| A group of senior executives are finishing up | | | | What we need is more leadership training that |
| a three-day program at a top leadership | | | | uses methods that are more effective than |
| training center. They've already filled out | | | | lecture, or even lecture with PowerPoint and |
| evaluations of the courses they took and the | | | | handouts. We need to use more methods that |
| instructors. Now they're grading the | | | | offer opportunities to learn from specific, |
| facilities and meals. Soon they'll be heading | | | | relevant situations. And we need to use more |
| back home to see what work has piled up while | | | | methods that allow for reflection. |
| they were gone. | | | | |
| | | | But, just because training is different from |
| This scene is played out countless times | | | | our Medieval model doesn't automatically make |
| every day, all across the country. It also | | | | it effective. There are a lot of programs out |
| tells you a lot about the mistakes companies | | | | there based on the principle that we have to |
| make with leadership training. | | | | do something special to make learning fun. |
| | | | Other programs grow from the need for |
| Companies spend millions every year to send | | | | trainers and consultants to sell something |
| top managers to multi-day, off-site | | | | "new." |
| leadership programs. At the same they spend | | | | |
| only about 7 percent of the training budget | | | | That's why you have leadership training that |
| on first line supervisors. | | | | isn't training at all, at least not in |
| | | | leadership. Executives can try outdoor |
| But it's those first line supervisors that | | | | adventure training which can be lots of fun |
| make most of the difference. Jeff Immelt, | | | | or they can learn leadership by cooking, |
| current CEO at General Electric, says that | | | | which probably helps the executive be more |
| when he was a boy, he always knew the name of | | | | helpful at parties. But how do either of |
| his father's supervisor, but rarely knew the | | | | these make you a better leader? None of these |
| name of the CEO. That's normal. | | | | trendy methods seem to do much about helping |
| | | | you learn leadership, but they're a fun way |
| First line supervisors determine whether | | | | to spend the training budget. |
| workers are engaged or not. They're the | | | | |
| leaders who assure that teams have both high | | | | Here's another really important thing. A lot |
| morale and high productivity. Why not spend | | | | of great classroom training never finds its |
| some training money on them to help them do a | | | | way back to the workplace. It never seems to |
| better job? | | | | make any difference in what the |
| | | | leader-trainee does. |
| The other thing wrong with spending | | | | |
| leadership training money on senior managers | | | | That's because companies spend their time and |
| is that they're not likely to change much. A | | | | money on the training and forget about the |
| manager who's been plying the leadership | | | | learning. That's up to the individual, but |
| trade for a couple of decades isn't likely to | | | | companies usually don't even bother to set |
| make a big, effective behavioral change | | | | learning expectations or check to see whether |
| because of a couple of classes. | | | | a trainee is using what he or she was taught. |
| | | | They should. |
| To make matters worse, most leadership | | | | |
| training uses ineffective methods. Companies | | | | Marshall Goldsmith reviewed how well 86,000 |
| spend millions every year on classroom-based | | | | leadership training participants actually |
| training that isn't much different from what | | | | learned from the experience. He found that |
| you'd see if you could go back in time to | | | | the people who went home, talked about the |
| almost any Medieval university. | | | | learning and worked, deliberately to |
| | | | implement new behaviors learned best. But |
| In both cases there's one person in front of | | | | those who just went back home and did no |
| the room talking to a bunch of other people. | | | | follow-up showed no improvement at all. |
| Oh sure, today there would be PowerPoint | | | | |
| slides and the seats might be more | | | | The sad fact is that we know how to do good |
| comfortable, but Martin Luther would have no | | | | leadership training; we're just not doing it. |
| trouble recognizing what's going on. | | | | Here are some things your company should |
| | | | consider. |
| In this medieval training model, the | | | | |
| instructor lays out some basic principles and | | | | Spend time and money training your first line |
| then works down to specific applications. | | | | supervisors and new managers. Help them put |
| That might be great for the teacher, but it's | | | | together a self-development plan that will |
| not the way that most human beings learn | | | | help them learn on the job. You'll get the |
| best. | | | | most bang for your buck that way. |
| | | | |
| Think about any baby you've been around. | | | | Make sure the leadership training you choose |
| There's not a general principle in sight. The | | | | addresses specific skills and uses effective |
| baby sees things, touches things, runs into | | | | instructional techniques. Set specific |
| things and tastes things and then turns all | | | | learning objectives for everyone you send to |
| those experiences into general principles. | | | | training. |
| | | | |
| That's how most adults learn, too. The most | | | | Make sure that people who go through training |
| effective sequence is from specific point or | | | | get help and encouragement when they get back |
| experience to general principle. | | | | on the job. Follow-up to see that they're |
| | | | working to implement what they learned. |