The modern workplace is incredibly diverse. 

With multiple generations already working together in most firms, the imminent addition of Gen Z will only further diversify an already very colourful workforce. 

Naturally, this means most executives are focused on their younger staff members and how to integrate them seamlessly into their firms and work culture, but business leaders also need to remember to encourage their senior staff to step up. Senior staff members need to think more like business owners instead of employees in order to help bolster the rest of the organisation and make the business leader’s job easier.

Without encouraging senior staff to take ownership of their veteran position, you have older staff who are held back from further growth — and this can slow you down. Your senior staff may feel they can’t step up past how they’ve been contributing since they joined the firm. Offering them bigger roles not only empowers them but also takes some responsibilities off your plate. 

When you’re ready to hand over some responsibilities to your senior staff, it can make them feel like they’re more in charge and have more stakes in your firm. It will also show them that you trust them and that they can have the mindset of a business owner rather than just an employee.

Your senior staff should feel confident, ready and empowered so they can help you lead your practice and maximise success for your business.

Why succession planning is key to an efficient firm

When you prime your senior people to take over bigger roles, as well as hand over leadership responsibilities to them, you lay the foundation for good succession planning.

Succession planning is a strategy that ensures that senior-level positions and management will always be filled so you have a team of seasoned veterans at your side as you run the business. 

What a lot of business leaders tend to do, however, is strategise only once and then throw caution to the wind. This is a pretty common oversight, as succession planning has to be constantly revisited and tweaked as you observe your staff’s behaviour and figure out what they excel at and how they can further contribute to your firm. 

Without succession planning or clear career paths, your staff (especially senior people) may feel stuck and demotivated. A muddled path may make them feel like they don’t have a place in your firm and they might want to find clarity and clear business mobility for themselves elsewhere. 

By showing your senior people that there are ways and opportunities for them to climb the rungs in their careers and take over leadership roles, you motivate them further. Implementing strong succession planning will allow you to empower your senior people to think more like business owners and less like employees, pushing you towards success and efficiency. 

5 ideas to get your senior staff to think bigger 

Thinking bigger and stepping up are things your senior staff should feel they can and should do. Use these five ideas to get your staff to be more motivated and embrace their potential roles.

1. Encourage them to take initiative

Giving your senior people more autonomy over big business decisions may be scary but you need to let go a little bit to help them grow. Remember that they’re not just there for your vision, but also for their own career growth. 

When you encourage them to take initiative by giving them more control over different areas in the business, you empower them to step up and think more like business owners. Instead of just following orders, they begin to craft assignments and tasks for junior-level employees to carry out. As they figure out their own processes, they’ll feel more in charge and confident. 

When you relinquish some control and hand it over to your senior people, you encourage them to make their own path and take initiative—especially around bigger business decisions. 

2. Help them think outside the box

Encouraging your senior staff to think outside the box and find alternative solutions or methods is important as there may be paths or answers you didn’t consider yourself. Because they have a different outlook and have seen the business grow as someone who wasn’t on top, they may have valuable insights into how things work and how you can change everything.

Thinking outside the box helps you and your staff become more creative, flexible and better at solving problems. They won’t feel boxed in by age-old traditions or processes that your business may have been upholding out of convenience. They may even find quicker, more efficient ways to do things because they’re not just adhering to how things have always been done. 

3. Show that you trust them by seeking their advice on important issues

By showing your senior people you trust them by asking for their input and advice, you make them feel important and like they’re crucial to your firm. It boosts their confidence and empowers them to take on their new role with vigour. 

When you express that you think that your senior staff’s ideas are important and valuable, you show them that you trust them and care about their opinions on the business and current processes. 

Certain processes, such as hiring and employee evaluations, aren’t open information to every employee especially if they’re sensitive in nature. Assigning senior staff who can specialise in those things will give them a bigger role and responsibility, which can make them feel special and empowered. 

With that specialisation, they can gain deeper insights into improving the processes they handle, which is reassuring for any business leader worried about relinquishing control.

4. Aligning their purpose with your organisational goals

Your senior staff have most likely set and developed their life and work purpose given their tenure and length of employment with you. By ensuring that their purpose is aligned with your organisational goals, you can ensure that they work optimally towards their own self-fulfilment and the firm’s objectives. 

By doing one-on-ones and laying out their goals and purpose with them, you can align what they want to achieve with your firm’s overall objectives. This is will help you identify where things overlap and where you can focus your energy and efforts. 

Your senior staff has invested a lot of their time and energy in your practice, so show that you care about their continued growth and path to leadership by giving them a role that helps them feel fulfilled.  

5. Reinforce that senior staff play a vital role and still have untapped potential

Senior staff taking on bigger positions and responsibilities may feel more pressure compared to junior employees. Because of this, they might not always feel confident in their decisions and may be nervous. 

When you encourage and reassure your senior people that they’re crucial to the team and praise them when they do something right, you invigorate them and make them feel more confident about their position.

Doing this also helps them see their own strengths and potential for the position. An employee who feels appreciated and told that they’re important to the firm will be more likely to perform better so that they can replicate that success and that sense of accomplishment. 

Your senior staff have put in a lot of time and effort into your firm—just like you have. It’s important you recognise them for their work, highlight their strengths and give them leadership opportunities. Doing so will help them become more independent, think more like business owners and less like employees and will ultimately help you with running your practice.

Having all those extra responsibilities assigned to someone else not only empowers the other person but also frees you up to focus on other matters that need your attention.

When your senior people think more like business owners, you get a team that’s just as committed as you are to building your firm. 

A real leader breeds other leaders—give us a call to make more leaders out of your senior people.