News

You want to be a successful leader—especially in times when you may be remote or more distanced from your team. But how? The most important attributes to engender support from team members and enhance commitment are responsiveness and accessibility. When team members can get in touch with you, and when you get back to them in a timely way, it is a powerful path toward engagement, commitment and performance.

But while it may seem simple, it’s not easy. After all, with so much on your plate, how can you be responsive and accessible without being “always on” yourself? How can you be available to team members but still have a life?

Why It Matters

First, know that your accessibility and responsiveness are proven to matter—regardless of whether you’re responding in person or via digital means. Investing yourself in getting these right will payoff. Specifically, in one study of almost 5,000 employees globally, visibility and accessibility in leaders were correlated with confidence and performance in team members. In another analysis, responsiveness in leaders was found to have impact because it communicated trust, respect and empathy toward team members. People also felt safer—like they would receive attention when they needed it—when leaders were more accessible. These in turn helped drive performance. Leader responsiveness also created the conditions for reciprocity—situations in which people are motivated to contribute more when they receive more.

So how can you be responsive and accessible? The answer has to do with both mindset and mechanics. Both are important.