By: Courtney Beam

Is your organization suffering from a culture wounded by challenges resulting from the fallout from the great resignation, hybrid workforces, financial uncertainty, recruitment challenges, unattainable customer expectations, employee burnout, and more? What if providing leadership development could heal those wounds?

Culture is key, and yet, it’s fascinating that many organizations still put initiatives like extra time off, free lunch, or happy hour on top of the list when it comes to ways to improve culture. While those ideas are often appreciated by employees – if the culture is lacking, they’re still going to hate their job when they get back from extra time off.

We know that leaders are the driving force behind culture (good or bad), so why not focus on improving leadership to have a more lasting impact on culture than a ropes course or escape room? Consider using a combination of various approaches that align with your organization’s leadership development framework and extend to all levels of leaders.

Executive Coaching: Coaching shouldn’t always be a last-ditch effort to save a floundering leader. In fact, it can be most valuable for an effective leader to continue refining their leadership skills with the support that comes from an experienced coach. If senior-level leaders aren’t taking the time to invest in their own development, why should anyone else follow suit? Starting with senior leaders will set the stage for showing all employees that your organization believes in the importance of development.

Group Coaching: Small-sized (15 or fewer) coaching groups allow for deeper connection among members through peer coaching and accountability, with the guidance of an experienced leadership coach. Consider cross-level or cross-functional groups to help expand their experience and organizational knowledge. Imagine a culture where leaders come together to learn from a coach, try on their new skills, and then come together to celebrate as they experience real-life successes workplace. *Chefs-kiss*

Virtual Leadership Training Programs: The shift to virtual training has made development accessible to more leaders, but not all programs are created equal. An impactful program should include multiple modalities of learning – to keep it interesting, engaging, and applicable to all types of learners. Take it to the next level by implementing a program that extends beyond the learner to involve their manager. If I’m involved in a program that my manager isn’t aware of, doesn’t care about, or thinks is a waste of time, it doesn’t matter how much I’m invested… it will eventually fall to the bottom of the list of priorities.

Learning Retention Programs: Once your leaders have completed a Leadership Development Program, take it a step further and implement a post-program to keep them engaged and allow them the opportunity to keep practicing their new skills. This might look like monthly group coaching sessions or upskilling through advanced courses.

Mentoring: This can be a great cost-effective tool for engaging valued emerging leaders. Offering mentor opportunities provides aspiring leaders the chance to learn from a seasoned leader and the ability to have exposure to higher level leaders in your organization.

Have you implemented any of these elements into your leadership development strategy? Not sure where to start? Contact us today to discuss building a custom leadership development solution that aligns with your organizational strategy and your budget. 

If you want to learn more about ICC’s online leadership development and management training, contact us at [email protected] or 865-855-4400.