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ODs want Executives in Optical Stores.

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In recent news,  Starbucks’ new CEO Laxman Narasimhan says he plans to work once a month in one of the company’s stores in an effort to stay close to its culture and customers. He claims that it will help him understand the business by immersing himself in every part of the business.  Many times CEO’s are out of touch on what is going on at the store levels, this includes the optical industry.  As a leader in the organization, they come up with a strategic plan and make decisions on what might be best direction for the company for that time. Hindsight is always 20/20! Many optical leaders are result driven and are nearsighted about decisions that might bring positive numbers now but bigger losses in the future.

Recently, I posted a poll in the Corporate Optometry Facebook group and  I asked,

“Do you think that Executives in Optical should work in stores on a regular basis?”

66% of  Corporate ODs stated YES, they think that upper management should work in the stores. This would provide  realistic expectations on goals created and help upper management understand the customer experience, and employee work culture. Working with the OD on that side of the business would help gain awareness on struggles that ODs face on a daily basis. Working the hours of operations that many do til 7pm or 8pm and weekends, to immerse themselves in this burnout culture that has been created to meet goals.  Eye Care Directors should spend a day leading by example seeing 4 or more patients an hour or doing telemed exams. Having them illustrate policies and procedures that have been created as sales tactics and marketing materials that are out dated.  Getting to know employees and ODs at a personal level will create employee engagement, satisfaction and reduce turnover.

The most alarming stat from the survey was that 28% of the responses stated that they didn’t think the executives could handle working in the stores.  This illustrates that many don’t have confidence in leadership competence, and that expectations are unrealistic. Leadership is so far removed from the ground truth.  

Exercising this idea as an active “role playing” in an organization. This type of leadership can be viewed as servant leadership. This style is based on leaders serving the greater good of the team and organization, than personal growth. With time, it would create new culture in companies and cultivate new ideas for programs to improve customer service, building trust, employee engagement and satisfaction. Image the change our industry could have and evolve if executives rolled up their sleeves and experienced the daily struggles that staff and ODs have!

How to Build Your Leadership Skills: Difference between a Leader and a Manager.

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If you want to become a leader in the workplace, you’ll need to change more than just your outlook. Becoming a true leader isn’t as simple as managing a team and delegating tasks. You need to learn how to handle stressful situations with ease and make sure that everyone in your team feels valued.

Instead of just supervising a group of people and getting the work done, you need to inspire them to do better every day and step out of their comfort zone. Your focus needs to be on building relationships with your employees and getting them to trust you.

Let’s take a look at what sets a leader apart from a manager and how to develop leadership skills in the workplace.

1. Be Open-Minded and Innovative

Leaders are always open to new things. They have a passion for creating, and they don’t shy away from experimenting with new ideas. They don’t believe in sticking with tradition and are always looking for better opportunities to explore.

They’re unafraid of the challenges that come their way and encourage their employees to think outside of the box. Managers, on the other hand, believe in sticking to what they know. They aren’t open to new changes and like to stay within their comfort zone.

2. Take Risks

Leaders are all about taking risks every time an opportunity presents itself. They understand the importance of risks and are eager to learn from their failures. They believe that risks bring forth a realm of possibilities for any business and help a company grow.

They aren’t scared of failing because they realize that every failure is a blessing in disguise. They exude an aura of positivity and create a sense of hope and curiosity in their employees.

Managers avoid taking risks because they don’t feel comfortable in newer and unforeseen territories. They believe in following tried and tested ways to solve all their problems and don’t appreciate disruptive thinking in the workplace.

3. Stand Out from the Rest

Leaders are driven by their need to stand out and be unique. They’re aware of themselves and aren’t scared of owning up to their shortcomings. They’re willing to take their business to new heights by deviating from established procedures.

They value different opinions and encourage their team members to share and explore new ideas.

Managers like to emulate their predecessors. They replicate what they’ve been taught and don’t feel comfortable with the idea of standing out. They aren’t always eager to accept responsibility for their mistakes. For them, their employees are just individuals who work for them and are expected to complete the tasks they’ve been assigned.

Bottom Line

Now that you’ve learned what makes a leader different from a manager, you can also become a great leader in the workplace by changing your way of thinking. The next time you’re faced with a challenge, you need to be willing to take risks and have an open mind to increase your chances of success.

What Good Leadership looks like in Corporate Optometry.

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While being a leader comes naturally to some people, for others it’s not that easy. 71% of companies don’t feel like their leaders have the ability to help their organization reach new heights. So what are the traits that distinguish a manager from a leader who has the ability to influence the people around them and engage the ODs?

1. Be Passionate

You can’t fake your interest in your work. Global legends like Steve Jobs and Jeff Bezos didn’t amass corporate empires because they liked their work. In order to take your company’s name to the top, you have to be willing to stick with it through the tough times. Leaders are passionate about their jobs that they know different aspects of the business and are willing to continue to learn.

2. Communicate

People in leadership positions tend to talk more but not listen to their team enough. Communication is a two-way road. Listening to your team’s ideas, providing constructive feedback and allowing them to express their creativity is essential. Give the people around you the comfort that you’re always available to help. Good leaders in corporate optometry listen to their ODs. Decisions are based on best interest of the ODs and their patients.

3. Be Ready to Make Decisions

Leaders may display hesitation when making decisions, especially if there are risks involved. But that’s what makes a true leader: the ability to make a decision, no matter how high the stakes are. Corporate Optometry leaders should not be afraid to question the norm or do something different.

Indecisiveness leads to endless discussions and by the time your company implements that decision, your competition may already be ten steps ahead. This can affect Corporate OD subleases.

4. Empower Your ODs

Gone are the days when companies followed a hierarchal structure and employees not at the top followed orders blindly. It’s okay if your team occasionally colors outside the lines. Empowering your ODs will strengthen their sense of loyalty towards the company and help them perform above and beyond what is required of them. ODs should be empowered to explore their strengths and be able to openly discuss issues that need to be addressed.

5. Be Charismatic

Be the leader in corporate optometry that aspire ODs to grow and to become successful over their career. With your words alone you can move mountains and take your organization to the top of the ladder. After hearing you speak, your employees should be motivated to take initiative and think of ways to deliver more than just what will keep the company stable.

6. Be Competent

It’s not enough to know the basic skills of your job. Those technical skills need to be combined with the right people skills to make you an inspiring leader. Be the leader your organization will remember for a lifetime by understanding every aspect of the company. Know how to get the best out of every OD and make the cogs of your company run faster and rust-free. Understanding the optometric side of the business to help sublease and employed ODs is very important, being a leader many ODs look to that person in that role to mentor them and guide them to personal growth and career advancement.

7. Be Accountable

Being a corporate leader won’t always be smooth sailing. In fact, after having spent a few years in the industry, you’ve probably dealt with your fair share of disasters and failed concepts.

Rather than ignoring them, it’s important to learn from them and make sure they don’t happen again.

If you were the one in charge, don’t thwart responsibility. Take the failure head-on and be a role model for your team. Show them how well you handle the failure and how you use it to push even harder towards success. Blaming others and not following up with solutions didn’t make you a leader just because you have a title.

Being a leader doesn’t mean keeping an organization stable. Stability means stagnancy which will eventually make you obsolete. The aim is to constantly aim to reach new heights. Leaders in corporate optometry have the trust of the ODs.