As a leader, your role includes developing the people who work for you, but it doesn’t stop there. You also have critical business responsibilities and a broader role in driving organizational success. Developing your team benefits them by fostering their continuous growth and learning, which equips them to take on new challenges and excel in their roles. It benefits you by enabling greater delegation and allowing you to focus on strategic leadership work. And it benefits the organization by increasing its capacity to deliver on its mission.
The ABCs of Leadership Development
Here are three foundational ABCs to support your team in reaching their potential and making significant contributions:
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Assign meaningful projects that connect to the larger strategy.
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Build trust through regular time and attention.
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Coach consistently to foster leadership.
ASSIGN meaningful projects that connect to the larger strategy: People learn best by doing. When team members are underutilized, they often become disengaged, disconnected from the team’s purpose, and miss opportunities to grow and build new skills. Assigning work that aligns with their unique experiences and skills, connects clearly to a purpose, and provides a stretch into new areas can spark a cycle of greater engagement and performance.
The key to making an assignment meaningful is communicating the “why” behind it. As a leader, you likely see the connection to the larger strategic picture, but it’s essential to share those strategic links consistently and clearly. Everyone can get caught up in the day-to-day tactical deliverables, so reminding your team of the higher intention behind their work can provide motivation and a sense of purpose. It also enables them to make decisions that align with strategic goals even when you are not present to guide that choice.
BUILD trust through regular time and attention: Your time and attention are important contributions to your team members. Research shows that trust—or the lack of it—in one’s immediate manager is a key factor in employees deciding whether to stay or leave a position. (See this 2017 piece written by Paul J. Zak.) People trust those they know, and you build that trust by consistently spending time with your team.
Of course, the time you spend needs to be meaningful. Valuable information sharing, two-way communication, and mutual respect are essential for building trust. When employees regularly hear your perspective on the work and know you as a person, they become more informed and committed to their role on the team.
This connection does not always require live interaction. A quick acknowledgment message, a note of appreciation in broader communication, or sharing a relevant resource can show your team that they matter to you.
When trust is established, team members are more likely to share ideas, concerns, and challenges openly. This gives you a clearer understanding of what’s really happening and fosters better communication, collaboration, and problem-solving across the team.
COACH consistently to foster leadership: Solving problems and telling people what to do is often seen as quintessential leadership. You probably have effective solutions to the challenges that arise and a clear path forward toward your goals. That’s how you became the leader you are today.
The next layer of leadership, however, is supporting the people who work with and work for you in developing their own leadership capabilities, problem-solving skills, and strategic thinking. Coaching is not about giving directions; it’s about empowering others to pursue their own ideas, create and follow their own plans, and discover their own wisdom.
Coaching often involves asking questions rather than providing solutions. You might share how you approached a similar situation, then let them apply that mental model in their own way. By responding to powerful questions that you pose, they can deepen their thinking and hone their decision-making skills.
Here are some sample questions to ask when your impulse might be to provide answers:
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What needs to happen to reach your objective?
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How have you been thinking about this? How did you decide on that action?
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What do you want to be different?
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What options are you considering, and how will you decide?
The three ABCs work together and reinforce each other. To implement them well, you may need to let go of something you’re currently handling. The motivation? Developing the people who work with and work for you means they can take on some of the decision-making, problem-solving, and firefighting. This, in turn, creates more time for you to think strategically and continue developing your team.
(To read more about what we call "Teach Not Tell," head to this blog post by Laurel Tyler.)
Making the Most of Your Leadership Time and Focus
To develop your people effectively, you need to make intentional choices about where to focus your efforts. Here are three additional ABCs to guide your decisions:
ASK them what they want:
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Which assignments are you interested in, and why?
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What support do you need from me?
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What type of coaching, and in which areas, would support you the most?
BUILD your experience:
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Set your intention to implement these ABCs, perhaps starting with just one person on your team.
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Practice in a risk-free environment. In our Executing Strategy simulations, participants lead teams and make decisions about projects, time allocation, and coaching approaches. Then they see the outcomes of those decisions—both for the team members and the business overall.
CONSIDER your history and consult mentors:
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Review your own development as a leader and consider how your leaders supported you.
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What assignments helped shape the leader you are today?
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Who were the leaders you trusted and learned from?
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Which coaching questions and support helped you gain deeper understanding and develop new skills?
As a leader, your decisions about assignments and where you focus your attention has a significant impact on your team.
Being intentional about Assignments, Building trust, and Coaching allows employees to engage in meaningful work, enhance their capabilities, deepen their understanding of your leadership priorities, and learn from your experience and perspective. This intentionality can also strengthen their trust in your leadership.
