Ep. 21: Authentic leadership with Troy Toman

In today's episode, Asim sits down with Troy Toman, the Vice President of Engineering at Planet. He is a technology and services executive with an extensive background in systems and infrastructure solutions. His most recent focus is on agile development, continuous delivery, web-scale infrastructure, cloud computing and OpenStack. They discuss why authentic leadership matters and ways engineering leaders can build a more authentic leadership style based on trust.

[00:38] Introduction

[02:10] How Myers-Briggs Personality Test Shaped Troy's Leadership

[04:42] Troy's Leadership Journey and Developing a Leadership Style

[07:03] What Society Views as Great Leadership

[10:14] Figuring Out Who You Really Are as a Leader

[13:45] The Basics of Authentic Leadership

[15:09] Spending Your Energy More Intentionally

[16:42] Becoming More Comfortable with Not Having All the Answers

[20:20] Why Vulnerability is the Key to Authentic Leadership

[21:45] How to Motivate Your Team to be More Authentic

[24:09] Improving the Entire Organization Starts with You

[27:40] Parting Thoughts

Authentic Leadership and Why It's Important

Success in leadership starts with authenticity. Great leaders do their jobs without compromising on values and beliefs. Why is this important? Well, because people trust leaders when they are true to themselves - and that trust is the easiest path to getting things done.

If you are a leader and would like to develop authentic leadership, you first need to develop a healthy alignment between your internal values and external behavior. This stems from finding your way of leading and making decisions that reflect your values, ethics, and personality. According to Troy, a great aspect of authentic leadership is asking for and giving feedback. Great leaders create a feedback-rich environment with a strong foundation of safety and trust. It's clear that work environments would be a much better place if we were all authentic and treated each other as humans.

Links and Resources:

Troy's LinkedIn

Gallup CliftonStrengths

Myers Briggs Personality Type

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni