You want your organization to have the leading edge in the market. According to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace Report, businesses with higher rates of employee engagement show higher rates of productivity, profitability, and customer metrics. A part of that means investing in your people. But what does that look like?
As the digital age continues to unfold, the business landscape is changing and traditional forms of leadership development are falling short.
At The Regis Company, we strive to ensure that everyone can access the tools necessary to become a successful leader. To make this possible, we break down effective leadership development into three guiding principles that anyone can use to give leaders an edge at work and in life.
1. Meet leaders where they are.
We talk about empathy a lot. That’s because it is central to how The Regis Company engages and creates with our clients. For you and your organization, get to know who you are working with. Ask good questions, listen with the intent to learn, and find ways to develop leaders in context. At the individual level, leverage the diverse experiences, backgrounds, and talents of every person within your organization. Maximizing your company’s value means maximizing the value of all your people.
2. Learning should be experienced, not completed.
It seems obvious, but think about past development programs you and your people have experienced. Chances are they weren’t very engaging. While these programs might offer a path of least resistance, this isn’t how learning happens. You learn best by doing and that’s why we make our programs immersive and relevant to our clients. If you want your leaders to be engaged find ways to include elements of decision making, scenario planning, and role playing into their learning. This can go a long way in bringing leadership development to life—with lasting impact.
3. Learning must be holistic.
We all engage with the world around us on many levels, and leadership development should do the same. That’s why when The Regis Company thinks about giving people the leading edge, it’s not only in relation to their work life but to their whole life. Humans play many roles. You have behaviors that you enact in different scenarios, emotions that develop in response to your environment, and perspectives that form and change to help make sense of it all. Effective leadership development should address all these levels.
These principles guide how The Regis Company develops leaders at all levels, across an entire organization and they can also guide you. For a complete checklist for selecting Your Next-Generation Leadership Development Partner, download our eBook.
Luke Colaciello uses storytelling to support The Regis Company's endeavors in marketing and sales, building brand awareness around human-centered programs that help organizations and their people find their leading edge.