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HBDI® Digital Profile and Start Thinking Online Workshops #1
HBDI® Digital Profile and Start Thinking Online Workshops #1
Five Reasons You Should Invest Time In Building Your Team’s Skills
5 Reasons You Should Invest Time in Building Your Team’s Skills
In a recent article, we spoke about the Five Benefits of Leadership Development You Need to Know About. We’ve already taken a closer look at one of the benefits outlined in that article – better communication. Now we will continue to explore how leadership development plays a pivotal role in the creation of each of the five benefits, with the second theme to be discussed being Recognising Talent.
One key to any company’s success is having the right people in the right roles. But how do we know who that might be? And how do we avoid overlooking someone who doesn’t appear to be the obvious choice?
Here are five compelling reasons to invest in your team:
1. Demonstrate Commitment to your Employees
Offering leadership development opportunities shows your employees that you are willing to go the extra mile to help them progress in their careers and within the business. It also signifies that you are dedicated to the betterment of the business as a whole by choosing to invest in your team rather than seeking to fill roles externally.
2. Nurture Future Leaders
A primary objective of any leadership development program is to provide employees with the opportunity to expand their skills and grow their career opportunities. Perhaps the perfect candidate to fill an important leadership position is already working within the company but doesn’t ordinarily get the chance to step into such a role. By investing in the potential of your future leaders, you support succession planning and ensure that your teams are built upon a strong foundation.
3. Diversify Employee Skillsets
Similar to what we’ve mentioned above, ‘up-skilling’ your employees to be able to perform in leadership roles will help to grow the effectiveness of your business. When each member of your team is well adept in a variety of areas – or ‘multi-skilled’ – they are able to perform better within those areas. This is vital in ensuring that they are capable of understanding different aspects of the business and can transition into other roles with greater ease.
4. Promote Employee Engagement
Engaged employees have higher levels of enthusiasm and commitment to their work. When we feel supported by our leaders, we are more motivated to work better and continuously for them. By providing support in the form of leadership development training, employees can see that there are opportunities for growth and upward mobility.
5. Creates Consistency
By providing the same leadership development opportunities to all employees, your entire team becomes more knowledgeable about tasks, processes and productivity. This increases the efficiency of the entire company when everyone has a clear understanding of how to best get tasks accomplished. It becomes easier to identify areas of concern, reach goals and meet targets.
When managers make an effort to provide all employees with opportunities to develop their skill set beyond the basics of their current position, the benefits are far-reaching. Not only does this create a more engaged team, but it also allows leaders to identify those people who are deserving of greater recognition and opportunity. In doing so, you are able to build and cultivate a strong team with aligned goals and motives.
Five Reasons You Should Invest Time In Building Your Team’s Skills
How to Improve Communication Between You and Your Team
How to Improve Communication Between You and Your Team
In a recent article, we spoke about the Five Benefits of Leadership Development You Need to Know About. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be delving a little deeper into each of the benefits outlined in that article and exploring the integral role that leadership development plays in creating them. The first theme that we’re going to discuss is Better Communication.
Often, when there are issues facing any team or business, the key to finding – and then implementing – a solution is improving communication. We need to have the tools to be able to hear the concerns facing us, as well as the know-how to introduce long-lasting change.
Why communication is important for leaders
Building Trust – Communication is one of the best possible ways to build trust among employees. This is a two-fold process of not only being able to effectively get our own ideas across but also having the ability to listen to the ideas and concerns of others. It is in doing the latter that we begin to see trusting relationships form.
Fostering Unity – When we make the effort to communicate clearly with each other, the chances of being misinterpreted are far less. This is especially important for those in leadership positions. It alleviates the need for clarification and thus ensures that the whole team knows and understands the common goal.
Better Negotiators – Being able to negotiate in a fair and informed way makes for excellent communication. They are informed, consistent and receptive.
How to develop better communication
#1 Listen
Often overlooked, listening is an essential skill to focus on when developing our communication skills. Most people are sometimes too focused on what they want to say next that they don’t pay as much attention as they should to what the other person is saying. By listening closely and asking questions, we show the person or people, we’re speaking with that they have our respect and that their ideas are valued. Also, practice listening ‘beyond the words’ by listening for the real meaning behind what they’re saying. What values seem important to them?
