Managing a team is a key growth point for any hospitality worker, climbing up the hierarchy and establishing yourself in a leadership role must be a major goal when becoming accomplished in any hospitality career. However, what makes a good leader?

Establishing authority is a defining quality of any manager but it is easy to slip into a boss role, affecting the morale of the whole team. Nevertheless, there are ways you can build a stronger team by being a leader instead. Building a bond with your team is a big step to take when separating yourself from the others and defining the strengths and weaknesses of your team.

Here are a few tips that we believe make a great leader:

Be confident, but be prepared to listen

When working in a fast-paced environment, you must establish yourself as a charismatic individual, and in doing so you’ll be able to gain the respect of your team. Being confident is a great way to show that you are the right person to lead your team to success and lets people know that you will be able to resolve their issues. Although it often seems like being a big character within your team is important, it is also valuable to highlight that you are happy to listen to any issues or misunderstandings from within the workplace.

Equity as opposed to equality

It is easy as a leader to give everyone the same treatment and hope everything will be fine. However, some members of the team may need more attention than others and that’s what equity is - sharing your knowledge appropriately to cater to the needs of the individual and not just sharing the same knowledge and instruction to the whole team. Equity allows you to establish the best ways of helping an individual, making you build a stronger, more united team.

Be a mentor

As a leader, you will have experience that new team members may not have yet. Thus, teaching your team the most efficient way of doing things leads to a smooth-running operation and a better team work ethic. But also, guiding your team in times of struggle and showing yourself to be a mentor helps members want to improve themselves generating a greater respect for you as a leader - if you give a man a fish he will eat for a day, if you teach a man to fish he will eat for the rest of his life.

Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty

Being on the frontline in the hospitality industry can be an overwhelming experience for some, but having a leader working alongside you can make your team understand that you are there to work with them. If you can see that your station is getting busy, a good leader will be there with their team offering support and customer service. This is another great way to get your team to respect you and work with you.

Praise good work

One of the main reasons people claim they have had a bad boss is because their employer gave them no recognition for the work that they completed; praising your team has a monumental impact on morale. Also, highlighting when someone has done something well and how they have done it, is more than just an ego boost, also shows others what good work looks likes in the hope that they will emulate this success. Praising good work shows that, as a leader, you are there to notice when staff performs above and beyond.