Got Promoted To Manager? Why You’ll Need Leadership Skills Training For That
Are you a new or seasoned company manager? Read the benefits that you and your company can receive by partaking in leadership skills training courses.
Not All Leaders Are Born To Lead. Some Need To Be Taught.
Climbing up the corporate ladder can be exciting for any employee. But what is often forgotten is the fact that the skills that are needed at each rung of the ladder aren’t necessarily inherently learnt. In fact, they need to be taught.
New company hires will always go through some form of company or professional training. Whether it is training to bring them up to speed on the technology platforms you use or a training program to teach them about your workplace policies.
So, why is it that sometimes the higher we go up the ladder, the less training we automatically receive?
Everyone can agree that certain positions require essential traits and qualities. To be a manager, you need to have the right leadership skills to carry out the tasks required of you. But transitioning into this role doesn’t come easily to all. Not all leaders are born with the skills they need to effectively manage other people – but they do have the ability to learn them.
Leadership Skills For Managers: Why Training Is An Essential Part Of The Job
Taking on the responsibilities that come with a managerial role is a very serious matter and one that should never be taken lightly. The fact is that many companies across North America don’t take into consideration when outlining their annual employee training budget how much should be allocated for the training of managers.
Leadership skills are much more than just knowing how to create a business strategy and set short and long-term goals. Proper training for managers teaches much more vital skills needed to keep employees productive, motivated and committed.
Below, are the four core leadership skills that all managers will need to be successful in their roles. These are:
- Self-Awareness: As a leader, you need to be able to recognize your strengths and weaknesses. Having the ability to be self-aware about your qualities as a leader is one of the most critical skills to ensure long-term and ongoing effectiveness.
- Communication: In order to lead, you need to be able to effectively communicate. A vital aspect of the role requires the ability to give direction and engage with employees. Leadership fails when adequate communication is not provided to employees. Writing and speaking clearly along with active listening skills are all part of communicating as a leader.
- Influence: Influencing skills are needed to communicate vision and goals, align the effort of others and build commitment from employees at all levels. This skill requires you to craft logical arguments, steer direction and foster motivation.
- Learning Agility: Leaders need to be active learners in order to develop in their role. This skill enables individuals to learn quickly from mistakes, ask insightful questions, and be open to honest feedback. It also involves inspiring others to learn and creating a learning culture within the company.
Training to acquire these skills is an essential part of any manager’s job. Not only does it help them to understand the role of a leader better but it also prepares them for the tasks involved and the qualities needed to be a good leader.
It isn’t just beneficial for future leaders. In fact, proactively training your current employees in positions of leadership will help them to develop themselves even more.
How A Leadership Training Course Can Benefit Those In Management
Some companies make the decision to have an experienced manager train a new manager but often this decision can be ineffective. Those in management benefit more when they are given the opportunity to partake in a leadership training course.
Why is that? Well, knowing how to manage and knowing how to teach management skills are two vastly different things. By investing in a leadership skill training course for leaders, managers are given the skills and tools they need to foster a productive and positive workplace environment. These include the ability to increase productivity, reduce turnover rate, boost employee engagement and fosters personal development.
Increase Productivity
Consistent leadership results in a high level of performance and productivity among employees. Leadership training encompasses the emotional intelligence skills needed to help staff discover their best potential. Managing others requires the ability to truly understand your employees’ emotions and empathizing with them in order to effectively empower and engage them.
Without the necessary communication and interpersonal skills needed to do this, you will struggle to keep your staff productive.
Reduce Turnover Rate
In many cases when an employee makes the decision to leave a company, it is not because they dislike their jobs but rather they dislike their bosses. The kind of leader that you are has an enormous impact on your employee’s job satisfaction. If your leadership skills are ineffective, then employee engagement will decline.
Professional training courses that focus on improving the leadership skills of individuals equips managers with the ability to effectively guide employees and their business on the road to success. This will directly result in higher retention rates.
Boost Employee Engagement
One aspect of leadership which is often not given the attention that it deserves is employee feedback. In order to keep employee engagement high, leaders need to be able to provide others with honest and constructive feedback at regular intervals throughout the year.
Through a training course, managers are taught practical ways to give feedback to employees which will motivate, engage and encourage them to continue upskilling within their roles.
Foster Personal Development
Lastly, leadership skills training gives those individuals that are new and existing in managerial roles the opportunity to personally develop within the role. Part of being a leader is being confident in the interpersonal skills needed to effectively manage others.
By focusing on communication skills, a leadership training course will equip individuals with the tools they need to communicate efficiently, both internally and externally. Employees need guidance and direction from their managers in order to have confidence in their judgement. When this skill is practiced not only will it foster trust among staff but it will also allow managers to continue to lead with success.
The Importance Of Developing Effective Skills To Lead Properly
As you will have learnt by this point in the article, without working on developing the skills listed above the leadership will fail. There are many factors at play when it comes to whether you will be able to manage employees and a company effectively. And not all of these will come naturally to everyone.
In order to give your company the best chance of success, then training those in leadership will need to be a high priority. Regardless of whether they are new to the role or have decades of experience. All leaders can benefit from upskilling.
Interested in giving your company’s future leaders the opportunity to excel in their role? Here at the Training Company, we believe that all managers and leaders should be given the ability to nurture and develop their skills. Get in touch today and we’ll be happy to discuss the leadership training program that is best suited for your company.