Training Industry Quarterly - Spring 2012 - (Page 40)

trACkING treNDs | KeVin oaKes liKe PeoPle, organizations that dare to Be different stand out leadershiP comPetencies: delivering results L eadership competencies are a perennial topic of interest. Human capital professionals frequently are concerned about the competencies being emphasized in their development programs. But, despite the interest level, one question rarely gets asked: Do we really know which competencies have bottom-line impact to the business? A new report from i4cp — Developing High-Performing Leaders: Emphasizing the Competencies That Pay Off — suggests that the most commonly emphasized leadership competencies may not be the most effective choices for arming leaders with the expertise needed to drive organizational performance. A massive 84 percent of high-performance organizations — companies that consistently outperform competitors in revenue, profitability, market growth and customer satisfaction — invest in leadership development programs, and nearly three quarters of lower performers do the same. However, only 23 percent of all business leaders surveyed characterized their firms as “strong at developing future leaders” to a high extent. There is clearly a divide between “doing it” and “doing it well.” Over 80 percent of companies that have leadership development programs build them upon competency models. A welldesigned model defines which leadership development, performance management and success planning — are designed to align with the competency model. And yet the i4cp survey shows a disconnect between popular competencies and the attributes of a leader that contribute to organizational performance. So what are the competencies that correlate most greatly with market performance? In the survey, i4cp asked business leaders about two major categories of competencies: business competencies and communication and relationship competencies. Here’s what we found: Popular competency choices aren’t performance choices Among the business competencies the survey’s respondents told us leaders need, the top five most commonly delivered competencies, in descending order, are: 1. Knowledge of the business 2. Business ethics 3. Knowledge of the industry 4. Knowledge of the customer 5. Ability to understand the bottom line Most would agree those seem like reasonable attributes for leadership success, and they probably are. But they represent “table stakes” when it comes to making a real impact. In the same study, i4cp asked what challenges leaders are expected to face during the next ten years. Strategy execution, managing change, innovation and delivering profitability were among the top five. organizations don’t view themselves as highly successful in leadership development my organization emphasizes the continuing development of the skills of its current leaders the excellence of my organization’s top leadership team (officer level) surpasses most in our industry. my organization is strong at developing future leadership talent. 40.9% 31.5% 23.1% 0 10% 20% 30% Participants responding high/very high extent 40% 50% In its 2011 Leadership Competencies Survey, i4cp found that most companies are committed to leadership development. 40 competencies are required to drive organizational success. The components of development systems — selection, assessment, Training Industry Quarterly, Spring 2012 / A Training Industry, Inc. ezine / www.trainingindustry.com/TIQ http://www.trainingindustry.com/TIQ

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Quarterly - Spring 2012

From Where I Sit: Training in Alignment
Table of Contents
Ad Index
Guest Editor: Leveraging Goal-Setting & Feedback
Learning at the Speed of Business
The Dark Side of Digital
Closing the Generation Gap Between Leaders
Tomorrow's Learning: Blended & Just-In-Time
Assessing Learning and Performance
The Science of Engagement
Engaging Senior Leaders in the Learning and Development Process
Six Critical Measurement Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
The Difference Makers: Identifying and Hiring the Right People
Casebook: DTCC Learning: Developing a Training Digital Nervous System
Leadership Competencies: Delivering Results
Tweet Suite
Company News
Closing Arguments: Measure For Measure

Training Industry Quarterly - Spring 2012