Leader/Follower Relations at Mirador

Being a FinTech company, it was very manageable for Mirador employees to work from home, as all of Mirador’s technology platforms just require your login, and laptops can be taken home. During COVID, there was a Team A and a Team B, and they would switch off which days they came into the office to promote social distancing.

While the two managing directors are technically the organization’s leaders, they do not speak down to or act as if they have any extra power over any of the employees. Employees are organized in teams, each team serving different clients, meaning that each team, and thus each Mirador employee has their own responsibilities and leadership roles. Leadership is somewhat hierarchical in the sense that the managing partners oversee each team and ensure that all clients are happy, but I would argue that the leadership structure is more fluid/informal, which works effectively because Mirador is a small firm. Mirador has continued to grow with its success in financial reporting, and so it is likely that the company will need to make future adjustments that organize its members more hierarchically (i.e. each team will likely need a team leader/leaders).

I touched on this in my response for organizational culture, but I really think that the implications of the two managing directors sharing an office sets the overall tone of the office. There is not one boss who holds absolute power, but two, collaborative partners who lead as equals (they actually refer to themselves as managing partners, not directors). Being in the same office makes it so that employees and those visiting the office also see them as they are — equals! The same is true for the two women in HR, sharing an office closer to the action.

Client associates sit on an open floor plan, each with their own desk, but no private space to call their own (except for HR). This provides the “followers” (employees) with a collaborative space to work together, thus working as a cohesive group of skilled individuals that specialize in different sectors of Mirador’s financial services. In addition, employees have explained their gratitude for the local location of the office, as the time they now don’t have to spend commuting into New York City is time they get to spend with their families. As an intern, I was surprised at the amount of compassion I received on my first day, multiple employees explaining to have read my bio on Mirador’s HR platform, Bamboo. Overall, Mirador hires individuals that can do the work, but can also make fun banter and bring good vibes to the office.

Mirador leader Joe Larizza gives his “followers” (employees) appropriate responsibilities for their role and allows them to act as leaders on their own when dealing with clients. He only steps in when there are problems, giving the office a tone that is overall democratic. Since this is a new and thriving company I only have strengths to comment on. Mirador is very efficient in weeding out any weaknesses, as feedback and self-evaluations are constant. Their primary concern is their clients and making sure they are satisfied, so that they can be referred to future clients and continuing growing as a company. In fact, we may consider them so successful that HR actually is looking to continue expanding, especially with the remote option. There are a lot of rock stars who work here.

There is an “overall” training of how to deal with clients and respond to their needs in a way that upholds Mirador’s good name, but otherwise employees are relatively self-directed in how they handle their clients. Margo, the woman in HR who onboarded me, talked as if she was a veteran of Mirador when she has only been here since last February. Since Mirador is a new and thriving company, decision-making processes are constantly changing and reforming in a way that proves beneficial to clients.