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To the top with in-house leadership development and team mentoring

The United States is suffering from a perceived leadership deficit. Sixty-nine percent of Americans believe were in the throes of a leadership crisis. Whats more, a majority of people are only moderately confident about the state of leadership in business today.1 The good news is that they still feel theyre able to effect real and lasting change to turn the leadership tide; they still feel that they have enough power to make Americas leadership more effective.2 But, economic hardship has seen a number of businesses throw in the leadership development towel in order to stay on track with the budget and ahead of the post-recession curve. Its precisely the opposite of what companies should be doing. Organizations should invest more time and energy into leadership development, not less. Heres why: In an October 2008 report, research powerhouse Bersin & Associates discovered that what companies need most are talentdriven learning programs, specifically leadership development.3 Bersins results showed that companies that embraced strategic leadership development were: 84 percent more effective at increasing the quality of their  leadership pipeline 73 percent more effective at improving overall employee  retention, and 67 percent more effective at increasing the engagement,  retention and teamwork of leaders. Experts agree that overlooking the value of cultivating talent at all levels can be a fatal mistake. When it comes to leadership development, there are simply too many benefits to ignore: it eases the chain of succession, makes employees feel more connected to the business and transfers good ideas from one section of your company to the whole organization.4 Moreover, it yields exceptional return on investment (ROI). In a 2007 Harvard Business Review study, researchers Laurie Bassie and Daniel McMurrer demonstrated a strong connection between leadership skills and the bottom line by examining stock prices of 11 publicly-

1 National Leadership Index 2012. Harvard Kennedy School Center for Public Leadership, Oct. 2012. Web. 20 Nov. 2012. <http://www.centerforpublicleadership.org/images/pdf/NLI/cpl_nli_2012.pdf>. 2 Ibid. 3 Driving Performance: Why Leadership Development Matters in Difficult Times. Center for Creative Leadership, 2008. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. <http://www.ormit.nl/Downloads/DrivingPerformance.pdf>. 4 Donnelly, Tim. How to Create a Leadership Development Program.How to Create a Leadership Development Program | Inc.com. Inc.com, 26 July 2010. Web. 23 Nov. 2012.
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traded financial services firms.5 The highest scores for their investments in human capital also showed stock market returns five times higher than others that did not. Improve your bottom line and impact the perceived leadership deficit by bringing a leadership development program to life at your place of work. It doesnt have to be elaborate; it doesnt have to involve anyone or anything from the outside. In fact, a growing number of leadership development programs are becoming inhouse, started and sustained by managers in, and leaders of, small, medium and large companies across the country. One of the most common methods of leadership development is called team mentoring. It is extremely easy to implement and very cost-effective. Team mentoring utilizes the leadership skills within an organization to prepare its up-and-coming leaders. Its as simple as matching mentors and mentees and scheduling regular meetings between the pairs. Leadership development via team mentoring wouldnt just show your support for the continued growth of your team; it would be a testament to your faith in their abilities and an unspoken compliment that inspires confidence. In the eyes of your staff, that goes a long way. Now is the time to actively develop talent within your ranks because, after all, looking internally for leaders is far easier and more cost-effective than seeking talent externally and then bringing them up to speed on company culture and protocol. So next time youre thinking about filling that managerial position, take a closer look at your team and give them the support and direction they deserve as potential leaders of your companys future. This Blue Paper provides the context for leadership development and its importance. It explores the concept and emphasizes team mentoring, which builds upon our April 2008 Blue Paper on mentoring. Where that Blue Paper covered the basics of mentoring, this Blue Paper will guide you through the formative processes of implementing your own in-house leadership development program.

5 Driving Performance: Why Leadership Development Matters in Difficult Times. Center for Creative Leadership, 2008. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. <http://www.ormit.nl/Downloads/DrivingPerformance.pdf>.
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Leadership and leadership development defined

