101: Training leaders
“To be a leader, you have to make people want to follow you, and nobody wants to follow someone who doesn’t know where he is going.” – Joe Namath, former New York Jets quarterback
Development of leaders is crucial to an organization, yet often overlooked or implemented in a haphazard fashion. Here are some things to keep in mind regarding challenges, benefits, and implementation.
Recognize obstacles. This will help your human resources department devise solutions such as mentors, coaching, leader-to-leader development, or emotional intelligence development. Institutional obstacles can include limited resources – such as funding and time – points out SHRM.com; lack of top management support; a shortage of learning systems; lack of company commitment or a lack of organizational knowledge on how to implement a leadership development program. Obstacles on the leader’s part may include a lack of follow-through; an inability to retain and apply skills learned in changing situations; and generational differences in technology.
Bond HR and senior management. These two need to come together. HR should point out what leadership roles impact business strategy, so the right people can work together to create and implement strategies that work. “HR needs to be across these strategies to help document them, encourage employee buy-in, and support leaders in achieving positive business outcomes,” according to TheHRDirector.com.
Design training around issues. This is great for cash-strapped, midsized companies short on time, says Milton Corsey at the Harvard Business Review. “We worked with a healthcare technology firm that was growing so fast that senior leadership resisted a development program for emerging leaders because of the time commitment. We began the program by focusing on one of their most pressing needs: Removing bottlenecks by giving managers the skills to take charge of projects from their bosses, thereby freeing up senior leaders’ time. The investment in leadership development actually freed up more time than it cost.”
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