Tiffaney McClendon is the Staff Learning and Inclusion Manager at the Birmingham Zoo. Bringing more than 30 years of leadership, management, and teaching experience to her role, Tiffaney implements learning programs for team members that foster professional growth, development opportunities, and confidence. A National Diversity Council Certified Diversity Professional (NDCCDP), she also advances initiatives to further develop an equitable, inclusive, and accessible workplace and visitor experience.
Fun fact: Tiffaney was the first person I encountered on my first day on the job as Birmingham Zoo’s Deputy Director back in 2018, and the encounter sticks with me. Tiffaney’s open, welcoming friendliness started me off on such a happy foot and reduced my first-day jitters. That’s who she is all the time — open, welcoming, and friendly — and those characteristics are part of why she is a superstar in our profession.
The other element of superstardom is her passion for creating inclusive cultures, developing equitable processes, facilitating tough conversations, and creating access to professional development so her colleagues can grow as leaders in their fields.
Read on to learn more about this emerging leader and the tips she’s using to continue her own growth, as well as her team’s. I hope this post leaves you feeling as energized as an in-person interaction with Tiffaney!
-Lori Perkins, Vice President, Canopy Strategic Partners
LP: What qualities of a leader do you seek to embody?
TM: As a leader, I seek to be inclusive, encouraging, and developmental. I gravitate toward the coaching style of leadership and have branded myself a “leader of leaders.” I always try to help my team members discover the ways in which they have opportunities to lead in whatever position they currently hold, even if it’s not a supervisory role. This allows them to see themselves as a leader before they are ever in a leadership position, and begin to develop positive leadership skills early. I try to inspire and encourage them to find and foster their passions, determine and develop their goals, and strive for success.
My objective is to help them understand their potential, guide them in developing their skills, and prepare them for the next amazing opportunity that will present itself to them. If I’ve been successful, they will feel confident and be competent in their skills to move forward and face new challenges. If I do my job properly, the people I lead won’t remain with me, but go on to excel in other positions, positively leading and developing others.
LP: How do you want to continue to grow and develop as a leader?
TM: Any good leader recognizes and acknowledges their own shortcomings and is constantly striving to overcome them. I have two areas in particular where I’m trying to improve:
- I am working on being a more flexible leader, meeting people where they are in their career journey. Not everyone is ready or even wants to be developed as a leader. So I have to flex my style to meet their needs, not my desires for them. I am working on flowing out of the coaching style of leadership into other styles in order to give team members what they most need and want from me.
2. I am also on a journey of developing more inclusive methods of training and teaching team members in the corporate setting. People learn in such a variety of ways. They receive, absorb, process, and share information differently. Their abilities, capabilities, attentions, and preferences span a vast array. Even the time they have to commit to learning and professional development varies. I want to help everyone on our team have equitable access to learning, professional development, and growth opportunities. In order to do that, I have to learn how to offer those opportunities in a multitude of ways.
LP: What advice do you have for other emerging leaders?
TM: Here are four tips I recommend…
Complete a Leadership Review. When my team members confirm that they want to move forward and grow as leaders, I give them an “assignment” that I call a Leadership Review. It looks like this:
- Look back at the leaders you’ve had in the past — good and bad — and observe the leaders you have around you now.
- Make note of their leadership qualities and create two lists. The first is a negative list: qualities and actions you have not liked in the leaders you’ve had or observed. The second is a positive list: qualities and actions you did like from that same group of people.
- These two lists will give you a clear picture of the type of leader you don’t want to be and the type you do.
- Review both lists. (Be prepared to be honest and candid with yourself. If you can’t, perhaps pull in a trusted confidant to help you with the process.)
- From the negative list, consider which qualities or actions you may be prone to exhibiting. Develop goals and a plan to eliminate those behaviors.
- From the positive list, consider the qualities and actions you already possess. Celebrate this and set goals to foster those. Then, identify the qualities and actions with which you may struggle. Set goals, find resources, and make a plan to develop those qualities and build skills to become better.
Find a professional mentor or advisor who exemplifies the qualities and skills of leadership you seek to develop. Build a relationship. Learn and grow under their guidance. But also be open to creating and navigating your own path, which could look different from theirs.
Remember that all of our professional journeys may be vastly different. Your path being different from others’ paths doesn’t mean it’s not valid. Embrace the lessons you’ve learned along the way, be grateful for the road that’s brought you this far, and be intentional about getting where you want to go next.
Embrace the space you’re in and own it. If you’ve been given a great opportunity, position, or challenge for professional growth, there is a reason. That position is where you belong. Don’t let intrusive thoughts, anxiety, imposter syndrome, or negative naysayers convince you otherwise. You belong in the space you occupy. You have every right to take up that space and thrive within it. You’ve worked hard to be there. Keep going. You have more skills to learn, more growing to do, more challenges to crush, and more achievements to accomplish. You are going places. Where you are now is a part of your journey. Be present, enjoy it, rock it, and thrive. You’ve got this!