Leadership is the ability to negotiate, communicate, influence and persuade others to do things.6 Its about helping others see and understand a specific way of thinking and then motivating them to work together towards a common goal. People who harbor a well of untapped leadership potential cant help but exude it, so theyre pretty easy to pick out of a crowd. They tend to have an insatiable appetite to learn, tremendous ambition to achieve, willingness to experience new things and admirable self-discipline.7 Unfortunately, many emerging leaders havent been supported. Some have never even entertained the idea of becoming a leader. If you know someone with similar characteristics and youre in a position to help them, waste no time in communicating your conviction in their ability. Offer to help them by including them in a leadership development program to broaden their skillset. Inevitably, there will be questions. How will it work? What will I have to do? Answer them simply by saying that leadership development will grow their can-do attitude and leadership abilities. Reputable leadership development programs integrate experiential learning, which puts the individual at the focal point of the learning process.8 It begins with an event and is followed by observations, reflections and analysis. The success of a leadership program is contingent on three things: individual learner characteristics (like the ones listed above), the nature of the leadership development program and the level of support for behavioral change from the C-Suite.9 Any leadership development method survives and thrives on enthusiastic executive support. In order for it to work and work well, the C-Suite crew needs to wholeheartedly embrace the concept and then commit to driving it. Years of combined experience and expertise between executives render them invaluable assets to a leadership development program. They can be mentors to everyone; they already know where the proverbial landmines are and can show new or young staff members how to avoid them. 10 Executive participation enlivens the idea that leadership development is an ongoing learning process, one that doesnt end at the corner office.

6 Tracy, Brian. The Role of a Leader.The Role of a Leader | Entrepreneur.com. Entrepreneur.com, 25 Jan. 2008. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/189618>. 7 Leadership Development.Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 10 Nov. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leadership_development>. 8 Ibid. 9 Ibid. 10  Siegel, Rene S. 5 Great Reasons to Be a Mentor.5 Reasons to Be a Mentor | Inc.com. Inc.com, 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.inc.com/rene-siegel/five-reasons-to-be-a-mentor.html>.
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Bring in-house leadership development to life

The first step towards implementing an in-house leadership development program at your work is to identify a direction, but in order to do that there are a couple things to think through and understand about your company first. Here are a few questions to ask to get the leadership development wheels whirring:11 How do you manage organizational talent?  Do you turn to only a handful of people? Do you actively make time for most people? Select only a few members of your team and you may be missing out on an opportunity to develop untouched potential. How do you perceive risk taking and mistakes? Too often, risk taking is seen as a No-no when, really, its a wise decision to let someone take a risk and make a bold choice. Many companies have done very well because of command decisions made in critical situations. You can, through leadership development, help your team members become confident decision makers. And now youare you an active leader? Youve reached the top  and youve got nowhere else to go, nothing else to learn, right? Wrong. For a leadership development program to work, especially if its in-house, you need to show that you believe in it, and believe that you can benefit from it irreverent of your title. Those questions ought to inspire a vision for the kind of leadership development program you want to bring to life at your work. Now you need to tackle the most important question: What do you want your future leaders to accomplish?12 Create a participant list. Take a good, long look at the names of  your team members and devote time to thinking seriously about the strengths and weaknesses of each. Make note of where you think they can improve. Take it further. Ask their direct supervisors and ask them  individually. What do they think their strongest and weakest skills are? Where would they like to grow? All together now. Combine answers from all sides to come up with  one or two general areas of improvement for each.

11  Ryan, John R. Whats Your Leadership Mindset.Whats Your Leadership Mindset? - Business Week. Business Week, 19 June 2009. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/jun2009/ ca20090619_819188.htm>. 12  Donnelly, Tim. How to Create a Leadership Development Program.How to Create a Leadership Development Program | Inc.com. Inc.com, 26 July 2010. Web. 23 Nov. 2012.
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Goals, goals, goals. Have a specific goal in mind, too, but talk about  it together in case they see their future differently. Go beyond the basic conversation about learning and goals and find out what they want to accomplish.

