Leadership Style

Being raised in the Boston area, I was taught from a very early age that leadership and Bill Belichick are interchangeable terms. Love him or hate him, his 244-92 record for New England says everything you need to know. Football teams do not lead themselves, and they certainly do not lead themselves to five Super Bowl victories. All team’s leadership to succeed.

As I’ve grown and developed my own leadership style, I’ve tried to take principles from the leadership style of Mr. Belichick.

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“…build a team that’s exhaustively prepared, but able to adjust in an instant.”

I do not hire servers or bus boys or food runners. I hire team members. I cross train and move people around so they can jump in and help at a moment’s notice. This ability to adapt is key to being able to deliver top notch service regardless of the circumstances.

“Leadership means having the discipline to deploy your ‘dependables.’”

Your tried-and-true people are the ones you can depend on time and again. I have failed my teams in the past by putting responsibility on the ‘star performer.’ That person may have been an independent rock star, but they didn’t have the wherewithal to lead a team. I corrected this by going with the person I had the most confidence in. Therefore I took the risk and promoted a food runner through the ranks to manager. He was consistent and I was confident in his ability to lead.

“Leadership means being the boss.”

When I was promoted from server to captain at Black Rock Country Club, I found myself in the unenviable position of having to manage people who just the day before were my co-workers. At my first line-up I couldn’t get the attention of two servers who were talking amongst themselves. I realized that if I was going to lead, I needed to take the lead. In a very uncomfortable interaction, I told them in front of a group that they can either be quiet and listen or they can walk out the door. It was a risk because they were my two best servers. However, it worked, and I lead the meeting with a level of confidence I was lacking before. I learned in that moment that it doesn’t matter who a team member is. A leader must set the tone.

This is also why I worked with the management team at Oak Hill to develop a list of non-negotiable standards. Setting the expectations up front make it clear that the team leaders will accept nothing but the best. These standards can be found in appendix section e.

“Leadership means caring about everything going on in the lives of your people.”

Everyone has a life outside of work. While I may be the person to set the tone during line up and throughout service, I always remember that the team that I lead is filled with people not robots existing in a vacuum. Work and life are inseparable at times and leaders must recognize and support that. Therefore, I prepare and train my team to step in for one another when needed. I place a priority on giving my team members the ability to take care of personal situations without risking their position.

“Leadership means never resting on your laurels.”

I always review and conduct after action meetings with my team members. We celebrate when it is called for, but we spend time looking at the areas we can improve upon. No member cares about the great event you put on last month. We are here. We are living in today so let’s talk about today and the next challenge in front of us. It’s what I can control.

Mr. Belichick and I vary slightly in our styles of leadership. I’m far more extroverted and I have yet to yell at a reporter on live TV. But what we do have in common is a belief that anything is possible if you lead with confidence and build a team around you that accepts nothing less than the best.