Why we can't we keep doing leadership training and hoping it will address our leadership challenges.
There’s a reason we've all heard of leadership training: it is a multi-billion-dollar-a-year industry. And if you've ever been in a leadership role, you probably wish you had had some. These trainings come in every flavor, shape, color, and variety. Communications, emotional intelligence, goal setting, delegation, feedback: if it’s been deemed an essential leadership and management skill, they have a training for it. If you’re lucky, you’ve gone to one or two. Most people in their career have never gotten the opportunity. 59% of managers who oversee 1 - 2 employees report having no training at all (source).
I've delivered many one-hit-wonder sessions. My goal is always the same: give participants a nugget of gold that they can take away and use forever. And there's nothing wrong with that. I still get emails and LinkedIn messages from participants excited to share the success of their new tool. Most organizations we work with start off with a workshop here and there. It's an easy way to check the box and feel like you're supporting your managers’ growth.
But consider this: if you attempt to learn to swim by watching presentations over a weekend, you'll probably pick up some great tips and be excited to jump in the water. It’s a different story once you're in the middle of the lake – you’re more likely to drown.
Leadership presentations only become a problem if this is the only thing these organizations do to support their growing leaders. I would argue, and I think most people who attend those workshops would agree, that you will never be able to fully grasp and master the content in that one session. They are fundamentally trainings! You can get training on how to use software, you can get training on project management, you can even get training on how to use AI. Anything with a repeatable process can be trained. However, the problem with leadership is that you never have the exact same situation twice. There are always nuances, different goals, and different people, making it impossible to be trained for every conceivable situation. So, when it comes to leadership, you are going to have to do some development.
There's a fundamental difference between training and development, and that is the difference between management and leadership. You can train for skills and processes, but when it comes to development, that's about how you interact with people. For you to be an incredible leader, you have to to shift beliefs and mindsets, you have to be open and curious, you have to be adaptable and flexible, and you have to evolve to develop the characteristics and traits of successful leaders. All of that is going to take more than a lunch-and-learn.
If you want to have more leaders in your organization, you're going to have to prepare yourself, your organization, and your emerging leaders to strap in for a shift toward development. That could mean:
A bigger budget but with a higher ROI
More time
The same amount of time, but in smaller installments over a longer period
More accountability
More practice
More reflection
And of course, more impact
After working with over 4,000 employees in numerous capacities, we've learned a few keys that it truly takes time to shift leadership beliefs. On average, it takes about three months or six sessions to see change. But once change starts, it starts to snowball!
Here are our three keys for creating a development program (instead of a training session):
Create your program to span a period of time. This means that your training does not start and stop within a week or two. A good development program should be at least six months in duration. Don’t worry: this does not mean it will take more time from participants. Consider taking that 2-day session and breaking it up over several months so that the content is more digestible and your managers have time to apply what they learn between sessions.
Leadership programs should require deep reflection. Training does not force you to think; it allows you to check boxes and refer to experts. When it comes to leadership, you must internalize the principles. Allowing time for discussion, reflection and asking great questions will make all the difference.
Application and practice are paramount. When it comes to development, it can't be all theoretical. Encourage your participants to use their new tools and put the principles they’ve learned into practice. Ensure there is ample time for them to do so and reflect on their experiences before you meet again.
Without integrating these three core elements into your leadership development program, you're sending yourself up to waste dollars and valuable time on programs that are doomed from the start. Instead, maximize your investment through a development program designed to create lasting change.
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