Creating Leadership Development Opportunities that also Help Your Organization

Leadership is developed through knowledge acquisition, skill development, and experience. In our work, we have facilitated numerous leadership development opportunities by involving employees in two key organizational projects that are outside of their day-to-day job responsibilities: 

• Strategic Planning: Employees are members of committees and teams that work on planning the future of the business.

• Staff Development Workshops: Employees work with the outside facilitator as members of the event-planning team and become the production staff for the day of the event.

Most businesses miss out on these great leadership development opportunities because they feel they cannot afford to have employees take time away from their day-to-day work demands. I would argue that today's business cannot afford to not take the time for staff development or strategic planning. By involving employees in extra projects that involve planning, they develop leadership skills and invest in the future of the organization, while increasing motivation and work satisfaction.

In a structured Strategic Planning Process, teams of employees study key business issues and make recommendations for changes to meet the goals of the organization. By tapping into the knowledge and experience of these employees, business leaders gain insight into solutions they might otherwise have overlooked. Employees, likewise, must thoroughly evaluate their ideas and understand how they fit into the larger context of an organization -- and sometimes even reject ideas that they would have otherwise argued for.

By involving employees in planning and producing staff development workshops, you tap into their knowledge of the key issues and needs that are most relevant to employee's immediate experiences. Their involvement opens up their awareness of their entire department or organization and exposes them to the issues that their supervisors and managers face when making decisions. An appropriately structured and facilitated experience, allows them to try on new leadership responsibilities and experience personal growth and success that inspires them to achieve more at work.