People First, Impact Always

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Welcome to the Tuesday Trailblazer, my weekly newsletter delivering actionable advice from my personal experiences in 15+ years of people and business leadership.

What we’ll cover off:

• The importance of prioritising people in leadership.

• Effective strategies for building relationships with your team.

• How focusing on personal connections can drive significant impact.

• Inspiration to shift towards a people-first approach in your leadership journey.

As you’ve probably learned by now, I love leading teams.

Thirty days ago, I began my journey with ASICS. Here’s a glimpse of some of the feedback I’ve received from my leadership team in just one month:

• “Thanks for including me yesterday, I love being a part of the journey.”

• “I really appreciated you coming out and making the time. We all can’t wait to work more with you.”

• “Took a lot from our time yesterday. I’m definitely going to grow and develop in my role under your coaching and mentoring.”

• “I’m going to make this happen, because now we’ve got you.”

• “You remind me a lot of a coach I had. I hope you know you’ve already had a big impact on me.”

• “You know what, Howard? I enjoy having you on the team. Your words hold a lot of weight.”

Now I’m not sharing these to brag but to highlight one key thing.
When you put people first, you can have an impact always.

Today, I want to share with you how.

In today’s fast-paced work environment, leaders often focus heavily on operations and results, sometimes at the expense of building strong relationships.

However, prioritising people can lead to a more motivated, engaged, and high-performing team.

Research shows that leaders who invest in building personal connections foster trust and collaboration, which are critical for long-term success.

By highlighting my first 30 days at ASICS, I want to illustrate the transformative power of a people-first approach and inspire other leaders to make this shift.

Many leaders struggle with making meaningful connections with their teams, especially when they are new to an organisation.

They might focus too much on immediate results and operational tasks, missing out on the opportunity to understand their team members personally.

This can lead to a lack of trust, lower morale, and decreased productivity.

Failing to build strong relationships from the start can make it challenging to lead effectively and inspire others.

So, In my first 30 days at ASICS, whilst supported by a good man named Russell who had been playing this role previously, I prioritised 2 things.

• Building the relationship with my team

• Building my relationship with the brand

Week 1/2: Store Team Meet & Greets/Office & DC Tours/Brand Team Meets  

Team Meet & Greets
Getting around to meet the store teams with Russell for some initial introductions and to let them know of my onboarding schedule for the next few weeks. I felt it was important that I didn’t just start and they didn’t see me for a month or so whilst in that onboarding phase.

Office Tour
What an amazing office space this is. It immediately reminded me of a scene from the movie “the internship”. Full of great people and to be honest what I would openly say has been the biggest challenge of the role so far…

Remembering everyone’s name who I’ve met.

Brand Team Meets 
From planning to training, from finance to marketing, I was able to spend time with and engage with the teams from across the business and share a little bit more about myself and learn the important roles of these teams and how they support my team. For the first time in a long time… I’m not the only City fan in the office!

Week 3: RM Meeting & Strategy Building 
I am fortunate to come into the business at the time of a new GM for the retail space which means I’ve been able to come in when the retail team is doing some great work on how we empower our teams to lead with impact - RIGHT UP MY ALLEY!
It was great though to meet my colleagues in person from across the country as we came together in VIC and were able to head out for one of my favourite past times… eating.

Final Handover
Russell had been an amazing support and made this onboarding a flexible, yet powerful one. I am so appreciate of the time and patience he had with me and his wealth of knowledge was gold for me. Russ, if you’re reading this -- you’re a real one mate! Thank you.

Week 4: Initial SM 1:1’s
Now off Russell’s leash, I was out on my own and I had 1 focus…
1:1 catch ups!
I had 3 rules for these catch ups.

• No laptop: Ensured the focus was entirely on the person in front of me.

• No shop talk: The priority of this catch up was to learn more about my team, not their business performance.

• Take the SM out of store: No distractions, better conversation.
  

This is where I learned the most about my team and what matters most to them.

Week 5: SM Meeting

Now that I’ve gotten to know my team, know the brand and get across the strategy to take us into the back half of FY24 - It was time to get my team together for our first SM meeting.

A meeting MUST have a purpose.
Our teams purpose for this one;

Connect as a TEAM. 
Prioritise IMPACT.
Gain CLARITY. 

The messages I shared at the top of this email, I received from my team right throughout these weeks, however the highlight of my first 30 days came in this meeting when we kicked off the day, sharing moments that matter to us and that have had the biggest impact in our lives.

Things got emotional. Quickly.
And I was ALL FOR IT!

It set the tone for an open and transparent day and one that the guys were extremely appreciative of.

More importantly, it allowed for us to achieve the purpose of the above.
Now we’re on the same train and headed forward together.

If you’re struggling to influence your team currently, try this 4 day challenge;

• Day 1: Schedule a 1:1 - Arrange a 1:1 with one of your team members. Ensure no distractions and focus on getting to know them personally.

• Day 2: No Shop Talk - Conduct these meetings without discussing work tasks or performance. Focus on building a personal connection.
  

• Day 3: Learn About the Brand - Spend time understanding your organisation’s history, values, and goals. Align your leadership style with the brand’s vision.
  

• Day 4: Reflect and Adjust - Reflect on the insights gained from your one-on-ones and brand learning. Adjust your approach as needed to strengthen these relationships with the rest of your team.

Building strong relationships is the cornerstone of effective leadership. By prioritising personal connections with your team you can create a supportive and motivated environment.

Remember, it’s not just about leading—it’s about connecting.

Let’s keep building those relationships, Trailblazers, and lead with empathy and understanding.

Until next Tuesday, lead on!

I have built and led teams across 3 successful businesses and have over 15 years of people and business leadership experience.

Over the past 4 years, I have grown my business working with “busy” leaders across multiple industries (retail, hospitality, construction, mining, education) helping them igniting their impact and leadership both at work and at home.

Without abandoning their ambition.

Let me share my insights and help you:

• Reclaim your time

• Prioritise your wellbeing

• Achieve work/life harmony

• Improve customer centricity

• Connect & elevate team culture

• Develop beyond busy leadership skills

• Build your business bench and succession planning

Book A 45 minute “Beyond Busy Mentor” Meeting Here

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