Brian Amble’s article “Leadership development still missing the mark” includes this sobering material.
“Korn Ferry’s ‘Real World Leadership’ study of more than 7,500 executives from 107 countries found that only 17 per cent are fully confident that their business has the right leaders in place to execute their strategy. About half (56 per cent) were only “somewhat confident†in their leadership. Sixteen per cent did not believe their teams had the necessary leadership capabilities and a further 11 per cent were unsure.
Not surprisingly, this lack of confidence in their own leadership was reflected in executives’ attitudes towards the sort of leadership development their organisations provided. Over half (55 per cent) judged the return on investment on their development programmes to be only fair, poor or very poor and many felt that their leadership development approach was overdue a major overhaul.”
Now here’s the question: What if you’re an ambitious young manager at one of the companies with a pathetic leadership development program? Here are some thoughts.
Leadership development is not your company’s responsibility
A company that develops leaders is probably a good place to be because there will be more good examples to learn from. But even if you work at a company renowned for leadership development, you still have to control your own.
Leadership development doesn’t need a program
Leadership development programs are wonderful. They will offer you possibilities you won’t be able to create on your own. That said, the most important parts of your development are in your control. You can choose role models, seek out mentors, and engage coaches to help you.
You can create your own development cycle. Act intentionally. Garner feedback. Reflect on the results and do better next time. That cycle is important no matter what situation you’re in.
Your leadership development is your responsibility
Here’s the bottom line. Giving control of your future to someone else is a bad idea. If you want to lead, if you want to advance in your career, it’s up to you. Your leadership development is your responsibility. Period.
