One of the most critical parts of an organization's growth stems from the ability of everyone to lead up. Let's face it, all bosses and managers are not created equal and they need ro be recalibrated by the people they lead. This can come in various forms. From feedback about the leader's performance, to how their decisions impact the trajectory of the organization as a whole, when teams are encouraged to lead up, major things happen.
But in the great words of Peter Griffin, you know what grinds my gears, is when team members want to lead up but their perspective is not encompassing of the whole picture. Don't get me wrong I want the teams I lead to feel like they can lead up and they have a voice and that they will be heard. I just want them to be equipped with accurate and full information, not bits and pieces. Particularly if there is access to the information.
As a high-performing leader that leads over 230 people, there is plenty of opportunity for people to want to lead up and for the majority of those individuals, I am aware that they may not have access to the information needed to understand the why's and the what's in the business. The frustrating part comes into play for that group of people on your team that has access to every doc they need to understand or work through their frustrations, but they do not use the information to its fullest capacity.
The main point that I want to drive home here is this, if we are going to experience success in leading up effectively, please make sure you are getting your facts straight! If you have your facts straight, the person you are leading up to will respect and value your opinion a whole lot more!
Go out there and lead up, but with the facts of course.