Identifying potential leaders in your organisation is important, and a manager should encourage and support anyone who displays the makings of a future manager or director.
Besides illustrating attributes and employing skills required of leaders, these promising employees understand the intricacies of the organisation, which puts them in a suitable position to lead the business to further success and prosperity.
In this post, we reveal some of the signs that show an employee has what it takes to be a leader. We also discuss the subject of management training courses and recommend a few courses that could help them to perform successfully when they progress to a more senior role.
Identifying a new leader will sometimes take some sharp observation on a manager’s part. Some employees will clearly show leadership potential, whereas others may be perfectly capable but it will not be obvious. Not everyone is right for leadership, even though they may be competent in their current roles, so what are the signs you should look out for in order to train and develop someone further for a future in management?
Potential managers keep going when situations get tough
What happens when deadlines are tight? How do people perform when situations get sticky? Does anyone form and implement a plan? Does anyone work extra hours? These are people who may benefit from a management training course. During more difficult times, you’ll begin to see who the leaders could be.
Potential managers consider the bigger picture
Perhaps an employee is emailing you articles about industry trends regularly?
Avoid becoming annoyed with them. Their interest in the industry and the fact they’re sending you these emails is a sign of their anticipation of future challenges. They’re seeing beyond the day-to-day operations and taking an interest in the long-term wellbeing of the organisation.
This suggests you have a strategic thinker on your team, and that is somebody you should think about helping to develop.
Potential leaders have morals
Observe your team. Does anyone throw other members of the team under the bus? Do they cut corners? Do they steal the ideas of others and take credit for them? This isn’t leader-like behaviour. Instead, watch for people on your team who confess when they make a mistake, who give credit to others when it’s due, and who request help rather than struggle alone.
Potential leaders get along with other people
Leaders don’t assume positions of responsibility to befriend people, but they must be able to work well with lots of different personalities and work styles. Although they may not necessarily socialise with their colleagues, they’ll value their opinions and treat them with respect. Is there anyone on your team who makes an effort to get on with everyone? This is someone who could have the character to influence the whole chemistry within the room and across the wider organisation.
Potential managers are adaptable
A manager must be able to respond well to change. In business, sometimes the changes can be quite sudden and yield undesirable results. An employee who is comfortable with change, however, will soon adjust and get back on track. If they can adapt to different circumstances, it’s a sign they understand situations quickly and offer the most appropriate response to them.
What is management skills training?
When an employee illustrates that they could progress to a higher level within the organisation, their superior(s) should help them to prepare for the greater responsibility. One of the most straightforward ways to do this is by sending them on a suitable management training course so they can learn how to be a good manager.
Courses aim to achieve a number of outcomes so that their participants return to their roles with the essential theoretical grounding and practical skills to carry out their duties successfully. Amongst the outcomes for which management training courses will strive for are:
- An understanding of the role of the management professional
- Process design and strategy formation
- An ability to make decisions based on evidence
- Enhanced communication skills
- Greater self-awareness
- Coaching skills
Management training methods
Just as a manager must build a diverse range of skills to serve their organisation well, management training courses consist of different activities to assist aspiring managers in developing them. The variety of teaching methods and activities helps participants to embrace the course material and apply their learning in real-life situations and simulated management scenarios.
Materials may be presented in some of the following ways:
- Didactic learning, in which the course participants are taught management theory that they can implement when performing their own duties
- Role-playing, which provides course participants with the opportunity to practice skills such as problem-solving, active listening, empathising, and communication
- Scenario setting, an avenue for participants to make mistakes from which they can learn the best approaches when reaching decisions or applying other skills
InPD management training courses
We offer a wide range of management training courses for professionals who are wishing to hone their existing skills or prepare for a more senior role. Below are some manager training courses that can aid you on this path.
CMI Level 5 Leadership and Management Programme
The CMI Level 5 Leadership and Management course is for any management professional who works with teams or stakeholders and is aspiring to senior management level. The course focuses on managers as leaders, and participants will explore the role of managers, learn about leadership skills, and increase their own self-awareness and emotional intelligence. Participants will also address the theme of working with others, which will entail discussing ways to lead, build teams, communicate in difficult situations, and motivate for better performance. Lastly, they’ll cover the subject of improving services, with sessions about analysing drivers for change, managing change, planning projects and making business cases.
Advanced Management Programme Accelerator
Is one of your middle managers ready to step up to C-level? Our Advanced Management Programme Accelerator is designed for such professionals. This general course covers a wide range of skills and attributes required for C-level management, with a look at the manager understanding themselves as a leader, building self-awareness, and driving performance through coaching, as well as focusing on commercial aspects of their role, such as budgets, finance, and their role in an organisation’s strategy.
Book a management training course with In Professional Development
A management training course is an excellent way to prepare your leaders of tomorrow, equipping them with essential skills and developing in them the confidence necessary to take on the greater responsibilities expected of them successfully. At this point, we’d also like to mention that we’re participants in the Accelerate Cheshire and Warrington programme, which means you may be able to receive funding to enrol your staff in some of our courses, depending on your location and business circumstances.
To find out more about our management training courses, visit our courses page. If you prefer to discuss your options first or to register yourself or an employee for a course in a different way, you can email us at enquiries@inpd.co.uk, send us a message using the form on our contact page or call us on 0161 826 3139. We can advise you appropriately so you can develop the next set of leaders in your team successfully.
