We’ve all heard about the importance of having strong managers and supervisors at any company. Thanks to countless key findings—like how 70% of the variance between a lousy culture and a strong culture is the knowledge, skills, and talent of your team leaders or how disengaged managers are even more harmful to a business than disengaged employees—we now know leadership development isn’t just a “nice to have.” It’s a must-have.
With that in mind, please remember that your senior leaders and top people need skills development, too. Why bring this up? During our Ignite to Transform leadership development program, we sometimes hear participants say something along the lines of, “If this is so important, why aren’t our top leaders here?”
It’s a valid question, one that all business owners should be able to answer. For now, we’ll share different three perspectives on leadership development—and offer our take on why each approach can harm or help a company.
POV #1: My senior leaders don’t need more training.
PSC take: No matter how much experience they may have, leaders at every level benefit from ongoing or regular investments in skills development. The stronger your leaders, the stronger your business. Put another way, your company is only as strong as your weakest leader—and it’s your responsibility to ensure your top team knows how to communicate clearly, give feedback, and lead through transitions and change.
Harm or help? In a word, harm.
POV #2: My leaders have had some training, but they don’t discuss it with their teams.
PSC take: Okay, you get points for investing in some form of leadership development. However, training your top people in a vacuum is a gigantic missed opportunity. When leaders openly share, discuss, and demonstrate what they’ve learned—amongst themselves and with their teams—they create a supportive, engaging, trust-based environment where growth is valued and respected.
Harm or help? Help, to a degree—but with this approach, you’ll never fully recoup your leadership development ROI.
POV #3: My top employees went through extensive leadership development training either before or along with their team. Now, they’re all on the same page with behavior, expectations, and goals.
PSC take: Congratulations! Your integrated approach to leadership training ensures your senior people are in lockstep with their teams when it comes to learning and trying new skills and strategies. Together, they can all reflect on their training, actively role model and reinforce positive behaviors, and talk openly about how to set and achieve big company goals. They can align those goals with key values and behaviors—and if something’s going awry, they can quickly collaborate to get back on track.
Another bonus: If your senior team goes through leadership development training either with or ahead of their team, they can set employees up for success by sharing what resonated with them during the training, reminding folks to keep up with assignments, and making connections about how to apply new learnings to the business.
Harm or help? You’re on track to truly help your company reach its short- and long-term goals while engaging and retaining loyal employees. Wahoo!
We’re huge fans of leadership development for everyone, and that very much includes your seasoned senior staff. After all, old dogs CAN learn new tricks, and with guidance and support, your top performers and long-time pros can learn how to perform their jobs better than ever.
Our Leadership Development program equips managers and supervisors with the skills they need to retain people and keep your company moving forward. Email Erin for details.