Dr. Lisa Toppin, Global Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Illumina Inc.
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One of the most important roles a manager has is helping their reports grow in their careers. While traditional methods of development, like sending employees to conferences and industry trainings, have their place, they're not always the best strategy in times of economic downturn. Instead, managers should look at opportunities nestled in the work the employee is already doing.
There are several keys to capitalizing on available knowledge to build up employees. While knowing how to look at their current work and extract meaningful growth takes some finesse, it's not rocket science. Armed with the right questions, every manager can help every employee find value. Beyond that, providing context for the business's current state allows employees to have a more sophisticated understanding of how the business actually runs and why it works the way that it does. Finally, challenging business conditions can ultimately provide a great platform for employees to practice their strategic thinking chops.
Managers can help employees look beyond a horizon of uncertainty and see where the business could go and how they can contribute to it. To begin making those strides, here are some strategies for building on the three key strategies for cost-effective development.
1. Current Work Is A Powerful Lever For Growth
Managers often look to the company’s learning and development function to offer learning for employees’ growth. They're not wrong to do so, as part of the benefit of approaching things this way is sustaining culture by outlining the needs to be met. The other reason L&D classes are so important is that managers often need support to understand how to turn employees' day-to-day work into a teaching tool.
Here are some simple questions that managers and employees can use to determine what will best drive meaningful development in their current role:
• What role or type of work does the employee hope for next?
• What is required of that role?
• What skills does the employee firmly possess?
• What skills do they need?
• How can current or adjacent work give the employee the opportunity to practice the skills they must develop?
Questions like these will help identify areas of focus. Sometimes the solution is obvious, while other times it will be a stretch. In that case, managers shouldn't hesitate to engage others in problem-solving. Nobody has all the answers, and missing out on a prime time for learning because of a lack of communication would be a shame.
2. The Context Of The Moment Is A Great Teacher
Every business has its nuances, unique reasons for being successful and ways to endure challenges. Very often, the rank and file lack exposure to the nuances that drive business decisions and outcomes. This creates a missed opportunity to capitalize on a ripe teaching tool. Sometimes, this strategy is overlooked because managers aren't as conversant on the issues as others might think. They may believe the best way to hide inadequacy is to avoid talking about it. But in reality, the best way to develop competency is to expose inadequacy and work on it.
The reach of this kind of learning is significant, and the cost is minimal. Managers must engage in direct, intentional conversations with employees about the state of the business. This would benefit the entire organization, as everyone levels up their understanding and appreciation of what's happening and how their specific work contributes to the outcomes. Be sure not to look past the current market conditions, which are a development leverage tool. To do this well, L&D departments may need to offer help in packaging short discussions.
3. Strategic Thinking Is A Practical Approach To Development
All professionals are aware of the power of strategic thinking. It’s the one skill that every organization needs, but few seem to know how to teach and develop it. This is another area where a framework of easy questions can help employees think, discover and yield dividends in developing this skill.
• What is working for the business today?
• What are three ways in which the business landscape is changing?
• Which of these changes can work to the business’s advantage?
• What else needs to be explored to understand this variable and its impact even further?
These questions are an opportunity for every employee to start thinking about the market in which they work and how it might change. This can lead them to think deeply about the future landscape and their employer's place in it. That’s development, and it’s sitting right there for the taking.
People want to grow, which is why career development support is one of the best ways to retain employees. During economic downturns, getting good at leveraging the work at hand for learning opportunities just makes sense for managers. When the need for retention is high but the dollars for development programming are low, leveraging current knowledge can be incredibly impactful for both employees and organizations as a whole.
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