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Adopting Habits of Effective Lab Leadership

Leadership is driven through a series of important actions in the lab
Dec 09, 2022 Scott D. Hanton, PhD

Leadership is a vital component of effective lab management. Too often the actions of
effective leadership are deprioritized compared to the scientific roles and needed
activities of managing the lab and its operations. However, effective leadership is defined
by how the lab manager interacts with lab staff. People need to have faith in their
managers, and the best way to develop and retain that faith is through conscious actions
of leadership.

Management guru Peter Drucker said, “Management is doing things right, and
leadership is doing the right things.” Many of the right things involve how we interact
with our staff, and the quality of our decisions, which directly impact how they deliver
the science of the lab. To do things right requires that you do the right things as the
leader of the organization.
There are many different approaches to effective leadership, but all of them have some
common leadership actions that drive the interactions and enable us to consistently do
the right things. Below is a list of some of the most important leadership actions.

Traits of an effective leader

Care

“If you care, they’ll care” is the tagline of Melanie Klinghoffer, business consultant and
motivational speaker. Caring about people is often reciprocal. The more you care about
the people in the lab, the more likely they will care about the science, stakeholders,
mission of the lab, and you. It is important that you act to demonstrate you care, that the
caring doesn’t just occur in your head, but has clear actions around the lab that others
can see and hear. Caring can be demonstrated in many ways. A few simple examples
include greeting staff by name, thanking people for their contributions, and taking the
time to listen and exchange ideas.

Listen

Listening is your most important communication skill. Effective leaders are good
listeners. Listening enables you to learn about what’s happening in the lab, what’s going
well, and where the problems lie. Make the effort to try to learn something from
everyone. Listening also allows you to build better relationships with the staff, which
enables them to trust you with their ideas, problems, and observations. You don’t learn
much while talking. You’ll learn significantly more while listening.

Make decisions

Lab staff rely on you to make the right decisions to enable the lab to be successful. It is
vital that you make the required decisions in a timely way. Unlike the decisions you have
made as a scientist, the lab manager needs to make decisions with insufficient
information and in short amounts of time. As Teddy Roosevelt said, “In any time of
decision, the best thing you can do is make the right thing, the next best thing is the
wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” Most of the decisions we need
to make can be corrected or amended. Avoiding or procrastinating decisions will rob you
of the respect of staff, harm your work relationships, and lead to problems for the lab.

Build constructive relationships

As a lab manager, you need a wide range of work relationships. There are many people
who provide you with input to help with the science and the operations of the lab. It is
vital that you prioritize the well-being of staff and stakeholders so that you can rely on
them for ideas and support to address the challenges the lab faces. Some actions that can
help reinforce positive work relationships include supporting individuals even when
providing constructive criticism, seeking win/win negotiated solutions, resolving conflict
while maintaining the self-esteem of others, and taking the time to learn about
individuals as people, not just as roles.

Be humble

The most important function of the lab manager is to enable the lab to thrive and
flourish. This is best accomplished when you enable the staff to thrive and flourish.
Prioritize actions that lead to the best results rather than just the things that enable you
to personally win. There are several actions that humble leaders regularly do, including
asking for help, taking action to reduce negativity in the lab, showing gratitude, and
recognizing the efforts and successes of others. Demonstrating humility brings greater
cohesion to the staff and helps create a successful work environment.

None of these important leadership actions cost any money or need to be included in
budget planning. All they require is for you to commit time and effort to taking these
actions around the lab. A great way to demonstrate this kind of leadership is by managing
by walking around. Take the time to get out into the lab, interact with the staff, and
commit to these leadership actions.

If you’d like to learn more on lab management and how to be an effective leader, please
visit the Lab Manager Academy to explore our
courses https://academy.labmanager.com/.
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