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E D U C AT I O N + T R A I N I N G
TODAY’S SUPERSTARS, TOMORROW’S LEADERS
What employees need to take them from good to great BY RYA N M C C A N N A
owners find leaders among their staff? NOLN spoke with shop owner Lawrence Campbell of East Coast Lube in Pooler, Ga., as well as speaking professional and master certified coach Patrick Donadio of Columbus, Ohio, to learn about leaders and what it takes to keep them. How can you spot a superstar? What distinguishes a good employee from a great one? How do you know if you’ve found a technician who has the potential to be a shop manager? It comes down to more than technical skill. Donadio identified several professional and interpersonal skills that superstars have, especially those with leadership potential. “Don’t just look at performance,” Donadio says, “but try to see potential. It’s about finding people that are engaging.” Campbell agrees that a team leader is more than just a technician. “You’re never going to find all the perfect qualities in a single person,” he says, “but if you have a majority of them, you’re headed in the right direction.” The traits Campbell and Donadio
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identify as integral to potential leaders are accountability, conscientiousness, dependability, principals, and passion. Accountability shows the employee’s awareness of their strengths, limitations, and their ability to see the consequences of their actions—especially when they need to give credit to the right person or to apologize. “A leader answers for their failures, admits mistakes, and takes responsibility,” Donadio says. Conscientiousness shows that the employee understands their role as an employee, but more importantly, as a person. Their self awareness helps them form strong social ties and navigate difficult situations. “You want someone who is emotionally intelligent,” Donadio says. “You’ll see it in [other] employees’ reactions to them, in their personal relationships, that they’re interacting well.” Successful leaders have remarkable communication skills and listen well, he says. A dependable employee is one that shows consistency in their actions and words and displays discipline in how they manage their workload. Campbell
says he looks for problem solvers who follow a project through to the end. Donadio identifies multitaskers as potential leaders. “They have the ability to manage several things at once, who know themselves and can balance their assignments well,” he says. A principled employee displays values and character even when no one is watching. They do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. Finally, a leader is someone who is passionate. Even if their current position is not their dream job, they approach daily tasks with appropriate enthusiasm and curiosity. “It’s about finding people that are engaging with the material, with customers,” Donadio says. “They’re forward thinking, solution-oriented employees who ask and act.” How do you hire a leader? Shops can disagree on whether it’s better to hire managers from outside of the company or to grow your own manager. However, both Campbell and Donadio agree that when it’s possible, they prefer to promote from within. When hiring a manager, Donadio says
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