Is your organisation getting the most out of its leaders? If you think there’s further room for growth among your leadership team, then it might be time to invest in developing their capabilities. Leadership capability development is an ongoing process that connects leaders’ skills and expertise to organisational outcomes — and it can impact every aspect of your business.
What are leadership capabilities?
Leadership capability refers to the ‘mix of knowledge, skills, tools, processes and behaviours that combine to deliver an organisational objective’. It’s more than just leadership skills; instead, it’s about the fundamental attributes and expertise a leader needs to do their job well.
Just what constitutes a leadership capability depends on who you ask. The Australian Public Service identifies six capabilities (entrepreneurial, visionary, influential, collaborative, delivers, enabling) in their leadership capability framework. By contrast, the MIT-developed 4-CAP+ model highlights sensemaking, visioning, relating, inventing and building credibility as key attributes. In reality, the capabilities that will drive meaningful outcomes depend on your organisational goals.
Building a leadership capability development program
Understanding the capabilities you need is one thing. Developing them is another. According to the Harvard Business School, effective leadership capability development programs tend to focus on performance outcomes that support key business priorities, whether that’s increasing profits, cutting costs or mitigating risks. These programs can also create what Hudson Australia calls ‘a common ‘language’ for leadership ... It also helps you build and maintain the culture you need within the business.’
Building a leadership capability development program requires a structured approach. A capability framework, which describes ‘what “good” leadership looks like in your organisation’, can be a solid place to start. There are lots of established approaches out there, from Adaptive Leadership to Head & Heart to Vertical Development. However, there’s no such thing as a one-size-fits all framework. Instead, just like the capabilities themselves, the precise details of your development program will be specific to your organisation.
As a starting point, consider the following five steps:
- Identify the business outcomes you want to achieve and the leadership capabilities required to achieve them.
- Engage your leadership team as a partner on this development journey. Explore their needs, ask for their input and value their contributions.
- Assess your leadership team and the future leaders in your talent pipeline to understand which capabilities are lacking.
- Select your capability development training tools and roll them out.
- Measure the outcomes of each activity you do. Evaluation is key to demonstrating whether or not your development program is having the impact you desire.
Focus on the journey, not the destination
A capability development program should take a long-term view — it’s less about setting annual goals or KPIs and more about focusing on the bigger picture. That’s because nobody, not even the most effective leader, ever completes the process of professional development. As workplace trends shift, business needs change and technology continues to disrupt how we work globally, the need to upskill and reskill leaders will only increase.
Developing future leaders at the Taronga Conservation Society
Partnering with a trusted training provider like Plus UTS can help you develop a long-term leadership development plan , such as the future leaders program we co-designed with the Taronga Conservation Society Australia. Our targeted training supported their leaders in building high-value skills, working more effectively with their teams and stakeholders, and delivering on their organisational strategy.
| Find out how Plus UTS can co-design a bespoke leadership training package for your organisation. Visit Plus UTS or contact us to find out more. |
