Relationship-Oriented Leadership at LBC

Task-oriented leadership is an approach where a person tends to focus solely on accomplishing tasks necessary to meet certain goals. On the other hand, Relationship-oriented leadership is an approach in which a person focuses on the motivation and general well-being of team members. This is a more holistic approach that emphasizes the importance of building a foundation of trust and transparency. A leader or an organization that can master a balance between task and relationship-oriented leadership will find an immense amount of benefit. At Lowe, Brockenbrough & Company, I have begun to realize their emphasis on relationship-building allows them to successfully reach their goals, thus working towards mastering this balance.

LBC focuses their philosophy of exceptional service by emphasizing the importance of building genuine relationships with their clients. One way they practice this is avoiding cold calling individuals. Instead, they warm call. This process ensures the client has at least heard of LBC and has an idea of the services they provide. The avoidance of cold calling individuals helps to emphasize the importance of relationship building within the company and allows for clients to feel comfortable doing business with us. In order to aid in the process of warm calling individuals, myself and the other interns have been working on a project that does just this. We were given a list of prospective clients for each portfolio manager in the company and we had to research each one to fill in a spreadsheet with information such as: name, company title, job title, business address, business phone, business fax, home address, home phone. Once we researched each name, we compiled the information into one spreadsheet to make it easier for the portfolio managers to find prospects and to contact them. While the task became mundane and redundant after a while, I was able to expose myself to various individuals in the Richmond area with incredible careers. This has allowed me to begin brainstorming ideas of what sort of paths might interest me and my skills, especially within the business realm.

The success of LBC is associated with their ability to build lasting relationships with their clients. These relationships are built on trust and transparency and are so successful that their clients then refer the services of LBC to other friends and family. From this, LBC continues to blossom and thrive. Through the use of face-to-face appointments with clients, the PMs at LBC make the experience personable. For instance, when meeting with a new client they participate in L&L’s which stands for Lunch & Learns. These are instances where the members of LBC can sit down with clients over lunch and get to know them beyond doing business together. As a people person myself, I find this process incredibly empowering and influential. As LBC continues to build relationships with clients and produce a deep connection beyond business, they are seeing the results needed to achieve their goals. Ultimately, from my experience thus far, I am understanding that by emphasizing relationship-oriented leadership will open the doors for task-orientation to emerge. With the foundation of a strong relationship, goals and standards can be met or exceeded.