Five Qualities Good Leaders Have
By: Jeannette Goon
Tags: Startup, Entrepreneurship, Consulting, Business, Leadership

It’s a really tough time for a lot of businesses in Malaysia. We’ve had two weeks on restricted movement with an order for a further extension until April 14.

As someone who’s been plugged into the drinks industry in Kuala Lumpur (I write about bars in KL), my heart especially goes out to the bars and bar owners whose sales are suffering, especially indie bars that aren’t owned by large hotel chains.

I also have clients from a range of industries and even those from online retail have been struggling with sales. A couple of these clients have had to suspend my services due to budget cuts.

I’ve been working with one of these clients for over a year now, and over the course of that year, the founders have truly inspired me.

To me, they’re an embodiment of what good company leaders should be and these were some of the qualities I noticed.

Good leaders have vision

When I first began work with this company, there were already guidelines in place. They had a clear idea of what their brand should be. Even though there were things that needed fine-tuning, they knew what direction they wanted to move towards.

This made our discussions a lot more productive because I could focus on providing solutions that met their goals.

Because they communicated their vision well with the entire team, we could prioritise deliverables and tackle things step-by-step. We could plan our initiatives so that each would build on the prior work done.

I’ve worked with other SMEs that seemed to be more “glamorous” but had founders who had no clue what they wanted to achieve. Because they had no clear vision or goals, work was constantly inefficient and resources were never allocated accordingly.

Good leaders work hard

Some people think that being a boss is sitting back and delegating while the rest of the team does the work. These founders did not have this mindset.

They kept their team lean and when it came down to it, were willing to do their share of the work as well.

On a day when the business was particularly busy (so busy that I was also asked if I was available to assist), these bosses were running around with their team to prepare and fulfill orders.

At the same time, they also had defined roles within the company and worked as hard (if not harder) than their team members to perform and deliver according to what their positions demanded from them.

Good leaders delegate

These founders didn’t just delegate. They gave their team ownership.

The team takes their ownership so seriously that they are even able to correct or reprimand their boss.

One particular day when I was in their office, I noticed one of the founders looking through the cards for fulfillment. The person in charge of the fulfillment process came over and told him not to mess things up.

I walked away from the situation amused.

Good leaders value their team

A company is only as strong as its team. As a business owner myself, I believe in building lean and mean teams.

Sometimes they don’t start out that way. Sometimes it’s a work in progress. But if you set up efficient processes and distribute your workforce according to their strengths, you eventually get there.

And once you do, this team needs to be valued.

The founders at this particular company appreciate their team members. When the COVID-19 pandemic became more serious and the Malaysian government ordered a movement control, this company paused their operations.

Even though they’re an e-commerce company and technically allowed to run, the work involved going into the office. They didn’t want to put their team at risk.

Good leaders make tough calls

It’s not easy to decide to shut down business operations for two weeks.

It’s not easy to decide to cut suppliers and vendors. It’s even more difficult to call them up and let them know they’re being cut.

But good leaders have to be able to make these decisions. And they have to have the gumption to see the decision through.

Times are hard, but I’m convinced that entrepreneurs like these will be able to brave the challenges ahead.

After working with people from international organizations to NGOs to startups, I’ve come to realize that your job description or title doesn’t make you a good leader.

It’s about having the right mindset, the right heart. These things can be cultivated, but you have to want to.