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Research has consistently shown that those companies who invest in management and leadership development are more productive, have more content and loyal employees, and they frequently outrank their competitors.
However, many companies still choose not to invest in their employees as they believe it is a waste of money, not relevant to their team, they can’t measure the results, doesn’t give a great enough return on investment, or that management training simply doesn’t work.
What these companies have failed to realise is that not all leadership development courses are created equal, so selecting the right training provider is vital if you want measurable, positive results for your management team.
The following points are worth bearing in mind if you are considering offering management and leadership development to your team.
1. Leadership Development Really Matters
High employee turnover, disconnected talent, poor senior-end decision making, low staff morale and unhappy clients all lead to a loss of turnover – which isn’t good for any business.
However, many of these failings can be overcome by developing existing talent within your business and training them to build high-performance teams, encouraging expertise and excellence further down the ladder.
Leadership development and management training programs are vital to the success of your business as they show your investment in your employees, give personnel an opportunity for progression, save you money on hiring new talent, and improve capability, resilience and efficiency within your business.
2. Leadership Development Improves Productivity
Research by Eric Garton and Michael Mankins, which was highlighted by the Harvard Business Review, suggests that workplace productivity can be easily increased by two things; an increase in wages, or, investment in human capital including opportunities for training and progression, improved healthcare, and the time and space to pursue professional development.
According to their research investment in leadership development does pay dividends as “the top-quartile companies in our study unlocked 40% more productive power in their workforce through better practices in time, talent and energy management.”
3. Leadership Development Helps to Attract and Retain Talent
Losing your best people to a competitor will cost more than just the time and money it takes to replace them.
So, improving employee loyalty is vital if you want to attract and retain your best talent.
Employee loyalty is generated through employee engagement and great leadership, so securing and retaining leaders who attract, inspire, encourage and support their team is vital for every level of your business.
4. Leadership Development can Increase Company Agility
Good leadership development programs should focus on performance, future efficiency, problem solving and increasing potential – in this way leaders are encouraged to think for themselves, as opposed to being taught how to deal with a particular issue.
Day-to-day operations will run more smoothly with leadership that can cope with change, accidents, reduced workforces, company restructuring, and business or personal upheaval.
Equipping your management teams with the talents required to navigate critical company challenges will ensure stability and increase company agility.
5. Leadership Development – The Best Methods
There are a plethora of leadership and management development courses and training programs that you could make use of for your team, but ensuring you select a provider that offers tangible results is vital if you want your investment to have a long term effect on your company and employees.
Training courses can often focus solely on ‘how’ to do something, as opposed to development courses, which offer the opportunity to learn through education, solution finding, improved effectiveness and resilience.
Training will show you how to follow a certain method; it standardises and structures, but development will equip you with the confidence to navigate new areas, think outside of the box and encourage forward thinking.
The following methods can be hugely beneficial when developing leadership capabilities and skills:
• Mentoring – stretch less experienced employees by encouraging mentorship and coaching from those more experienced
• Job rotation – encourage first-hand experience by ensuring that employees have an opportunity to try as many roles as possible within the company so that understanding and empathy is fostered
• Openness Policy – those in leadership roles must be present and accessible for staff to encourage an open company culture where problems are discussed and debated, not ignored or overlooked. Boost positivity through reward systems for overcoming issues and engage veteran/retired employees in assisting with a crossover of knowledge and experience.
If you would like to discuss leadership and management development with the Creative Word Training team, please contact us.
