How Managers Can Make or Break Leadership Training Programs
In a recent study on leadership development, it was found that the degree of support from participants’ bosses made a significant impact on several development outcomes. Self-awareness, leadership capability, leadership effectiveness, and engagement were all significantly improved when participants had their bosses’ support.
This has important implications for individual leadership development program design as well as broader organizational and leadership development efforts. Companies are increasingly requiring a clear return on investment from leadership development programs and looking for ways to ensure such initiatives have a sustained impact. Engaging bosses is a key ingredient in that effort.
To better understand the role of bosses in leadership development, this study analyzed 2,461 responses to upon their return on from leadership development.
The study looked at four key outcomes of leadership development in detail:
• Self-awareness—having an accurate view of one’s strengths and weaknesses and how it impacts others.
• Leadership Capability—the degree to which individuals believe they are capable and ready for their roles.
• Leadership Effectiveness—application of knowledge and skills learned in leadership development program.
• Engagement—passion and dedication individuals bring to their work and organization.
Participants were asked to score these outcomes on a 1 to 10 scale, with 1 indicating that the program had little to no impact and 10 indicating that the program had maximum impact.
The results showed there was a significant difference across the 4 key outcomes of leadership development between the groups who reported high boss support versus low boss support. The study suggests that when it comes to boss support, a little goes a long way.
For participants who rated their boss support as high (8 to 10), their scores for the 4 key factors were higher than those who rated their boss support as moderate (6 to 7) or low (1 to 5). For example, low boss support participants rated engagement at 6.5. Those who had high boss support rated engagement at 8.1. This represents a 21% net score difference in engagement between those with high boss support versus those with low boss support.
What these results suggest is, high boss support improves leadership development program outcomes. Participants who feel they get little support from their bosses for their development activities do not benefit as much from these opportunities.
Given the magnitude of the differences, simply ensuring boss support is average—adequate, we might say—goes a long way to improving leadership development program outcomes. A modest effort in supporting participants can help companies maximize the value they get from leadership development investments.
Boss support can be strengthened at each of three points in the leadership development program.
Prepare: Prior to the leadership program itself, participants should have a meeting with their bosses to discuss what leadership skills and characteristics they should work on and why.
Engagement: During the leadership development program, participants should be setting goals for their individual development. Participants should also discuss those goals with their bosses. This helps bosses connect leadership development activities with on-the-job objectives.
Application: Upon completion, coaching that involves the boss and the program participant together can also improve support by helping bosses understand the participant’s development goals and challenges. This is also an optimal time for a participant to tackle a new project, with his/her boss’s support.
Overall, managers and bosses have an important role to play in leadership development efforts. Ensuring that they are well equip to support leadership development will help maximize the benefits of our leadership development programs.
