Committment to leadership development, starts at the top!

In my experience one of the biggest differentiators of companies that excel in succession planning and senior leadership development is the commitment and ownership of the CEO or top executive.

However, it isn’t easy.  There are no quick or magic solutions. All companies struggle with this challenge, but some handle it better than others.  Why, well mostly because they pay attention to it.  I’ve worked with a number of senior executives – and have experienced the differences between those that really “get it” and those that don’t. A lot of them only pay it lip service, and have no results to show for it.

So…. what should you do if you “get it”?

Focus on results and don’t let the process be the tail wagging the dog.
I’ve seen way too many organizations get caught up in the process and lose sight of the results. They have a wonderful annual planning meeting with great ideas and tools to implement, but once the meeting is over, nothing really happens until the next year. VPs and senior managers soon catch on that it’s nothing but an exercise, and focus on “looking good instead of being good”.  This doesn’t mean that annual planning and business reviews are not important.  Events, like annual check-ups, force things to happen that otherwise get pushed aside because they are not urgent.  Treat succession planning and leadership development like just client satisfaction or revenue and insist that your HR team provide you with world-class processes and tools.

Make sure your HR VP knows how to do this.
Your HR partner not only needs to know all of the best practices and processes or how to get them, but they must have the ability to influence and be trusted by the executive team, as well as be your own trusted advisor on talent. It’s a tough balance – they may be coaching a struggling VP one day, and recommending to you the same VP be replaced the next day. They have to be able to play match-maker and broker job changes, and manage all of the ego and politics involved.

Practice what you preach.
In this article by Marshall Goldsmith http://www.marshallgoldsmithlibrary.com/cim/articles_display.php?aid=99

He focuses on one of the best ways top executives can get their leaders to improve is to work on improving themselves. Leading by example can mean a lot more than leading by public-relations hype. Your actions are powerful, more now than ever before – if you do it, they are more likely to do it with their reports and the behavior cascades down through the organization. If you don’t then the opposite occurs.

Don’t over complicate it

Think back on your own career – where and how did you learn your most valuable lessons? It was probably

1. New jobs
2. Challenging assignments
3. From other people (good and bad bosses, a coach, mentors, etc…)
4. Courses, books, articles, etc.

Too many companies spend too much time on #4 – and although effective, it doesn’t work without constant reinforcement. Well designed programs can be effective, when they incorporate #2, #3, and #4.  The principle of leadership development applies to all levels of management. All good leaders want their people to grow and develop on the job. If we work hard to improve ourselves, we might encourage the people around us to do the same thing.

Tell us how you influence the leadership development in your organization?

Rewards of Delegation

I have been forced to learn over the years that I cannot do everything myself.  This is especially true when you are building a team, department or organization.  I have always prided myself in learning everything there is to know about my current initiative, job, life event etc.  Even when I was pregnant with my first child, I was bound and determined to read and understand everything there was to know about delivering a baby so I could guide the doctor if he ran into trouble.  Some would say I like to be in control.  I would rather believe that if I learn enough about things I can at least ask the right questions.  But seriously, when you have developed a process or anything else for that matter and give it to someone else only to get it back later in a shambles, it makes you a little jaded.  Typically this is when people begin to juggle everything themselves.  However, this not only sets unrealistic expectations of others but especially of yourself.  There is a much bigger risk with holding on to all the bits and pieces rather than acknowledging you need some help.  It’s been proven over and over that the more effective managers are better at delegating than those who try to “be in control.” The keys  are setting priorities, providing help and support, and designing the right work flows—not your personal effort.

So, if we know it is an important key for our success, why don’t we delegate? Here are some of the excuses I routinely hear:

• No Time – I have no time to teach a team member the tasks.
• No Energy – It takes a lot of energy to follow-up and keep team members on task for success.
• I Can Do It Better – I know what needs to be done and can do it better and faster so I’ll just do it.

Why Should I? – Why should I train someone to do my job?        

Why? If you are in a leadership position, your job is to take the time and the energy to train others to do more so that the you, your team, and your organization are more successful.
         
So let’s remind ourselves of the benefits of quality delegation.
         

1. You multiply yourself – The more you delegate, the more you create team members that can accomplish much more in much less time. You are known as someone who gets things done with self-directed teams.
2. You create a motivated group – The more you delegate, the more your team members are motivated because they see you as someone who trusts them and their abilities to get things accomplished. Because your team is motivated, they take more initiative to create solutions, be more creative, and are willing to take on more responsibilities.
3. You master stress and time management skills – You are forced to prioritize your tasks and realize that there are tasks that you do not need to do, yet would be perfect tasks to develop your team members. By learning how to prioritize your tasks for delegation, you will be less stressed during the workday and go home at the end of the day satisfied that you accomplished more. 
4. You are known as a person who develops people – The more you delegate, the more you will be known within the organization as a person who develops people. Remember, even when you think no one is watching, someone is always watching the way you achieve success by developing your people. Whether it’s management, other teams, departments or divisions, someone is watching. The word will spread about how well you develop people. The results, management will see you as a developer of people; and other employees, both inside and outside of your organization, will fight to work for you because they know you have a motivated, creative working environment. 
5. You create opportunities for yourself and others – By delegating tasks to others, you can then take on more advanced tasks that will prepare you for future opportunities when they become available. This is the main reason why the excuse “if I delegate my tasks to my employees, then they can take my job” doesn’t fly in my book. Another reason why you delegate tasks is so that you can develop yourself for future promotions, monetary, and career opportunities. For example, if you want to become vice president for your organization and you know that skills C, D, and Z are required by all vice presidents, then delegate any management tasks that you have already mastered to your team members so that you can then ask for more “vice presidential” tasks. When that position is available within or outside of the organization, who do you think will have the inside track? You will! Because you can say you already have the skills of a vice president, while developing the people behind you to fill the void when you are promoted. Also, as a leader, you never want your team members to be with you in the same position forever. Thus, delegating tasks continuously prepares them for opportunities that may come their way.

