Melissa Daimler’s title says it all “Why Leadership Development has to Happen on the Job.†Her main point is that the context of leadership is changing so rapidly that the only way to learn the trade is on the job. Here’s how she puts it.
“At work alone, though, contexts have proliferated and shifted as well. For instance, more of us work with more people, as technology has opened up collaboration to more people, departments, and business units. More of us work on cross-functional teams or across time zones. A 2014 research study by CEB showed that 60% of people coordinate with at least 10 people daily in their work.”
It’s true that technological change, shifts away from command and control management, flatter organizations, and globalization have all make the manager’s job more complex than it was a decade ago. But leadership has always been an apprentice trade.
Leadership development for an apprentice trade
You don’t learn leadership from books or classes or TED talks. They may give you a few principles and things to try, but the real learning happens on the job. The reason that the books and classes and talks aren’t enough is that leadership is a complex undertaking. Harold Jarche describes it well:
“There are no right answers, there are many ways of trying to achieve your goals and there are too many variables to control.”
Leadership development shouldn’t try to control all the variables or teach one way to achieve leadership goals. Instead, make sure the values are clear and the masters who will set the example for your new leaders lead the way you want your new people to learn.
Don’t try to control it all or plan it all out. You’ll be more effective with some clear values and basic principles and a few good master leaders who put them into practice. That and effective feedback are all you need.
