Continuous Improvement applies as much to people as it does to organisations. Yet many organisations fail to understand this and to act on it. As a result, people tend to under-perform and hence the organisations they work for also tend to under-perform.
Effective Leaders understand how to get more from their people. Almost always, they challenge people to do better. And critically, they provide people with the right training, coaching, and support to achive those challenges.
Here are just a few of the many, many ways to help people to learn and grow:
Best Practice: providing opportunities to see what good looks like – perhaps in a completely different industry, sector or environment.
Peer learning: providing opportunities to work alongside colleagues from other departments or organisations
Secondment: typically a short-term transfer to another department or organisation. Maybe a one-year sabbatical?
Delegation: often a simple but very effective way to develop employees. Just make sure that you pass on some of the good stuff, not just the drudge work!
Training and Coaching: often, one of the best wayw to really understand something is to teach it to others.
Projects: typically, important long-term activities, often “above and beyond” the day job. Great for team-building too!
Just a few examples but not only do these approaches help to motivate the individual concerned, they can also provide huge benefits for the employee’s colleagues, for their boss and for their organisation. Try it!
… and if you’d like some help in developing your employees – and perhaps to create yuor own learning organisation – please contact Andrew.Nicholson@ImproveMyFactory.com.