You can engineer an individualized program where each person works on his or her own goals, or you can start with a curriculum where everyone learns the same topic together. Ask yourself: Which would suit your business, budget and purpose best? Think about a timeline, also. These kinds of programs can be condensed into a short timeline or be an extended program. A general rule of thumb is to remember that the longer the program, the greater the impact. However, bear in mind, the longer the program, the greater the costs will be in terms of billable hours lost. There are a number of different development approaches to consider for your program. Here are a few suggestions: Schedule rotations.13 Rotate people through  different positions within the company in order to familiarize them with the various horizontal and vertical levels of work. If your company has different locations, consider sending people to those offices to get a better sense of what part of the work is done there and how it is completed. If you can only manage a one-week stay, thats better than no time at all, but try and shoot for a quarter or half year instead. The longer theyre able to stay in a given location or department, the better understanding theyll reach. Bring in a coach. Have an executive coach drop by for a visit every  month or so to give your group a leadership pep talk of sorts. Executive coaches tend to exude self-confidence and are great developmental resources for staff aspiring to climb the ladder and climb it quickly. If youre able to facilitate one-on-one sessions with an executive coach, you may want to do that, too. That way, program participants get regular outside feedback from someone who may be more able to sense their personal growth and provide insight on how best to grow as a professional. Save-a-date seminars. You can really show your people youre  committed to their growth by blocking a day (or two!) on the office calendar for a leadership seminar for all to attend. You could even
13  How to Develop Future Leaders. How to Develop Future Leaders - Management - WSJ.com. Wall Street Journal, 7 Apr. 2009. Web. 09 Dec. 2012. <http://guides.wsj.com/management/managing-your-people/how-todevelop-future-leaders/>.
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make a weekend out of it and have a leadership development retreat for more complete immersion than just the weekly (or monthly) hour here and there. Facilitate a peer network. With a little more pressure fitting the  same amount of work into less time, a peer network is a great way for your team to turn to each other to talk about concerns or questions. They can meet weekly or monthly, socially or in the office, or just communicate via an online platform like the office intranet or a group on Facebook or LinkedIn. Introduce team mentoring. Team mentoring is when existing  leaders within an organization, people like managers and supervisors, are paired with new or young staff to share their expertise. The one-on-one relationship is a way for the inexperienced individual to learn and take risks with a trusted senior colleague as a guide. There are many ways to help your employees become more adept leaders, but it takes more than work from day-to-day or experience from year-to-year. A program centered on leadership development plants the leadership seed and helps it grow. Adding a mentor to the mix is like adding sunshine and a little rain each day to keep it growing strong.

Team mentoring: an overview

When people feel like theyre no longer growing, the quality of their work suffers. But, when companies coalesce around a common purpose, like imparting valued skills to emerging new team members, everyone is engaged; everyone grows. Team mentoring helps people continue learning with their colleagues by helping them rise to new challenges together. And, team mentoring is an excellent tool for improving communication because, from a management perspective, part of the challenge is to be clear and direct at all times.14 Communication skills are the bedrock of any respectable leader. Goals for team mentoring are not universal. Each organization, including yours, has to approach team mentoring with the understanding that it is a serious leadership development initiative. Bear that in mind as you decide which skills to emphasize throughout. Those chosen skills may have something to do with the reason youve implemented a leadership development program in the first place. For example, where some companies opt for team mentoring during a
14  Donnelly, Tim. How to Create a Leadership Development Program.How to Create a Leadership Development Program | Inc.com. Inc.com, 26 July 2010. Web. 23 Nov. 2012.
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turnaround, others use it to bring people together in a time of growth.15 Still others have fully-integrated team mentoring as a permanent part of their company culture. If you make personal growth a priority, leaders will emerge. They will connect with their teammates, assist new recruits and, in the end, help business grow.16 Commit to leadership development with the help of team mentoring and you, too, can improve employee satisfaction and retention, enrich new employee initiation and make your company more appealing to recruits.17 The greatest thing about team mentoring is that, by utilizing the prized resources already within your companyits leadersto encourage new ones, its extremely cost-effective.

Make team mentoring a reality

If youre thinking team mentoring is indeed something youd like to make happen as a part of your in-house leadership development program, here are the steps youll need to take: Make the matches. Oftentimes matchmaking  is the most common conundrum when it comes to mentoring. At McGraw-Hill, for example, mentors and mentees are matched based on who is best able to help another achieve those goals. 18 Conversely, just ask who theyd like to be paired with. Research suggests that mentors and mentees will work better together if they enjoy their company.19 Take the time to explain. Sit everyone down together, or just the  individual pairs. If youre operating on a smaller scale, take mentor and mentee teams out to lunch, or visit with them individually so that youre able to clearly explain the utility of an in-house leadership development program and how you think team mentoring is an effective method towards that end.20 Furthermore, tell them why youve chosen them as participants. Grow the seed by telling them what theyre good at and reminding them that youll help them get there.21
15 Ibid. d 16  Steinfeld, Jay. 5 Things Great Mentors Do.5 Things Great Mentors Do | Inc.com. Inc.com, 18 Apr. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.inc.com/jay-steinfeld/5-ways-to-be-a-better-mentor.html>. 17  Kessler, Sarah. How to Start a Team mentoring Program.How to Start a Team mentoring Program | Inc.com. Inc.com, 6 Apr. 2010. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/04/start-team mentoring-program. html>. 18  Donnelly, Tim. How to Create a Leadership Development Program.How to Create a Leadership Development Program | Inc.com. Inc.com, 26 July 2010. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. 19 Ibid. 20 Ibid. 21  Siegel, Rene S. 5 Great Reasons to Be a Mentor.5 Reasons to Be a Mentor | Inc.com. Inc.com, 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.inc.com/rene-siegel/five-reasons-to-be-a-mentor.html>.
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Present a format. Remind program participants that theyre  accountable for either achieving those objectives as a mentee, or helping the mentee achieve their objectives as a mentor. Relay to participants that you expect them to make time for one another, at least 1-3 hours each month for 6-12 months. As an additional suggestion, present a structure of their time like the one below:22