Tell us, how do you delegate tasks successfully?

Empowering HR drives business success

Cover via Amazon

A recent research study released by Bersin & Associates in January confirmed for me something I have believed and lived by throughout my career.  It’s not the quantity of your HR team; it truly is the knowledge and skills they bring to the table and the empowerment and support given by the organizations CEO and other senior leaders that makes it successful.  You can say I have been lucky enough to work for extremely dynamic CEO’s.  In some cases it’s true, I have worked with great leaders, but I have also had my share of the closed mindset CEO who doesn’t know or care what HR does as long as people get paid and have benefits.  It was up to me and my staff to demonstrate the value they were missing out on.  

This study looked at 720 organizations globally and found that the days of bloated HR organizations focused on administrative tasks is over.  This is great news for HR Leaders, who are often so tied to all those administrative tasks that they can’t look at technology and other options that will enable them to get to the business and people needs.  It proves that lean, technology-enabled, well-trained HR teams are able to take advantage of modern talent practices and partner with business leaders to drive impact.

These findings emerged from a two-year global benchmarking study that looked at 14 talent management and HR effectiveness measures across global businesses.  Among the measures examined include a company’s ability to:

• Source the best talent.
• Hire and onboard top candidates.
• Identify and develop leaders.
• Build a culture of learning.
• Allocate compensation effectively.
• Drive high performance through coaching and feedback. 

The research determined that Companies that empower key HR professionals to take on a strategic business partner role create HR teams that outperform the average HR organization by 25 percent or more.  This means these HR leaders are working closely with line executives on hiring the right people, coaching, leadership, succession planning and yes process improvement.  

HR still needs to continue to excel at the basics. Payroll, benefits, and administration are still critical factors in business success, and today these functions must be modified to be able to deal with a highly contingent workforce.

The report, The High-Impact HR Organization: Top 10 Best Practices on the Road to Excellence, includes benchmarks, tools, case studies, operational frameworks and proven service models that define best-practice human resources organizations.

Delegating for Growth

When my children were younger they often asked me what I did at work.  As my career advanced my answer changed.  This particular time it was my son asking and I explained that my job was to help set the company’s strategy, help make people the best they can be, and ensure that our organization had the right resources and skills sets to execute our business plan.   My son’s response was, “So, you don’t really do any actual work.”

After my husband stopped laughing, I assured my son that I worked very hard and the work I was doing was critical to the success of the business. But in a way, my son was picking up on something important: I had gotten to a point in my career where my contribution to the company was better served by teaching others, rather than doing it myself.

A lot of leaders can’t get to this point because they either don’t know how to or they’re afraid of delegating. Maybe they think it will take too long to train someone effectively, or if they delegate too much, they’ll have nothing left to do. And often the more competent they are, the harder it is to delegate. They’re afraid the work won’t get done at all, or more likely, it won’t be done according to their high standards. It’s difficult to give up control, especially when you won’t tolerate anything less than the perfectionism and the high-level of performance you expect of yourself.

Trust me, I know because I am definitely one of those control freaks.  I am trying to reform, but sometimes I slip.  However, I have learned that I can’t do everything myself. The only way your career – and your business – will grow is by assuming increasingly higher levels of responsibility; the only way you’ll have time to do that, without spending your life at work, is to delegate. You have to work on your business and let everyone else work in it.

Below are some tips that may help you delegate with more ease:

Create a culture where mistakes are tolerated. All senior leaders must understand that mistakes are acceptable — as long as people learn from them. No one will accept more responsibility, try new things, or risk making a mistake if they get yelled at or penalized. This is essential.

In formal reviews, include a specific rating for delegation. Do not just mention delegation in passing. It should merit a specific grade. Discuss with managers how they can delegate one-third of their job to one or more of their direct reports. Ask them to develop a specific timeline with the peoples’ names to which they’ll delegate.

Communicate to your staff that pay increases come only with increased value provided. Increased value comes not only with increased effort, but also with a higher-level responsibilities and duties — some of those duties that you might be doing now.

It’s so easy to solve others’ problems by giving quick solutions, but that makes people dependent on you. Tell all your direct reports, and have them tell theirs, that when people want to know how to solve something, they must come with suggested solutions. They should be ready to discuss the factors that should be considered, and provide reasons why one solution seems better than another. Pretty soon people will become more autonomous, feel more empowered, need less supervision, and get people in the habit of thinking critically. That’s good input for determining succession planning and promotions.