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Active listening is an effective method. Communication that builds understanding is a prerequisite for building trust between those involved. It is a subjective and emotional process. Although communication and trust processes are important, they are not typical of lateral leadership. These are no less essential in conventional, hierarchical leadership structures. In this respect, further aspects and methods need to be considered, primarily informal power and intrinsic motivation.
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Informal power arises solely from personal attributes, in contrast to the authority and organizational competencies with which traditional, disciplinary superiors are equipped for their leadership role. Formless power is complex and abstract. It arises through personal connections in real social networks through which important informal messages flow. Such sources of information are based on established and long-term communication channels and relationships of trust between influential people. These information networks are exclusive and a means of controlling interests.
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The well-known saying Knowledge is power sums up the second central aspect of lateral leadership. With specialist knowledge you achieve technical leadership. Personal knowledge advantage counts. Only with well-founded, in-depth expertise and the necessary foresight (the famous look outside the box) can you argue the content, convince and set the direction. Anyone who has in-depth knowledge and transfers it convincingly leads professionally and gains the respect, recognition and trust of other employees. Under this condition, the employees follow the professional leader. Lateral leadership is only possible through the recognition of the professional competence of the leader by “followers”. This phenomenon is in modern social media with the roles Influencer and Follower become popular. What is crucial here is the recognition of the opinion leader by the followers, even if expertise and expertise in social media can be irrelevant.
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The promotion of the intrinsic motivation is another essential approach to lateral leadership, but one that has been largely overlooked in the lateral leadership literature. Intrinsic motivation is not fed by external sources (e.g. salary, other monetary incentives, position), but arises primarily from personal interest in challenges and work content, as well as the active and structured involvement of the individual in the work group. Employees feel learning effects and experience the expansion of their own skills, which further drives individual motivation. Competencies are acquired by working on technical tasks and through methodical learning in a group. Motivation arises from experiences of success from solving problems and achieving goals. However, the prerequisite is that the respective employee is deployed in accordance with his or her personal competence profile; the tasks assigned must not lead to excessive or under-challenging demands.
Success factors of lateral leadership
In order to exploit the potential of employees, a high level of task and employee orientation is required at the same time. The lateral leader is therefore in a two-dimensional field of tension; he/she must drive individual and joint efforts to achieve goals and, in doing so, take appropriate account of interpersonal relationships. Leading with goals and managing team motivation are crucial success factors.
Lead with goals (Management by Objectives) is a proven and effective way to ignite intrinsic motivation. Responsibilities for defined work results are transferred to employees. These can be presented in the form of project orders, work packages or sprints. However, it is crucial that the goals are clearly described and achievable. The goals must be accepted by the responsible employee and the team. It is equally important not only to assign responsibilities but also to delegate rights and authority. This creates freedom. The employees under management get the feeling that they can make a difference. Visible or noticeable successes increase motivation as the process progresses.
It is important that the scope of activity of the laterally managed employees is maintained. Lateral leaders must accompany employees on the way to the goal, always signal a willingness to help and offer professional support. However, lateral leaders must not engage in micromanagement and act as detailed controllers, but rather must give the employees they manage freedom and concentrate on their results.
Building and maintaining the motivation of team employees is a particular challenge when the goals have been set ambitiously and high performance is required of the employees. The lateral leader has to organize the group in such a way that there is a sense of equality among the employees. All employees act on the same level, despite different roles and tasks – the team spirit should be in the foreground. It is important to ensure a healthy working atmosphere in the team, which is characterized by mutual respect and a fact-oriented way of working. Ranking or positioning competition should be avoided. As soon as such conflicts become apparent in the team, the lateral leader must take countermeasures.
Personal discussions with those involved help to identify the causes of disputes at an early stage so that countermeasures can be initiated in good time, for example by reorganizing the working group. Changes in the work content among team members ensure variety and keep interest high.
To motivate performance-oriented employees, lateral leaders have a very simple and yet highly effective means at their disposal: praise. A simple, expressed praise has a significant influence on the willingness to perform and the willingness to cooperate in everyday work. Expressing recognition can really inspire employees, while ignoring good employee performance can lead to frustration or inner resignation.