1.  Preparation. Discuss expectations, confidentiality and the boundaries of the relationship. 2.  Establish agreements. Here, the mentor helps the mentee draw up a detailed plan about how they will achieve their desired goal. 3.  Enabling. This is where the work happens, where the mentee buckles down and the mentor supports them as they execute their plan. The mentor acts as a mirror and provides feedback and keeps them accountable. 4. Closure. The planned ending is a time to reflect on the experience and what was learned. Mandate meetings. Ensure that everyone is meeting regularly  by mandating routine meetings. Encourage weekly or biweekly meetings, but if it becomes busy, monthly meetings work, too. Encourage participantsmentors and mentees aliketo catalog their progress and their thoughts. It will help them internalize what theyre learning and how theyre helping one another. If the most important resource of an organization is the people within it, why not develop them according to your own standards? In-house leadership development programs are a chance to utilize the knowledge and skills of managers and executives to help grow the skills of those on their way up. After all, you learn to be a leader by doing (and not doing) what other exemplary leaders have done (and not done) before you.23

Managing the leadership development program

Nearly there! Look for verifiable metrics throughout the process, actions that can be measured. They will help you determine whether or not the initiative was a success. It can be as simple as intermittent surveys, or occasionally sitting down with participants to find out how it went and evaluating their productivity and leadership capability during and after the program. Ask yourself: Is there

22 Ibid. 23  Tracy, Brian. The Role of a Leader.The Role of a Leader | Entrepreneur.com. Entrepreneur.com, 25 Jan. 2008. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/189618>.
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measurable improvement where you wanted to see it, either on an individual or organizational level?24 If not, you may have to make some small changes. Inc.com contributor Jay Steinfield, also the founder and Chief Effective Officer (CEO) of blinds.com, has a few pointers for anyone just starting out with an inhouse development program, specifically mentoring.25 Mentor everyone. It might be financially-wise to mentor only a few people at any given time, but each person not included is a missed opportunity for you and for your business. Keep your office door open. As the champion of in-house leadership  development, you become the resident authority on all things to do with the mentoring experience. Keep your door, and your mind, open. Set expectations for your managers. Make your  management staff think ahead. Jay recommends that they send agendas your way before meetings so you know how to help them. Dont give answers. When employees come to you  with questions, dont just give them the answer theyre looking for. Ask probing questions or at least help them make the connections. Remember, someday theyll be leading a group of people maybe even their own businessso its important to prepare them to think hard about difficult situations on their own. Act as a role model. Be transparent about your  own want or need to learn because leaders are never more powerful than when they are shown to be learning.26 Jays final recommendation is to make mentoring a part of your organizations identity. There are so many positives that come with team mentoring why not make it a permanent part of your long-term plan? In fact, as a committed mentor, he went on to write a second Inc.com piece about why he does it and what makes him most happy as an executive:27

24  Siegel, Rene S. 5 Great Reasons to Be a Mentor.5 Reasons to Be a Mentor | Inc.com. Inc.com, 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.inc.com/rene-siegel/five-reasons-to-be-a-mentor.html>. 25 Steinfeld, Jay. 5 Things Great Mentors Do.5 Things Great Mentors Do | Inc.com. Inc.com, 18 Apr. 2012. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.inc.com/jay-steinfeld/5-ways-to-be-a-better-mentor.html>. 26  Hansen, Drew. 5 Keys For Developing Talent In Your Organization. Forbes, 02 Dec. 2011. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/drewhansen/2011/12/02/5-keys-developing-talent-in-your-organization/>. 27  Steinfield, Jay. 3 Easy Ways to Make Employees Happy.3 Easy Ways to Make Employees Happy | Inc.com. Inc.com, 15 Oct. 2012. Web. 24 Nov. 2012. <http://www.inc.com/jay-steinfeld/how-to-make-employees-happy. html>.
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Watching employees buy cars, homes, vacations, and  raise families because of our joint success Giving others the skill-building opportunities and  autonomy to excel, and eventually become leaders themselves

