9 Top Trends Shaping Leadership Training & Development

While most senior executives recognize the importance of developing leadership talent, their leadership development efforts often are not connected to their strategy process.  This disconnect prevents organizations from identifying and enacting prudent strategies. A leadership strategy is needed to unleash the potential of individuals and groups throughout the organization if they are to achieve success.

As one of the key decision makers in evaluating your organization's training programs and to provide recommendations for improvement, it is critical to create such a strategy. To assist you, here are the latest trends affecting leadership training and development. What trends should you be aware of in crafting your strategy?

According to the American Management Association Enterprise, a division of the American Management Association, ten important trends are helping to shape the landscape of company training and development. Here they are:

• Definition of a 'leader' is broadening. Organizations now consider individuals to be leaders based on their impact, not on their authority or title. Increasingly, a leader is viewed as 'anyone' whether they manage others or not, who is a top performer in their specific role.
• Core skills are a renewed focus. Programs devoted to basic skills often suffered during the recession are now in greater demand to develop communications skills, collaboration and creativity ~ all aimed at improving employee productivity and engagement.
• Top competencies for leadership development are: change management, ability to build trust and influence others and build teams/coalitions, problem solving and critical thinking.
• More and more employees seeking entry into leadership programs. Organizations realize they must find ways to meet this growing demand.
• Many organizations find themselves ill-prepared for rising turnover. Many factors influence turnover (job dissatisfaction, lack of engagement, job market, company policies, immediate manager relationship, benefits, etc.) How are you ready to meet this challenge with suitable solutions?
• Learning is multi-modular. In today's world of dispersed work forces, make sure any training you chose can extend delivery from instructor-led training to Elearning, Virtual learning to Mobile learning.
• More organizations avoid the term "high potential." There is a growing reluctance to call candidates for accelerated career development "high potential." The terms suggests that other employees do not have much potential, which is not a healthy message to convey ~ either to them, the organization or the marketplace.
• Selection for high potential programs is becoming more impartial. Companies now seek to make the application process for such programs more systematic and impartial. Anticipate greater transparency on performance criteria, changes in organizational strategy and more flexible career opportunities.
• There is a growing focus on developing individual contributions. More than one in three organizations have stepped up efforts to develop individual contributors. So called, high potential candidates from the management ranks often get all the attention and training, while individual contributors hardly figure in development programs. Yet these are key people within every organization - core players who get things done despite having no management title or authority. They are a leader without a title!

What do you think of these conclusions on trends impacting leadership T & D? How would you begin to break through your thoughts, emotions and actions to becoming a better leader? We would love to hear from you with comments or questions. Send me a note via email at brad@aperiocoaching.net or on Twitter @bparcells.

In Latin, Aperio means to reveal, uncover, to make clear. Coaching is a powerful process that enables the client to reveal and illuminate their authentic style via a sharp focus on who they are at their core.

Becoming A Highly Effective Leader

Being a great leader takes hard work and dedication, but most of the necessary skills can be learned if you're willing to put in the time and effort. Here are 9 ways to help transform any manager into becoming a better and more effective leader.

Know Yourself/Be Authentic

Employees don't respect phonies and being respected by your employees is something a leader can never lose. If he does watch productivity and quality fall like granite.  Authenticity on the other hand allows you to better connect and build trust with your team and coworkers. It also allows people to better understand who you are and what you expect from them.

Work with an Outside Professional Coach 

A coach typically works with highly motivated men and woman who believe they have more to offer themselves and their organization, who have a strong sense of their objectives and recognizes the need to measure their progress and success.  Coaching is a powerful process that enables the client to reveal and illuminate their authentic leadership style via a sharp focus on who they are at their core. 

Coaching is a highly confidential, trusting and open process that empowers a client to:

·       Increase their Self-Awareness.

·       Which facilitates greater Conscious Decision-Making.

·       Then forwards their decisions into focused and organized Action.

·       And ties in the key component of Accountability to measure progress.

