I ask that leaders of all persuasions be trained to lead, not just be technically or operationally competent.
What’s tougher to learn – the technical or operational requirements or the complexities and diversity of people and their personalities?
I know it’s the latter.
Why do we spend years learning professions and other skills like project management, yet only between two days and two weeks on average, training to be a leader? And leadership requires life-long learning.
If it takes about 12 – 18 months intense and full time training to develop a nineteen year old to become a platoon commander (30 people) in the military, how can we reasonably expect to turn a gun salesman into an effective sales manager just by promoting him or her into the role?
It’s not our leaders’ fault that they aren’t sufficiently developed to lead effectively, it’s our culture that’s driven by the illusion that we need short term results – strangely coinciding with fund managers’ quarterly bonuses!
If we were willing to invest more wisely and longer term in developing our leaders across all sectors, what do you think the return on investment might be?
What do you think is the cost of doing nothing more than we currently are?
