Too often, leaders see themselves as the feature story, the star of the show, the primary reason the “fans” (stakeholders, customers) are paying attention. But real, impactful leadership, especially in today’s collaborative Small and Medium-Sized Business (SMB) environments, often looks very different. True leaders often see themselves more like the pitcher in a Home Run Derby; there to deliver the perfect pitches that allow the real stars, their team members, to shine.

If you, as a leader, still think you’re the main event, it might be time for a perspective shift. Once you step into leadership, your days of being the individual star player are largely over; your new role is to enable the success of others.

The Art of “Pitching” for Your Team’s Success

Think about the job of the pitcher at a Home Run Derby. They are typically trusted coaches or even family members. Their sole mission? To deliver pitches right into the batter’s sweet spot, perfectly timed to maximize the opportunity for home runs. If that pitcher believed they were the star, they’d throw like it was a competitive game, changing speeds, using spin, making the batter work, minimizing the chance of a home run.

But in the Derby, the pitcher understands their role. They aren’t the star. Their job is to lead the batter to a win. They set aside personal ego and focus entirely on that shared goal. The pitcher and batter are a team, collaborating for an outcome. When the Derby ends, the batter gets the glory; the pitcher is a crucial but often unsung footnote. And that very selflessness is what makes them, and the batter, successful.

There is no such thing as a star pitcher in the Home Run Derby, only star players. But those star players will never be successful without great pitching.

Leadership is Like Being That Pitcher

This is a powerful metaphor for leadership in your SMB, and it’s central to how I approach my role as a fractional CIO:

• Delivering Opportunity to Your Star Players: Your job is to create the conditions, provide the resources, and remove the roadblocks so your team members can hit “home runs” in their respective areas.
• Timing and Pacing for Maximum Impact: Just like a Derby pitcher, you need to deliver opportunities, guidance, and support at the right pace to maximize your team’s collective outcome within given constraints.
• Focusing on Their Success: Your ultimate aim is to deliver success to and through the players on your team.

As a fractional CIO, I’m not there to be the “hero IT star” who swoops in to fix everything single-handedly. My role is to “pitch” the right IT strategies, help you select the right technology “bats,” coach your team on their “swing” with new systems, and clear the “field” of unnecessary technical complexities so your business can hit its strategic home runs.

What’s Next

Embrace the role of the Home Run Derby pitcher. Focus on setting your team members up for success. Provide them with what they need to perform at their best. Their victories are your victories. When they shine, the whole organization wins, and you’ll find that enabling their success is the most rewarding leadership role of all, helping your SMB “Succeed Sooner.”

Is your SMB leadership focused on enabling your team to hit home runs, or is it unintentionally still trying to be the star player? If you’re looking for a strategic IT partner who leads from the “pitcher’s mound”, focused on delivering the right strategies and support to make your business and your team the stars, let’s connect with Succeed Sooner Consulting.