#2 Over-explain
While at first, this may seem counterintuitive to the idea of communicating effectively, when we are talking about communicating clearly, repetition can be a vital factor. This can include repeating the important points to ensure you are being understood. You may also find repeating or rephrasing the other person’s ideas in the form of a question, to be a useful tool in securing your own understanding of them.
#3 Know Your Audience
We wouldn’t speak to our colleagues, in the same manner, we speak to our families. We tailor the way speak to different groups of people in a way that is appropriate for the relationship we have with those people. You may have a well-developed shorthand way of communicating within your team that allows you to communicate complex ideas quite concisely. However, with a new team member, you may have to take more time to carefully explain yourself in order to get the same message across. And avoid jargon!
#4 Mindfulness
Similar to listening and knowing your audience, mindfulness in a communication context is about being aware of how you are being perceived. What kind of tone are you using? Is this the appropriate time and place to have this discussion? What is the intention behind your message? Ask yourself these questions before jumping into the conversation.
Remember that communication is about much more than just what you say. It’s also about how you say it, why you say it and when you say it. It can even be about what you don’t say. We are communicating all of the time, so be more mindful of what you are communicating, even when you’re not speaking. Lastly, be open to hearing the opinions and ideas of others too. Effective leadership communication is fertile ground for long, trusting relationships.
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How to Improve Communication Between You and Your Team
The Five Benefits to Leadership Development You Need to Know About
The Five Benefits to Leadership Development You Need to Know About
There is no denying that leadership development programs make an enormous impact on an organisation’s overall performance as well as to the performance of employees at every level. The key is for people to be able to recognise their strengths as well as their limitations. It is only after identifying these areas that we may begin to address them. While organisations deserve and should expect a unique program to meet their needs, it is clear that no matter the starting point, the results of excellent leadership programs are the same.
One important goal of any leadership development training program is to provide the skills and know-how to be able to build trust and foster a healthy, safe culture. It could be said that a lack of trust is perhaps the biggest missing link in a company’s potential for success. In a recent survey by Edelman Trust Barometer, they found that only 37% of people thought their company CEOs were suitably credible or trustworthy (1.2). This is an astounding statistic and has a direct impact on performance.
Better communication
When leadership development opportunities are offered to all employees, we begin to see a shift towards an improved communication within teams, between management levels, and across departments. Leadership development programs open up people’s hearts and minds to new possibilities. Lower-level employees are encouraged to share more of their ideas and those in higher positions become more receptive. When employees trust those in management, communication improves, information is shared more freely and individuals are more likely to contribute in forums such as team meetings.
Recognising Talent
This is perhaps the most undervalued benefit to leadership development. Often times, the people who are best suited for leadership already exist within the company. Leadership development programs offer these people the chance to be recognised – particularly those not currently in a leadership role. These opportunities also help to foster a sense of company loyalty and employee engagement, while at the same time improving the efficiency of the business.
Creates Capable Leaders
By providing leaders with the skills they need to successfully navigate the ever-changing and often unpredictable business environment, organisations are able to overcome obstacles much more quickly (2). Capability in leaders also allows organisations to better shape their business strategy from the top-down by ensuring leaders are equipped to implement it.
Improves Company Success
Strong leaders are a fundamental element of successful organisations. When companies invest in placing the right people in leadership positions, other employees are then more motivated to perform better and achieve goals (3). Leaders who are ‘role-fit’ encourage creativity and innovation while simultaneously ensuring their team is focused on their common objectives. Companies who place greater value in leadership development are also shown to have stock market returns that are five times higher than those who don’t (2).
Employee Retention
As previously mentioned, leadership development is an important factor in enhancing company loyalty. Employees are much more likely to remain with the same company for longer when they feel they are being valued and supported by their leaders. In fact, a joint study conducted in 2018 by recruitment firms Accounting Principals and Ajilon found that 53.6% of individuals say “their top reason that keeps them from quitting their job is the loyalty they feel to their team, boss, coworkers or their company” (4). Essentially, what these people are referring to is trust.
What impact does trust have in these areas?
Everything we have talked about above coexists because of trust. Trust is the foundation for so much, including communication, the identification and development of competent leaders, and the fostering of a culture that values and encourages ideas to power up company success.
By taking the time to implement new leadership strategies it is possible not only to improve areas in which a company may be deficient but also to build upon existing strengths. When we look at the benefits of leadership development we can begin to see why such programs are important too, and impact on, all areas of business. Not only this, but we can see how each of these particular benefits stem from having a strong foundation of trust.
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