Leadership Development: Identifying & Developing Leaders
“A company is only strong as its weakest leader.” Individual contributors, team leads and people managers, as well as the executive team, can be seen as leaders.
- 77% of organizations report they’re experiencing a leadership gap.
- 10,000 Baby Boomers are retiring every single day.
- 67% of millennials are looking for a new job.
- Of those who plan to stay, 91% plan to stay in their current job for fewer than 3 years.
- 63% of millennials say their leadership skills are not being fully developed.
- 83% of businesses say it’s important to develop leaders at all levels.
- Only 5% of businesses have implemented leadership development at all levels.
First challenge is to identify the upcoming leaders in a pre-COVID and post-COVID world. Have our needs changed? Have the competencies of the leader changed? What do you need in a leader?
ASK YOURSELF: Performance VS Potential- are we promoting/developing based on their current performance or their future potential?
Korn Ferry Research
- Skills and competencies are typically driving promotion decisions, yet the number one reason promotions fail is due to unsuitable traits and dispositions.
- Leaders are being promoted into critical roles without accurate identification and a full understanding of their readiness.
- Suggest identifying “traits and dispositions” early on, or risk ending up with a promote to failure syndrome.
Whole Person Approach
- Essential for organizations to have a complete talent picture of the whole person, not just a snapshot of job performance today.
Leadership Traits for an effective Leader:
- Self-Awareness
- Accountability
- Vision
- Follership
- Business Skills
- Courage
- Mentorship
- Team
How do we identify what’s in the “head” and “heart”? There are several different type of assessments that can be used to understand and predict what kind of leader someone will be. This early identification is key. These assessments include the Predictive Index, Clifton Strengths and the StandOut by ADP.
Transparent Development Process
- Consider business goals.
- Talk to your employees – make sure you understand if they’re interested in this development.
- Recognize “potential” vs “readiness”.
- Consider all types of development opportunities. It’s not just class, it’s mentoring, outside/internal communications, MBA, etc.
- Create a plan. Be transparent with your employees
Leadership Development Trends – not everyone wants to be a leader, but those who do, should take accountability for their development. They should be expected to develop:
- New knowledge and skills
- Deliver faster results
- Planning for economic volatility
- Building trust
- Increased need for adaptivity
The Developmental Journey
- Training Hard VS Soft Skills
- Mentoring & Being mentored
- Stretch assignments/rotating assignments
- E. I. Development
- Coaching -most needed but often least utilized form of leadership
Typical Reasons Someone Would Work with a Coach on a 1:1 Basis.
- Optimize individual/teamwork performance
- Improve communication skills
- Increase productivity
- Expand career opportunities
- Increase self-esteem/self-confidence
- Manage work/life balance
- Improve business management
Here are Some Creative Developmental Ideas to Develop Your Leaders!
- DIY 360’s
- Job Shadowing
- Speaking Opportunities
- Learning Projects
- “Bring a friend” staff meeting
- Business challenge brainstorming session
- Leadership Book Club
Watch the full video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6j8g62tsOEE
