The workforce is in flux and leaders must improve a wide range of skills within a disruptive environment where time is rarely provided for reflection and self-development. At the end of 2020, Brandon Hall Group conducted a study on the impact of leadership development in large-global organizations and found that many cannot prove that leadership development helps the business.
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Brandon Hall Group’s Leadership Development Maturity Model, based on the 2020 Impact of Leadership Development Study, shows that only 10% of organizations — those at Level 4 of the model — have a fully developed leadership development strategy yielding strong business results.
“These organizations’ leadership development efforts are fueled by a culture of continuous learning, including coaching and mentoring, action learning projects and other opportunities for leaders to apply their new skills in a practical setting,” said Brandon Hall Group SVP and Principal HCM Analyst Claude Werder. “Only in this kind of environment, wherein leaders are empowered to take ownership of their development, can leadership development programs have real business impact.”
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Employers must build programs that develop leaders who can:
- Drive engagement across the organization while implementing an effective employee value proposition
- Empower collaboration to drive business results
- Drive a culture of diversity and inclusion
On average, only about half of organizations do any of those things. But when continuous learning is in progress or fully in place — Levels 3 and 4 in the maturity model — it is closer to 70%.
“Bottom line: it is difficult for leadership development programs to truly impact the business without a multifaceted strategy aligned with the organization’s business objectives. And since business objectives change, especially in a disruptive environment, HR leaders must be vigilant to ensure the leadership development strategy stays aligned with the organization’s needs, ” said Brandon Hall Group CEO Mike Cooke.
It’s not easy. Brandon Hall Group helps corporate clients with strategies to improve the impact of leadership development. In our research, only 34% of organizations said they can prove their leadership program significantly impacted business results; i.e., develop leaders who can help their organizations meet their business goals. However, that percentage rises to almost 60% among Level 3 and 4 organizations.
Similarly, when asked whether they are equipped to implement and sustain effective leadership development programs, 44% of organizations overall said yes. At Levels 3 and 4, 68% said the same.
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