A rookie Marine officer's first exposure to leadership is when he becomes the company commanding officer. It is a heavy burden to carry to be in charge of more than 200 Marines' lives, both in times of peace and, more significantly, in times of war. The repercussions of failure are enormous. A young Marine officer's most important responsibility is to make sure that individuals under his command has the knowledge, abilities, and attitudes required for success.
Many businesses today are lacking a crucial component of leadership—assuming charge of workers' personal and team growth.
Talent development is a new buzz word, and we talk about it all the time. What's unclear is who is responsible for developing employees? Is it the Learning and Development department? Is it HR? Or might it be the manager of the team or department? Let’s go with the latter. After all, the leader is closest to the team, has a thorough understanding of the capability and capacity of team members and always has skin in the game.
But this scenario doesn't make the learning and development department obsolete. L&D professionals are subject matter experts on how adults learn, and managers are subject matter experts on the missions of their respective teams. Working together, they can develop scenarios, plan activities, identify competencies, build motivation and deliver learning content in the most expedient and lasting ways. To maximize this partnership, the managers should follow this five-step approach as part of the talent development process.
1. Provide Context
Team leaders know which skills will be crucial to the success of the team, and talent development process. For example, a team focused on receiving and classifying new inventory has to work together to achieve accuracy and efficiency—this task requires key organizational skills, and managers should make it clear why organization is essential for team success.
With this context, team leaders can motivate their employees to learn. They can also help them connect the dots between a newly learned skill, and the increased success of the team. After gaining insight into the context of a learning experience, employees will likely be more attentive and be able to better relate learning content to their jobs.
2. Prepare the Learner
Team leaders can prepare their employees for a learning experience, whether formal or informal. Before diving into the learning experience, set it up. Explaining what to expect and how the new knowledge or skill will benefit the team and the employee creates interest and curiosity. By generating curiosity, the manager says, "This is important—here's why you should pay attention and learn."
3. Monitor Learning
As the learner embarks on a journey to gain new knowledge, check in regularly. Answer questions and ask questions to ensure that the process is working. Track progress using your Learning Management System as well as regular evaluations related to the new knowledge and skills they are learning.
4. Follow Up
A simple yet effective question mangers should pose after an employee has gained new knowledge is, "What did you learn, and how will that help you to do your job more effectively or efficiently?" With that question, the manager emphasizes the relevance and importance of the learning content.
If the leader cannot connect the dots back to the employee's work, it may be time to question the need for the learning experience.
5. Evaluate Progress
Everyone needs practice to improve and perfect a skill. Feedback is important here, and doesn't necessarily mean a critique. Rather, it means discussing the employee's confidence level, identifying ways to increase confidence and coming up with different scenarios that might challenge the employee in the future.
Keep the dialogue going until both you and the employee believe that the appropriate confidence level has been reached.
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