Leadership Development: How can companies hire and train people to become leaders? Here are four steps to effective leadership development.
Companies that produce great leaders become greater companies. ~ www.jaywren.com
Leadership Development — Four Steps
Creating future leaders is critical to the long-term growth of a company. An element in succession planning, creating leaders from within increases moral, loyalty, and engagement. Here are four elements to leadership development.
- Hire for Leadership
- Teach Responsibility, Authority, and Accountability
- Continual Training for Leadership
- Increase Responsibility
Hire for Leadership
People in any organizations have specific levels of responsibility. Some of those people will stay in the same job for their entire time with the company.
Other people come into a company as developmental candidates. These people may start in entry-level jobs. However, the company has a plan to move these people into bigger roles. Their responsibilities increase as they master each job.
Teach Responsibility, Authority, and Accountability
For new leaders to become successful, they must know their responsibility, their authority, and their accountability.
Responsibility defines the tasks and activities under a leader’s management. Authority is the power to make decisions and the power to hold team members accountable. Accountability in leadership development creates an understanding of expectations of performance.
Additionally, leaders must use these elements to teach their team members what the leader expects of them. Leaders can use these elements as reminders for team members to stay on task.
Train for Leadership
Leadership is not a mere concept. Companies can measure the success of their leaders based on results. The best companies don’t wait to have a leader fail. These companies have experienced leaders who can teach new leaders how to succeed. An ounce of foresight is worth a pound of hindsight.
These leaders must develop styles and practices that make their team as effective as possible. Training, hands-on management, greater feedback, asking questions that provide useful information are some of the methods companies can teach new leaders.
Increase Responsibility
For leaders to continue to grow, their responsibility must increase. Companies promote new leaders into bigger positions. These positions have a higher pay grade. Additionally, they have the greater responsibility.
However, companies cannot always promote leaders. But they must keep the leaders growing and engaged.
What companies can do is relieve experienced future leaders of bottom rung responsibilities. At the same time, companies can give them responsibilities that will prepare them for greater responsibility.