Become a Better Listener

As Stephen R. Covey once said, "Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply." Most of us have dealt with colleagues or managers who don't hear a word they have heard or may think they know it all. For anyone in business, feeling like your voice isn't being heard is a motivational killer. Here's how you can learn to become a better listener.

• Stop thinking that you have the best or a better answer. When you do this you start thinking about your answer and not theirs. Keep an open mind and listen.
• Remind yourself how important it is for an employee or a colleague to know how much you value what they have to say.
• Don't Interrupt. Sometimes we may know or think we know what someone else is going to say before they finish the sentence. Let them finish it anyway. Let those around you express themselves completely, and then pause before responding. Don't cut people off.
• Engage them by asking open ended questions, like, "Tell me more about the reporting package," and allow them to elaborate on the topic.
• And of course make eye-contact, lean-in and ignore the distractions around you. If you can't fully focus then move the conversation somewhere more quiet and appropriate.

Develop Your Communication Skills

You can't be a great leader if you can't articulate your point effectively to people. If you are constantly using negative reinforcement or you don't illustrate the importance and relevance of what your team is doing and how it fits into the big picture then you aren't leading right and you will find your team member turnover increasing.

Communicating to your team the importance of their positions and roles and how they fit into the big picture is another way to motivate and empower employees. While our natural inclination as leaders may be to shield our employees from the all the internal politicking that goes on in most companies, we can in fact empower people and promote bonding by letting them in on some of managements internal discussions and becoming part of the decision process.

Empower Your Team

Create a Safe-to-Speak-Out environment in your company or team. This concept comes back to adjusting your corporate culture for empowerment. Employees need to and should feel encouraged to understand that if they have issues or concerns they won't be laughed out of the room or simply ignored by addressing them.

Be Consistent and Honest

Part of being consistent and honorable is managing by the age-old adage, lead by example. Your workers will emulate what you do and put out there for others to emulate. Being a consistent and honest leader lets those who work for you and around you know what to expect in any given situation. This in turn gives them a baseline for better decision making when you aren't around.

  

Don't Micro-Manage

"If a leader is micro-managing they will fail because it is impossible to focus on the bigger picture and to micro-manage at the same time. You are either in the weeds of detail or you are managing a department. Also if you have an employee that needs to be micro-managed you should be contemplating how your success can be limited by this relationship. If you don’t want to drive your talent out the door, don’t micro-manage.

Surround Yourself With People Smarter Than You

Always being the smartest person in the room is hard to maintain in the world of technology, there is so much moving at a break-neck pace. There aren't enough hours in the day to know and keep up with it all. This means you need to build your team with people who complement your skill set.

Always Be Learning

If you aren't regularly educating yourself in your market and specialty, you will quickly be left behind. Take stock of your skills, decide where you need work and go after it. Whatever it is, don't wait. People often say lead by example. Many of your coworkers will take their cues from you. If they see that you take learning seriously they are more likely to as well.

What do you think of these conclusions on becoming an effective leader? How would you begin to break through your thoughts, emotions and actions to becoming a better leader? We would love to hear from you with comments or questions. Send me a note via email at brad@aperiocoaching.net or on Twitter @bparcells.

In Latin, Aperio means to reveal, uncover, to make clear. Coaching is a powerful process that enables the client to reveal and illuminate their authentic style via a sharp focus on who they are at their core.

How To Build Trust As A Leader

There has been so much material in the last few years about employee engagement (and the lack of), and how to build a great company culture. If there is one clear reason for organizations to create a terrific culture, I’d say the top and critical requirement is trust. No matter where you are in your organization and how many direct reports you have, if employees trust you, and they perceive that what you’re doing is honestly in their best interest, and that you mean well, and have good intentions, then they will more likely be more engaged, and ready to perform.

