Smart Leaders
Crystal clear
How to turn employees into leaders
By Matt McClellan
Smart Business Los Angeles | April 2009
Page 1 of 2
Holly J. Mitchell, CEO
Crystal Stairs Inc.
When Holly J. Mitchell took over as CEO of Crystal Stairs Inc. in 2003, she realized the organization needed to evolve.
The nonprofit, which works to provide early childhood care and education, had never adapted to its new size following a period of rapid growth in the 1990s — from a small nonprofit into a 350-employee the organization with an operating budget of $130 million.
And there was too much emphasis on looking to the top for answers.
“There was a line of middle management who were wonderful workers, compassionate people who did their jobs at their level well and really looked to leaders of the organization for answers, direction and strategy,” she says.
To adapt to the organization’s increased size, Mitchell wanted that to change. Instead of having people look only to the leaders, she wanted employees at all levels to step up and assume a certain level of responsibility. To begin that process, three years ago she began instituting a pay-for-performance system.
Smart Business spoke with Mitchell about how to turn your employees into leaders and how to focus your organization on performance.
Spread the responsibility. For this institution to continue, we’ve got to grow leaders from within. Part of that is taking on different and higher levels of responsibility as managers within the organization.
So we instituted a budgeting process that required managers take on a greater level of responsibility for developing and managing the budgets for their departments. It was a push down, from my perspective, in terms of management in responsibility.
Whoever is in the seat of leadership, it shouldn’t matter because all of us have a responsibility for maintaining this organization and the integrity of its work.
I’ve worked since I came in the door to spread the responsibility, hold folks accountable at a different and higher level than they had been, and really create a new paradigm around accountability and responsibility as managers of the organization.
That’s the way I know how to lead, and I believe that’s the best strategy in terms of truly creating an institution where, as my grandfather would say, ‘One monkey don’t stop no show.’
