must raise their periscopes up to broaden their field of vision. They need trusted advisors and focus groups to pressure-test their assumptions and biases, and they need to be thinking strategically at least as much as they are thinking about current projects.
After outlining these six fatal flaws, Schmader asks the reader if they recognize any of these flaws in themselves? If they do, don’t worry, all is not lost. Every one of these flaws can be corrected with leadership focus and determination. As with most challenges, the way forward starts with recognition of the issue. After that, you just have to be willing to take the next step.
