Leadership expert urges shift from control to connection for modern teams

PASIG, PHILIPPINES — Traditional “command-and-control” leadership no longer works for today’s workforce, says leadership coach Tina Sioson, who emphasizes the need for authentic connection, clarity, and shared accountability in modern organizations.

In a recent two-part episode of The Small Talk Podcast hosted by Alec Cuenca, the veteran HR executive outlined a people-first leadership framework that prioritizes empathy and trust over authority.

Redefining leadership for modern teams

According to Siason, a leader is someone who challenges and motivates their staff, as well as one who is willing to be in the backseat to allow their staff to shine, but will take the center stage to help them overcome the forces of the outside world. 

This is unlike an individual contributor whose role is characterized by individual expertise. Conversely, the essence of a leader is to influence and nurture individuals to propel the group’s success in a single direction. She is strongly convinced that leadership can be learned and is not a special quality reserved for a few individuals.

Siason notes how someone can be a leader without being an expert in everything because “one of the things that good leaders do is actually bring in the right people who can complement them.”

“The skill of leadership is totally different from being an expert. There is a built-in advantage if you know a little of everything,” she said.

“The key in leadership is how do you leverage the diversity of the people inside your team so much so that they are individually good but they are collectively better.”

She notes that organizations adopt a dual career path, in which experts focus on their profession without being compelled to engage in people management. 

“It’s important that you hire the right people that would complement you, so that it becomes a shared leadership,” she emphasized.

Three pillars of effective hiring

Sioson explains that the most important aspect of a good team is the ability to recruit the right people, and she further divides this into the three key qualities: character, competence, and commitment.

She recommends that leaders seek the right kind of person — able and committed — and that the first skill for successful leadership is to get the right people on the bus. 

“When I say right people, right in terms of character and attitude, right in terms of competence, but competence can be learned, and right in terms of being able to commit and engage with a bigger purpose of the organization. Then the probability of having a better team is there,” she explained.

While all three attributes are vital, Sioson provides a clear hierarchy for prioritization. She places character and attitude first, formed during formative years, followed by competence, which she said can be taught. 

Commitment is positioned as a “co-accountability” between the leader and employee, something that grows over time as the leader engages the individual and represents the organization effectively.

Building performance through connection

Sioson outlines a clear, sequential process for managing performance, starting with the leader’s fundamental duty to connect with their team members. 

“The first responsibility of the leader is to connect. Connect with the person,” she said.

“Whether the person is performing, not performing, committed, not committed, our first responsibility as leaders is to connect with them. Because if we are connected with them, then we would understand what’s going on in their life.”

She insists that leaders must suspend judgment and practice curiosity to understand an employee’s situation before any corrective action, establishing that connection is a prerequisite for effective feedback. If connection and ongoing feedback do not yield improvement, the process should formally transition to a documented performance route. 

This is done by developing a performance improvement plan, not to punish the employee, but as a last, well-organized attempt to assist the employee. 

Sioson emphasizes that having such documentation enables a leader to be bold, knowing that they have done their due diligence to defend the individual.

Leading Gen Z with clarity and authenticity

Sioson quotes a study indicating that control is unproductive for motivating Gen Z. Rather, the demographic finds that what pleases them is purpose, clarity, and genuine connectedness. 

They are motivated by recognizing the role their work plays in the larger picture, and they appreciate the authentic, frequent meetings with their leaders. 

This preference for authenticity can be explained by the fact that they are raised in a digital environment and are thus highly attuned to it. 

“What motivates them, actually, is clarity. Clarity of purpose. Connect what you want them to do to something bigger. The clarity of purpose and communication or connectedness,” she explains.

“And they would cling to you. They would engage with you if the authenticity is there.”

To Gen Z, a touch of authenticity is essential in every way, and they will interact with a leader and organizations that practice it. This underscores the importance and uncompromising nature of a leader‘s communication in developing commitments.