Rick Kelo – On Listening as a Leadership Quality

Leadership is arguably the most talked about quality when it comes to business, especially in international or countrywide organizations. Articles, books, movies, and even entire blogs are devoted to the concept of leadership and many of them agree on a few skills as being crucial in effectively leading others. For example, leaders must be strong in their conviction, they must understand the strength and weaknesses of their employees, and they must set an example for the type of behavior and work ethic they expect from their employees. However, one of the least talked about skills in leadership is listening. Any employer will admit that listening is a valuable quality. But if you press them on the specifics of the characteristic, they will likely struggle to explain how listening relates to leading others and generate results. Nonetheless, some of the most important leaders of our time were truly great listeners.

High-level professionals are quick to share their leadership experiences and thoughts, such as Rick Kelo on Quora, who shares articles, quotes, and videos about his experiences a financial recruiter and expert at TaxScout. As a professional recruiter, listening on all levels is crucial to his professional success because he must be intimately familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of the individuals he is trying to place in companies around the country, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the companies themselves. That is why listening is such an important quality in leadership. It keeps leaders from allocating tasks and responsibilities to individuals unsuited for the job.

In business it is key to use your resources wisely, and one’s employees and colleagues are the most valuable assets that a company and executive has at their disposal. There is nothing more detrimental to a company than wasted talent and there is nothing more frustrating for an employee than being given responsibilities that you are unable to handle.

Rick Kelo, a leader on level, has years of experience in human resources and team building. This experience has given him the opportunity to develop his skills as a leader. Because of this, his company TaxScout has one of the highest retention rates of any financial recruitment firm in the country, 70%, nearly double the national standard. This track record is all due to TaxScout’s pool of leaders who specialize in listening and understanding the needs of their clients and reflects the company’s high standards of excellence.