Leadership is more than experience and being placed in particular situations. There is nothing that can be done to force another person into a situation where they are forced to rise to an occasion to lead others. No person or situation can force one to rise to the occasion and lead. There is a common set of skills among great business leaders and other entrepreneurs. These leaders are energized by their mission and vision for the future. They lead and manage their employees well through powerful focus, drive, and motivation. And, oh along the way, they tend to bring personal qualities like connection, empathy, and concern.
The question is how does leadership happen? We can say that leadership qualities emerge or through experience these qualities strengthen. Through trial and error, each leader, with purpose, evaluates what works and what did not. Good leaders learn as much from one experience as the other. This can be a long and intentional process. What if, these same emerging leaders had an opportunity to learn intentionally and be put into “situations” with a guiding force that showed him/her what would happen with varying options? That could accelerate growth in leadership. If you could provide a safe environment for individuals to admire their vision, abilities, and knowledge, then they could test it out and learn about possibilities. They would know how to get the team on board by understanding the pros and cons of what works and what doesn’t.
Benefits of offering an Emerging Leadership Training Program
Creates an opportunity for the most effective style of leadership.
An emerging leadership program will assist in strengthening the knowledge base about leadership and help new leaders recognize which style they should take to bond with others.
Provides prosperity.
Leadership programs can provide individuals the tools needed to become effective leaders. It gives an individual the ability to identify what it takes to be a leader while also learning from others. A successful emerging leadership program will offer discussions with people who deal with differing viewpoints. This allows for full thinking and the building of a diverse mindset.
Helping to make better ethical decisions.
Ethical decision making helps because it provides an opportunity to build an image as a strong leader. It creates opportunities with others and in turn they can be more open in reverse. This helps to create a place where people feel like they are part of the team and want to invest back in the company.
Every organization should design and offer its emerging leaders’ program to address the opportunities and challenges in its company's along with creating leadership growth. Let's look at a few common skills of a successful emerging leaders’ program for an organization, regardless of the industry or the size of the business.
Communication
Leaders need to be clear with their messages and ensure that what they say is understood and implemented. While this may sound simple, It is the caveat that propels so many other things into action.
Clear goals and touchpoints: It is essential to know how to set goals. Then once the goals are in place, it is imperative to know how and when to keep everyone on track through touchpoints. This allows determination of where to move forward and where to pivot.
Responsibility and Accountability
Leaders need to know how to hold each other responsible while not being overly critical. Encouraging accountability while maintaining an environment for innovative ideas is a essential situation that often requires different approaches depending on the circumstances. Leaders need to know how to handle similar situations to avoid getting off-track.
This list is a brief sample of what it takes to support and develop leadership. Too often, organizations do not commit training because of things like, time, money, and they don’t know how. As painful as finding things like time and money are, not giving leadership this training opportunity lengthens and expands the detrimental impact.
Many companies ask their highly productive employees to take on a role and think their experience and / or professional development is enough for them to be leaders. To help them become successful at leading others, their leadership skills must be boosted by different programs designed to grow leaders. Starting with an emerging leaders’ program is a great option to build strength and fortitude for the long run.
Organizations should take on offering emerging leadership programs to lead and engage future generations. When an organization considers these goals listed above, they will help employees develop skills as future leaders, which will provide long run assurance and give employees a sense of commitment to the unveiling of their maximum potential as true leaders.
To learn about the Training Edge's Emerging Leader program, download our brochure or contact info@trainingedge.com
Comments