Leadership training for managers

Leadership skills are vital for new and established managers to navigate the complex dynamics of the modern workplace. Below are five specific reasons why managers really need to focus on developing these skills.

1. Enhancing Team Performance

• Fostering Collaboration: Effective leadership skills promote a collaborative environment where team members feel genuinely valued and motivated to contribute towards the team objectives.

• Driving Efficiency: Proactive leaders refine and streamline processes, leading to increased productivity and efficiency within the team. This is also delivers time and money saving benefits.

• Improving Problem-Solving: Leaders with strong analytical skills can guide their teams through challenges, not just solving but also anticipating and avoiding problems, fostering innovative solutions.

2. Building Mutual Trust and Respect

• Encouraging Open Communication: Effective leadership skills help managers communicate openly, disagree healthily and challenge positively, building trust with team members.

• Demonstrating Reliability: A skilled leader is seen as reliable and trustworthy, which is crucial for team morale. Consistency is vital if the leader is to set a healthy emotional climate for their team, peers and stakeholders.

• Promoting Mutual Respect: When a leader treats team members with respect, it is often reciprocated, creating a positive work environment. This does not mean that the leader cannot disagree with team members. It does mean that disagreement is encouraged, welcomed and can lead to high quality decisions and action.

  3. Effective Decision Making

  • Analytical Thinking: Effective leadership training enhances a manager's ability to analyse situations, data, risks, opportunities and make informed decisions. This includes making prudent decisions when only incomplete information is available.

  • Risk Management: Skilled leaders use Emotional Intelligence to prudently assess and manage risks, avoiding potential pitfalls. They can't always remove risk completely. They will though minimise exposure to risk.

  • Long-term Vision: Leaders are trained to think strategically, ensuring decisions align with long-term goals, and engage direct reports and peers in progressing towards its achievement.

  4. Managing Change Successfully

  • Adaptability: Effective leaders are equipped to quickly understand and adapt to change, an essential skill in today’s fast-paced business world. If the leader cannot or will not be adaptable to change, questions must be asked about whether the individual is actually a leader.

  • Guiding Teams Through Transition: A skilled leader can smoothly guide their team through periods of change. This is not a 'seat of the pants' approach. It is a well considered, thought through approach which partners objective thinking and planning with a genuinely nurturing leadership approach,

  • Minimising Resistance: Effective leadership minimises resistance to change by involving and supporting team members. Creating clarity early creates meaning for employees. Ambiguity may always exist, but a leader who creates clarity with colleagues in a high trust relationship is respected.

    5. Increasing Employee Engagement

    • Motivating Team Members: Leaders learn how to motivate individuals, leading to higher employee engagement. They understand that there isn't a 'one size fits all' approach to motivating individuals and teams.

    • Recognising Achievements: Skilled leaders recognise and reward achievements, boosting morale. Catching people doing brilliant things and acknowledging it creates resonance, engagement and loyalty.

    • Creating a Positive Culture: Good leadership fosters a positive, inclusive workplace culture. The understanding that you are stronger together than you are individually is underpinned with appropriate technical competence as well as candid dialogue.

Summit's most popular training courses for managers are:-

People Management Essentials and Emotional Intelligence Training for Managers. Why not take a look?