Developing Leaders That Don’t Resemble Our Presidential Candidates
I was promoted to my first management job when I was 22. I had been at the company for a little less than a year and was asked to step into the role of assistant manager. It was for a moderate sized store that belonged to a retail chain. I lasted less than 4 months in that role. Now, let’s ignore for just a moment the fact that I never wanted a career in retail in the first place, and only took the job because the market looked grim at the time. Regardless of this is the fact that I was not prepared or developed to be put in that leading role in the first place.
According to a respondent from a recent HCI study, “Front-line supervisors and managers are the most critical roles in an organization and we spend the least amount of time and money selecting and training these employees.” If they can be labeled as the most critical role in a company, why is there no investment in them? It is imperative that if an organization wants to successfully retain leadership that will invest in the company, and therefore drive growth, then the company must look for the opportunities to develop these front line managers.
Let’s explore 3 of the biggest development opportunities organizations can put in place for their front line managers right now.
- Start early in their careers, and don’t stop
We all have to begin somewhere. I started as a stock boy with the aforementioned retail job. But that’s where developing leadership skills has to begin. Frequently coach them, catch up with them, provide learning opportunities (classroom, online, experiential). If you wait to develop leadership skills until they become a leader, you may already be too late. There needs to be a structured onboarding system in place to make sure they are developing in their current role, which will ensure preparation for the next one. Onboarding is never a once and done process. It can take years for an employee to become fully integrated into a new business and culture, and that’s okay.
- Be the leadership role model
Do you know all your employees’ names, roles, responsibilities and work schedules? Congratulations! You are better than 60% of the managers I have had in previous jobs. Talent won’t just grow on trees for business. You have to be willing to set an example of leadership, because leaders drive results. Increased productivity, improved team functioning and increased engagement are just 3 impacts that have been observed among front-line leaders. Show them what makes a good leader, develop that leader mindset by showing how you manage and maybe even how you yourself were developed. DDI’s Richard Wellins, Ph.D. notes just how crucial upper management support is. “They must show through their actions what it means to set clear expectations, follow through on commitments, put people in positions to succeed, and most importantly – hold themselves accountable for their actions.”
- Business. Acumen. Training
You’ve heard me talk about it in my blogs before and trust me, it’s not going away. There is no better way for someone to be brought into a company and be developed and built in that company than by obtaining a complete financial understanding of the business. Knowing how the organization makes money, the ins and outs of the business, and the bottom line impact is the knowledge necessary to developing leadership. With proper business acumen training, employees begin to develop a “business owner” mentality. When they can think like a CEO, they will begin to view the business differently, asking the right questions, finding ways to improve certain areas, getting other members of their team engaged and driven, etc. With a proper BA training program in place to make sure employees understand and become aligned with the organization and its culture, these employees will begin to be molded for their role in leadership.
You’ve heard the phrase “There are plenty of fish in the sea.” And that’s true, because there’s a great pool of talent out there waiting to be discovered and brought in. But it has to have the correct preparation and development. No one became a titan of industry without learning how to make a profit first. Look for the opportunities to start front line leadership development now, and let’s prepare these first time managers for success.
To learn more, join us for our upcoming webcast with HCI that talks more about developing first time managers on 11/1.