Jarita Rayasam, Head of Growth for LJ Hooker Australia and New Zealand, doesn’t just believe in empowering teams – she’s lived it.
Her leadership philosophy is rooted in experience, rising rapidly from executive assistant to national growth roles.
At every stage, she was guided by leaders who gave her autonomy and confidence. That shaped not just her career, but her leadership mindset.
“Micromanagement might deliver compliance in the moment, but it doesn’t create leaders,” Jarita says.
“If you want scale and long-term performance, you have to trust your people.”
That belief underpins her approach to leading her current team of business development managers across Australia and New Zealand.
Her job is to grow the LJ Hooker network, new offices, succession planning, and franchisee support.
But she’s clear that sustainable growth doesn’t come from control. It comes from cultivating confidence.
“If you create a space where people can express themselves without fear, that’s where performance thrives. Confident people drive growth. They make real impact,” she explains.
Jarita has seen firsthand what happens when leaders don’t trust their teams.
Early in her working life, a micromanaging supervisor reduced her to tears – not out of malice, but from a clear lack of trust.
“It wasn’t personal … But she didn’t believe in anybody else except herself. I always felt like I needed permission, even for the simplest tasks. That didn’t make me want to do more. It made me hold back.”
She believes this is the trap too many leaders fall into.
“Leadership is strategic. Micromanagement is tactical,” she says.
“It may feel like you’re getting things done, but really, you’re just creating more work for yourself. Your team waits for approval. They second-guess themselves. And the opportunity to grow vanishes.”
Jarita explains that she leads with a coaching mindset, tailoring her approach to each team member.
“Some want to run and I empower that. Others need more support, and I’ll give it. But I won’t tell them what to do step by step. That’s not how confident people grow.”
This flexibility is balanced by structure and clarity; it starts with trust and accountability and her team know their targets.
She says they know what success looks like and her role is to remove roadblocks and let them own the outcome.
“I’ve failed more times than I’ve succeeded. But failure is where the most learning and growth happens. No one can take experience away from you.”
That mindset also shapes her role in talent development.
When Jarita noticed a team member struggling in a sales-focused role, she didn’t push harder, she pivoted.
“He was amazing, just not in the right role. He was more inclined toward coaching and nurturing. So I said, what about performance instead? Now he’s absolutely thriving.”
Helping that person move into a different direction, even if it meant losing them from her own team, was, to her, the right call.
“I lost someone from my team, but I helped them find their fit. That’s leadership.”
She brings this same human lens to negotiations and business transitions, especially in the succession space.
“For many principals, selling their business is like letting go of their child. It’s not just about numbers, it’s emotional. You have to understand what they really need.”
Her ability to read people, she says, comes from a blend of experience and education – including a background in arts, history, and psychology.
“I always lean on the human side before sales. Sales is just a default skillset.”
For leaders struggling to let go, she offers this advice: “Hire with a view to the future. If you can see that person taking your role one day, you’re heading in the right direction.”
And ultimately, Jarita believes leadership is about creating space, not filling it.
“I never want to dim someone’s light. My leaders never did that to me. I want to pay it forward.”
Finally, she is quick to challenge the idea that tight control drives high performance.
In her view, it does the opposite: slowing teams down and stifling initiative. Even highly capable people begin to second-guess themselves, waiting for permission instead of taking action.
For her, leadership is about creating an environment where people are encouraged to think, act, and grow – not sit idle, waiting for instructions.
Her mantra is simple: “I don’t want to be the smartest person in the room. If I am, I’ve failed. You need people around you who are smarter, more driven. That means you’ve led well.”
