It’s a paradox as old as leadership development itself: the people who need training the least get it the most, and people who most need training get the least. The traditional approach to leadership training is to select high performers who are often in the middle or upper end of their careers and put them into a development pipeline leading to greater positions of responsibility.
Limited resources for training and a desire to find the “best and the brightest” drive this approach. Still, while it may identify and train some excellent leaders, it may also neglect some less obvious leaders who could benefit from development.
As the war for talent continues to heat up, talented and high-performing leaders may be harder to identify or hire. Organizations that want to improve the leadership pipeline will need to expand development opportunities to a broader range of potential leaders. And it’s not just potential leaders who need development opportunities; many talented individual contributors may benefit from skills development or academic training that can improve the contributions they make on their teams.
Here are six advantages of expanding development opportunities to everyone:
1. Close the leadership gap
By putting employees who are less motivated or interested in pursuing leadership opportunities into development environments alongside those who are already high-performing leaders, companies can close the confidence gap between the two. In one study, the gap between those with higher leadership confidence and those with lower confidence closed by 35% after putting the two groups into a development opportunity together.
2. Improve the leadership pipeline
Any organization that wants to keep growing and thriving needs a strong bench of up-and-coming leaders who can take on roles as they arise. However, if companies only look for people who are already high-performing leaders, they may miss people with great potential who need some additional development.
3. Improve the employee experience
By improving the overall career development experience, you’ll give employees a better experience and improve the chances that they’ll stay for the long term. One survey found that employees with development opportunities are 15% more engaged in their jobs.
4. Make up for incoming disparities
Everyone who joins your company will have a different set of personal experiences, education, and job history. Some of those things will include events and circumstances beyond their control. Providing opportunities for education and development across the board will help people overcome disparities they could not control.
5. Train for unforeseen opportunities
As the pace of change increases, current jobs will be eliminated, and new jobs will arise. The World Economic Forum predicts that by 2025, 50% of all employees will need reskilling as automation and technology displace 85 million jobs and create 97 million new jobs. By training now, you’ll improve opportunities to fill positions that haven’t yet been created.
6. Help employees find the right niche for them—and improve performance companywide
As the pace of change increases, current jobs will be eliminated, and new jobs will arise. The World Economic Forum predicts that by 2025, 50% of all employees will need reskilling as automation and technology displace 85 million jobs and create 97 million new jobs. By training now, you’ll improve opportunities to fill positions that haven’t yet been created.
Broadening development opportunities doesn’t have to be confined to leadership development. Adobe offers reimbursement for academic or training programs outside of work to all employees in good standing. Encouraging people to explore their interests and pursue additional training can increase the chances that they’ll find precisely the right place to thrive within your organization.
Development shouldn’t just be for those who are already highly skilled or high-performing. Rather, by expanding development opportunities to everyone in your organization, you’ll position the company for long-term growth.
