Leadership development may be the most important thing any company does. That’s why, every week, I review blogs and other publications that cover leadership development to find the very best leadership development posts. This week, you’ll find pointers to posts about the paradox of leadership development programs, who makes it to the C-suite, how Intertape, and why a one-size-fits-all approach to employee development doesn’t work.
From Stephanie Hodnett: The paradox of leadership development programs
“Leadership development programs have been around long enough that you would expect any inherent paradox to have been resolved by now. Surely we have studied the common traits of effective leaders long enough to establish a set of widely agreed-upon guidelines and principles. However, there remains tension and discomfort within the practice of improving leadership skills. And the paradox of developing great leaders is not an obstacle to good leadership training, but instead absolutely essential to it.”
From the London School of Economics: Who gets to occupy the corporate C-suite?
“A jack of all trades who experiences many different jobs in the firm, rather than someone who has had few jobs, write Anders Frederiksen and Takao Kato”
From Jill Jusko: 2018 IW Best Plants Winner: Intertape Develops Leaders on the Plant Floor
“What you won’t see, however—and this likely will be surprising—are direct supervisors. Intertape Polymer Group’s Blythewood site doesn’t have any. Instead, self-directed work teams of associates make team decisions to keep production flowing. In this instance, that production is paper masking and duct tape, as well as stencil for the monument industry.”
From Sydney Finkelstein: Why a One-Size-Fits-All Approach to Employee Development Doesn’t Work
“My research not only confirms that bosses matter a great deal, especially when it comes to learning and development, but that some have tremendous positive impact on the people who work for them. The exceptional leaders I studied don’t leave it to HR to create career progression programs for their team members. Rather, they personalize their coaching, support, and teaching efforts. They don’t just track the big learning opportunities granted to their employees. They also understand the nuances of how people are growing week by week and month by month and adjust their actions accordingly. As a result, they keep their teams engaged and excited.”
