Many of my clients have a similar problem. They have grown their company, they are an active president or CEO, but they are still doing too much of the day to day work. They are in essence, glorified managers, not true leaders of an organization. When they have multiple supervisor-level people reporting to them, the CEO isn’t able to work in a strategically effective manner; instead, they spend much of their time directing and managing the levels beneath them.
Many larger companies have solid management training programs that will lead a promising individual through all areas of the company, giving them a chance to spend time in each of the business areas and focus on-line and non-line responsibilities over the course of several years. Not every company, however, has the ability to create such an experience for their potentials. But every company does have the opportunity to identify those promising individuals and craft experiences for them throughout their career.
Giving someone supervisory responsibility, providing training and education that will keep them on the leading edge of their industry, and pairing them with a mentor, either within the company or outside of it, are all great ways to develop that emerging leader.
A next step is to pass as much of the planning and decision making as is practical down to the individual you have identified. Start small but involve them in higher level strategic planning as you are able. Identify areas that need improvement to round out that person’s skill set – where are they strong, and which competencies still need development?
Investing in a leadership assessment tool can result in additional insight and target specific areas to develop. A 360 leadership assessment involves subordinates, peers and supervisors and can provide a detailed and well-rounded assessment of the individual’s competencies.
The key is to identify the individual or individuals, then focus on providing a combination of experiences and coaching to develop their leadership capabilities. Look for a coach or company, such as ours, that has a focus on developing the emerging leader to partner with you to create the next level of leadership in your organization.
