Developing Leadership Skills

Developing Leadership Skills

Session 1207 January 2012

Civil Service College Dhaka

Presentation byDr. Muhammad G. Sarwar

Email: sarwar_mg@yahoo.comCell: 01821443741

Leadership: Course Outline

Sl. no. Topic Title Session

1 Leadership Theories: an introduction 9

2 Managerial Work and Traits / Skills of Leadership

10

3 Leading Change in Organizations and Strategic Leadership by Executives

11

4 Developing Leadership Skills 12

2

4 Primary Process in Managing

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Taxonomy of Leadership Skill

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Skills needed at different levelsHigh CS

ISskr

TS

Low LL Top5

Contents of 11th Session: change in organization and role of executives

• Change process in Organizations• Influencing Organization Culture• Implementing Change• How Leaders Influence Organizational Performance ?• Constraints on Executives• Conditions Affecting the Need for Strategic

Leadership• Key Responsibilities for Top Executives

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Contents of 12 Session: Developing Leadership Skills

• Leadership Development Process • A System Perspective on Leadership

Development• Formal Training Programs• Developmental Activities/On the Job Training• Self-Help Activities/Self Development• Facilitating Conditions for Leadership

Development

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Leadership Development Process • In a fast changing economic environment leadership

development has been getting increasing importance.

• Leadership development is a multibillion dollar business in the capitalist world.

• Leadership development can be developed mainly in following 3 ways:1. Formal training Programs2. Developmental activities/On the job Experience3. Self-help activities/Self development

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A System Perspective on Leadership

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Formal Training Programs• Formal leadership training could take many

forms- short course (workshop) to long program (Executive MBA).

• Designing effective leadership training:– Clear learning objectives– Clear meaningful content– Appropriate sequencing of content– Appropriate mix of training methods– Opportunity for active practice– Timely feedback– Trainee self-confidence– Appropriate follow-up activities

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Special Techniques for Leadership Training

• Three techniques widely used in leadership training are:1. Behavior Role Modeling based on demonstration

and role playing to enhance interpersonal skills.2. Case Discussion are used to practice analytical

and decision making skills based on events in an organization.

3. Business Games and Computer Simulations are used to analyze complex management problems and to make decisions based on quantitative financial information. 11

Learning from Experience/On the Job Experience

• Much of the skill essential for effective leadership is learned from experience rather than from formal training programs.

• Much of learning from experience depends on:– Amount of challenge in the job assignments,– Variety of tasks or assignments, and – Quality of feedback.

12

Developmental / On the Job Activities/Experience

• Following developmental activities can be used to facilitate learning of relevant skills from on the job experience:– Multi-source feedback– Developmental assessment – Special assignments– Job rotation– Action learning– Mentoring– Executive coaching– Outdoor challenge programs– Personal Growth programs 13

Multi-Source Feedback

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Self-Help Activities /Self Development

• Techniques of self-help leadership development are:– Develop a personal vision of career objectives– Seek appropriate mentors– Seek challenging assignments– Improve self-monitoring– Seek relevant feedback– Learn from mistakes– Learn to view events from multiple perspectives– Be skeptical of easy answers.

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Facilitating Conditions for Leadership Development

• Support by the Boss: immediate boss can facilitate development of leadership skills in subordinates.

• Learning Climate: amount of management training and development occurs in an organization depends on learning climate in the organization.

• Criteria for Placement Decisions: Job assignment criteria should be based on adequate developmental opportunities and a logical progression of learning.

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Ways to support Leadership Trainings of Subordinates

• Before the Training– Inform about opportunities to get training– Explain why the training is important and beneficial– Ask others who received training to explain how it was useful– Change the work schedule to make it easier to attend training– Give a subordinate time off if necessary to prepare for the

training– Support preparation activities such as distribution of

questionnaires– Tell subordinates they will be asked to report on what was

learned.

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Ways to support Leadership Trainings of Subordinates

• After the Training– Meet with the person to discuss what was learned and

how it can be used– Jointly set specific objectives and action plans to use what

was learned.– Make assignments that require use of newly learned skills– Hold periodic review sessions to monitor progress in

applying learning– Praise subordinate for applying new skills – Provide encouragement and coaching when difficulties are

encountered – Set an example for trainees by using the skills yourself.

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Creating/Maintaining a Supporting climate for Learning

• Make job assignments that allow to pursue interests and learn new skills

• Establish work schedules that allow enough free time to experiment with new methods

• Provide financial support for continuing education by employees• Arrange special speakers and skills workshops for employees• Establish a sabbatical program to allow employees to renew

themselves• Establish a career counseling program to help employees in

their career plans• Establish voluntary skill assessment and feedback programs• Make pay increases partly dependent on skill development• Provide rewards for innovations and improvements.

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Limitations of Leadership Development• Most of the theories of leadership development are

focused on improving the skills and behavior of individuals, that is emphasis on leader development rather then leadership development which is a shared process that involves the cooperative efforts of many people.

• Little integration of leadership training and on the job experience and self-development in most organizations

• The lack of system perspective in leadership development as in most organizations it is not based on strategic objectives.

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References

1. Gary Yukl, 2011, Leadership in Organizations, 7th edition, Pearson, chapter 14

2. Peter G. Northhouse, 2010, Leadership: Theory and Practice, 5th edition, Sage publication

3. Robert N. Lussier and Christopher F. Achua, 2007, Effective Leadership, 3rd edition, Cengage Learning.

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Thanks

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