Whether the focus has been on the Royal Mail, Lehman Brothers or yet more controversy surrounding refereeing decisions in football’s Premier League, the news in recent months has been about nothing less than a litany of poor management decisions and a worrying lack of leadership.
The simple fact is that just one in five managers in the UK has a professional qualification. For far too long people – and in some cases, employers – have hidden behind the belief that leaders are born, not made. But for some time, now, the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) has explored this issue and a series of research reports have shown that this viewpoint is nothing more than a myth.
For one thing, CMI’s research suggests that individuals want to learn from their peers and their seniors. Almost one in four actually prefer to learn from their colleagues and a massive 68% go as far as suggesting that they glean more via coaching and mentoring than from any other developmental route1.
Qualified to coach
It is against this background that the CMI recently launched a suite of coaching and mentoring qualifications. Designed to meet the needs of first-time managers, CMI’s new range of diplomas in coaching cover topics ranging from performance management to strategic staff development. Cynics would – and do – argue that experience counts far more than a qualification. They ask whether having a qualification guarantees immediate business success. They also question whether qualifications ensure that employers have the right skills at their disposal to produce results.
The simple answer to both challenges is that evidence exists to suggest that, if employers want to reap the benefits of qualifications, and do it quickly, they need a mix of practical and academic application. After all, a qualification must lead to tangible results. That’s why 72% of employers in our research have told the CMI that individuals with a diploma in management have a greater chance to deliver. There is a clear appreciation for the fact that the focus on workplace scenarios means the ‘take home’ value is immense, realistic and immediately evident.
An appreciation of human capital
There is also growing appreciation of the fact that by offering professional qualifications to their staff, employers stand more chance of boosting their reputation. CMI’s research shows, for example, that 74% of employers believe their corporate image is enhanced simply by offering diplomas as part of their staff development programmes. In other words, professional management qualifications do more than add value to an individuals’ CV; they add value to an organisation’s overall human capital.
That is why the CMI formally recognises employers who continuously invest in management and leadership development. For one thing, 46% of organisations admit to losing staff because they failed to offer training opportunities. For another, the need for management development has never been more prevalent both because of high profile failures and the current economic situation. The point is that professional management will help lead us out of recession, just as bad management heavily influenced it. Put all of this together and it makes sense to highlight those who are leading the way.
Of course it is fair to say that there are elements of leadership that can, and should, be learned on the job. But for tomorrow’s leaders to be successful, experience should go hand-in-hand with continuous professional development. It should not come by accident because if training is left to chance it will go wrong more times than right. This may be a message that HR departments across all sectors have understood for some time. The challenge, however, rests on these same HR departments making the business case to their boards. The trick is not to fall into the trap about debating the cost-effective nature of a particular form of development or qualification. Rather, the emphasis must be on talent management, retention and corporate reputation.
Yet it would be wrong to assume that the offer to support individuals taking a qualification is made just to attract talent or to boost an organisation’s profile. There are benefits that go beyond recruiting expertise and this is chiefly described by employers as the ‘portability’ offered by management qualifications. Many recognise that the training provided by these programmes ensures current staff can quickly turn their attention to a variety of tasks. In a recession that is as indiscriminate about the level of job being lost as it is the numbers being predicted, this is a benefit that should not be overlooked. Imagine the strength in depth, if an organisation can turn to a variety of staff and ask them to fill a void in the company’s skill-set.
Survive and thrive
The point is that the only way to survive and thrive in the current economic climate is to ‘get staff qualified’. Increasingly the emphasis is on demonstrating broad-based management knowledge; in other words, the ability to have staff capable of managing change and taking on varied roles.
All of this matters because there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that trained managers and leaders have a positive impact on organisational performance. Add to this equation the views expressed in the recent MacLeod Report2– namely, that engaged employees perform more effectively – and you have a compelling reason to develop qualified managers and leaders. Why? Today’s aspiring managers and leaders are motivated by more than pay. Yes, they have bills to pay just like the rest of us, but they want development programmes as part of their remuneration packages. Give them that and they become engaged, want to stay and they will put that ‘extra effort’ into what they do. Hold back and they will leave. If ever there was a compelling reason for boards to invest in management development, this is it.
If UK plc is to grow – and if we are to become competitive – professional development must remain open to everyone. How else can talent be managed? How else can tomorrow’s leaders be groomed for leadership, today? The answer lies in giving executives the chance to learn on the job, through mentoring and via formal development. Employers should take this on board and recognise that leaders are not just born. With the right qualifications, they can be made.
[1] Details of the CMI’s research activity can be found here.
[2] http://www.berr.gov.uk/whatwedo/employment/employee-engagement/index.html