Without trust, nothing else will work. It doesn’t matter if you give your employees incredible perks, without trust, none of it matters. Unfortunately, there are many employers, managers and leaders who simply don’t get this. There are several ways that an employer can build trust among his team, but the most important thing when trying to build trust, by far, is to be authentically real and sincere.  Also, remember and commit to performing the golden rule, show that you trust them, they will more likely be open to trusting you.

Here’s how to begin building trust as a leader:

1. Be Honest

Honesty is the key to building trust. When you say something, you better mean it. This is the easiest way to ruin the trust with your employees. Don’t make promises that you can’t keep, and don’t be shy to admit you’ve made a mistake. Instead of shifting the blame, and assuming none of the responsibility, own up to whatever mistake you’ve made. Your employees will respect you more because of it.

2. Show Real Compassion For Your Employees

Sometimes employers talk the talk, but don’t really walk the walk. If they care about their employees, then they’ll offer them things like a flexible schedule, opportunities for personal growth, and make sure their employees have a strong work-life balance. When you show compassion for them, they’ll end up showing compassion for you.

3. Show True Passion For Your Work

If you’re not passionate about what you are doing, how can you expect to motivate an entire team? When you show your passion to the other employees, they’ll be able to tell, and you should be communicating that passion to them. Try explaining to your employees why you’re so passionate, and how they could potentially become as passionate as you.

4. Share Your Knowledge

Being knowledgeable about your company’s strategic objectives, tactical plans in meeting those objectives, company’s culture, mission, values and brand positioning, important internal and external communications, customers, vendors, industry challenges and issues, etc. instills trust in your team, because it shows them that you actually know what you’re talking about. Once they know that you know what you’re talking about, they’ll be more comfortable turning to you for questions and decisions. If you’re not that knowledgeable about your industry or product, become knowledgeable very quick. This is important for any leader.

5. Say Thank You And I’m Sorry

There are so many managers that don’t take any blame or don’t accept any responsibility when something goes wrong, looking to shift the blame to someone else. This is such a terrible thing to do, because deep inside, the employer knows they were wrong. Effective and great leaders understand the power in owning up to their mistakes, and saying sorry when they screwed up and an admission of how they will work on that change.

Similarly, when something goes well, a smart leader will thank everyone else on the team except himself. Remember to say thank you to your team, something that simple can really go a long way. When employees know that you’ll thank them and credit them for their work, they’ll be more motivated to do things properly, and that will establish a relationship of trust.

6. Get To Know Employees Personally and Coach Your Employees

Getting to know your employees on a more human, and personal level is a great way to build trust, by becoming closer with them.  Effective coaching will also accomplish this goal. Make sure to take some time to have face-to-face meetings, and make sure to go around and personally ask employees how they’re doing, understanding their values and drivers, what their intentions are, etc. That personal touch is critically important to building trust and engaging associates.

7. Be Really Open & Transparent

Building trust is also about being open and transparent in all of your communications. Employees know right away when their boss is being honest, and if you communicate frequently, you’ll earn their trust and respect. This is particularly important during the tough times. When the business isn’t doing as well, you need to communicate openly with your employees and explain to them what’s going on.  No one likes surprises!

8. Share The Long Term Vision

This one is really related to being open and transparent, but it’s important enough to separate. Not only is transparency important for building trust within a team, but communicating the vision and long term strategy is important for employees to have passion. Make sure that everyone is aligned, and address any questions or concerns from your employees. Explain to them how their work will help reach that vision, thereby showing trust in them for however they end up getting there.

Building trust is a critical ingredient in contributing to positive employee engagement. Once trust is built, you’re well on your way to becoming an effective leader.

What do you think of these conclusions? How would you begin to break through your behaviors and intentions to find your your authentic self and begin building trust? We would love to hear from you with comments or questions. Send me a note via email at brad@aperiocoaching.net or on Twitter @bparcells.

In Latin, Aperio means to reveal, uncover, to make clear. Coaching is a powerful process that enables the client to reveal and illuminate their authentic style via a sharp focus on who they are at their core.