The Rise Of The Beta Boss
Dr John Mervyn-Smith, Chief Psychologist at The GC Index, speaks to Jenn Selby, guest columnist for Every Woman, about the rise of the ‘beta’ boss.
Dr Mervyn-Smith says, “The key beta skill is not listening. You might have a boss that has learned to appear as though they are listening, but it’s not the same as having a boss who actually takes your points on board and makes decisions with you. Being open to influence encourages collaboration by instilling a sense of empowerment and self-worth in the individual doing the influencing.”
John talks about the fact The GC Index framework is designed to view leadership and team participation in a more diverse way, identifying individual talents and empowering the employee to use them to their optimal advantage. He says, “Collaborative leaders become ‘play makers’, a genderless term that comes without the associated connotations of ‘alpha’ and ‘beta’.”
Vicky Sleight, Chief Play Maker at The GC Index and Founder of Perfect Ltd believes that by shining a spotlight on her team this allowed them to flourish and produce lasting results. She says, “Making sure that at board level they don’t just see one person, but a leader of an amazing and diverse team is so important. It is also about taking risks because you believe in people and not just about mentoring them, but championing them.”
