Chapter 15: Leadership Development and Succession
KnowledgeBank, p. 457
Key Characteristics of a Leadership Development Program [1]
1.Begin by carefully selecting participants for the program. An axiom of training is
that intelligent and well-motivated trainees profit the most from training. The situation is the same with leadership development. The program will produce more favorable outcomes if the participants have strong leadership traits such as intelligence, motivation, and charisma.
2.Involve executives and secure their sponsorship. For a leadership development
program to receive high priority, top executives must set the program’s tone and objectives. They should also sponsor implementation, as is done with the four-week executive program at General Electric.
3.Gear the development program to participants’ level of management. Managers at
different levels should receive different types of leadership development and training. General managers might have a workshop on vision setting and organizational change, whereas motivation and coaching might be better for middle managers and first-level managers.
4.Address current and future organizational needs. A company heavily engaged in
globalization would provide training on global leadership skills, such as developing the multicultural organization and adapting to rapid change.
5.Use an appropriate model or theory. Leadership skills are often instilled better when
they are taught in a solid conceptual framework. Several of the models or theories presented in this text are often used in leadership development, including the situational leadership model and the normative decision model.
6.Give ongoing reinforcement and emotional support. After a leadership or
management development seminar or program is launched, some follow-up is advised to help reinforce the new learning. Follow-up formats include luncheon meetings, telephone conferences, and email exchanges. Network groups can provide emotional support for continuing the new learning and for discussing challenges facing the leader/manager. For example, a participant might follow up with other members from the development program as to how well they are thinking strategically on a regular basis.
7.Support individual improvement with diagnostic tools. Many leadership
development programs include self-evaluation using assessment instruments like the ones presented throughout this text. In addition to self-evaluation, other people who know the participant also complete the forms. (You will recall the description of 360-degree feedback in Chapter 4.)
8.Ensure practical and relevant content. Many leadership development programs
present participants with problems closely related to those found on the job. A widespread practice in such programs is for an instructor to coordinate with an employer representative so the participants work on a company-relevant problem.
9.Emphasize interpersonal relationships and teamwork. Many leadership development
programs emphasize team building and outdoor training because leaders at every level must have good interpersonal and teamwork skills.
10.Conclude with individual action plans. In a high-quality leadership program,
attendees must develop personalized action plans for improvement (such as those requested in Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 15-1). At Motorola, participants prepare a self-letter describing personal changes to which they are willing to commit.
[1]Marshall Whitmire and Philip R. Nienstedt, “Lead Leaders into the ‘90s,” Personnel Journal, May 1991, pp. 80-85; Shari Caudron, “Building Better Bosses,” Workforce, May 2000, pp. 32-39; Buss, “When Managing Isn’t Enough,” Workforce, December 2001, pp. 44-48.