In 2020, organizations around the world invested close to $3.2billion in leadership courses by combining online and in-person coaching opportunities to prepare leaders to thrive in management positions. Creating and implementing an effective leadership program in an organization is crucial. A good training program enhances current leadership competencies and provides the foundation for developing new skills necessary to move up within the organization. 

While enterprises look to hire employees from outside, it is believed that it is better to develop talent internally. According to a survey conducted by Jobilist, nearly 72% of employers are preferring to promote leaders internally to scale businesses in a better way. In this blog, we will focus on seven best practices for developing successful leadership training programs. 

7 Best Practices To Build A Successful Leadership Training Program 

1. Look Into Leadership Trends: Organizations are abolishing the hierarchy systems and adopting flexibility for scaling businesses. Leadership training programs should adopt similar approaches to effectively prepare employees for the future. A few of the latest trends in leadership training include embracing an Agile mindset, engaging in collaboration, discarding a top-down management style, and adopting vertical development. Incorporating strategic thinking and a systemic approach in complex situations can yield remarkable results. 

2. Aligning With Business Strategy: Leadership programs should align with business goals, for instance, adopting change management, retaining talent, and reducing risks. Companies should begin by assessing quarterly and yearly business objectives and aligning them with the capabilities of the employees. It is essential to set a defined goal for the programs and maintain a regular balance to ensure their effectiveness. 

3. Choosing the Correct Modality: Leadership courses come in various forms such as one-to-one classroom training or video-based online learning. Before choosing which training program to adopt, it is best to conduct thorough research to understand which medium is most suitable for the learners. According to Forbes, microlearning is the most effective way of learning as it breaks down bigger topics into smaller manageable pieces for improved retention. Microlearning involves delivering knowledge using short-form video content that employees can easily tune in to in between meetings. 

4. Customize Training Programs To The Individual: Leadership can be a challenging skill to master, so customizable programs should be offered according to individual needs. There are some universal skills that everyone should learn, for instance, emotional intelligence, inspiring others, building confidence, and encouraging collaboration. But leadership training programs should encompass skills according to the specific roles of an individual. Nurturing specific skills include stakeholder relationships, communication, cross-functionality, and so on. Therefore, candidates should be able to select the module more relevant to their roles and for the positions they inspire to occupy in the future. 

5. Include Coaching Avenues: Leadership coaching has become a $4 billion industry in the United States. Coaching improves employee performance and engagement remarkably. Therefore, leadership training should involve internal and external coaching to increase employee productivity. Studies have shown that formal leadership training can increase employee retention rate by 72% and increase the pay grade considerably. 

6. Assess The Training Program: After implementing a successful training program, employers should build a framework to assess the success of the program regularly. The framework should consist of program objectives, evaluation timeframe, data collection methods, and performance metrics. Qualitative surveys can help to analyze the retention power of the employees and their application skills in the future. Employers can also utilize digital tools to evaluate and improve leadership training programs over time. 

7. Recognize Talent And Provide Scope For Improvement: Leadership training is not for everyone. Some employees are ready and willing to learn new skills while others are not. You can recognize a leader’s potential by identifying their passion and desire to inspire others. So when it comes to choosing candidates for the leadership program, take into consideration employees who are ready for advancement by creating a fair system of assessing program eligibility and providing clear steps for completing the application process.

    

Wrapping Up 

To bring about a lasting change, leadership training programs should implement the above best practices for improved productivity. The best programs can fundamentally change the mindsets of team members, create a meaningful space for employees to explore their capabilities, and contribute to the rapid growth of an organization. Training programs can equip employees in supervisory positions to handle their responsibilities and combat daily challenges to lead the pack effectively. To know more about our leadership courses, visit www.learnow.live.