Seeing others do the work I used to do, and better  than I did it Witnessing people do things I never could do  Helping people thrive in an environment that  is stress-free Learning how to be more effective at anything  (e.g. coaching, planning, and communicating)

His joys are the core of mentoring: individual and group achievement, personal and professional satisfaction and combined success. In the end, if business isnt a team effort, what is it? Take a moment to think about some of the things that contribute to your happiness as a leader. Where does your teams satisfaction fall? What follows is an example of a business that thrives on the success of everyone: Zappos. Theyre one cool kid when it comes to online sales, but theyre the coolest kid on the block when it comes to leadership development. Case study: Zappos Zappos, the largest online shoe retailer, is a big believer in the power of leadership development. So big, in fact, that theyve engineered and instituted a system all on their own They might have started small in 1999, but it took Zappos less than 10 years for the company to exceed $1 billion in annual revenue. That same year Zappos debuted as #23 on Fortunes Top 100 Companies to Work For.28 Something that has contributed to employee satisfaction and retention is its leadership development program, the Pipeline. The Pipeline is so fundamental to the company that it is rooted in the Zappos identity, the BCP strategy: Brand, Culture, and Pipeline.29

28  Zappos.com.Zappos.com - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Nov. 2012. Web. 24 Nov. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zappos.com>. 29  Hsieh, Tony. Zappos CEO: Training, Mentorship At The Core Of Our Employee Pipeline Strategy Huffington Post, 21 Jan. 2011. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tony-hsieh/zappos-ceo-how-wevebuilt_b_812187.html>.
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CEO Tony Hsieh wrote at length about the Pipeline strategy in a recent Huffington Post Business article. He notes that while people are important to his company, even more important is the concept of building those people, a pipeline of them. If someone leaves, there are others able to fill in, all of whom already have the foundational skills and technical know-how to do almost any job in the company. The Pipeline is both company-wide and department-specific. Everyone begins as a customer service representative (CSR) and goes through four week new hire training.30 (Which includes answering phones.) There are eight other required courses in order to be recognized for promotion regardless of department. They include: History and Culture of the Company, Science of Happiness 101, Public Speaking, Tribal Leadership, Delivering Happiness, one week of Kentucky Boot Camp at the Zappos distribution center and Intermediate-level Competency with Microsoft Office. Tony believes people have to be engaged to learn and grow both personally and professionally at their work, so his goal for the Zappos team is to view their work not as a career, but as a calling.31 His vision is for everyone to begin entry-level and for the company to provide the training necessary for any employee to be able to become a senior leader within five to seven years. For Tony and his colleagues, its not the individual thats an asset to Zapposits the combination of everyone and their respective growth through the power of the Pipeline. How about one of your own?

Conclusion
Just as a stable, 50 year-long career is no longer the norm, neither is the traditional leadership development model.32 However, it is because of those unforeseen professional twists and turns that leadership development programs have become such a fundamental part of the work world today. And even though the recession is over, the effects of it continue to resonate in both the American

30  Zappos - Building a Customer-Focused, Customer-Centric Culture.Net Promoter Community: San Francisco Conference Blog 2012: Zappos - Building a Customer-Focused, Customer-Centric Culture. Net Promoter Community, 3 Feb. 2012. Web. 24 Nov. 2012. <http://www.netpromoter.com/netpromoter_community/blogs/ conference_sf_2012/2012/02/03/zappos--building-a-customer-focused-customer-centric-culture>. 31 Ibid. 32  Gallo, Amy. Four Myths About Team mentoring.Four Myths About Team mentoring - Business Week. Business Week, 1 Feb. 2011. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. <http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/feb2011/ca2011021_034399.htm>.
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marketplace and the global economy. Skillful leadership is necessary to take on both arenas. By helping your team realize their gifts, youre also securing the future of your business. Employ an in-house leadership development program with a little a la carte team mentoring to cultivate the savvy leadership potential within your walls and youll easily have more than one person ready to make a name for your company well into the future.

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