5 Leadership Development Practices to Kick to the Curb

5 Outdated Leadership Development Practices to Get Rid of

IN MY THIRTY YEARS as an executive coach, I have seen a lot of change — the complete digital transformation of the workplace, increased diversity of the labor market, the shifting role of employers. But one thing that has largely remained unchanged has been the approach to leadership development. Even though the world looks nothing like it did 30 years ago, organizations still cling to strategies and methodologies developed in the 20th century.

Here are five outdated practices that organizations need to kick to the curb immediately:

1. Limiting the definition of leadership

Effective leadership does not rely upon a standard set of characteristics like charisma or aggressiveness. Narrowly defining leadership restricts innovation and excludes countless points of view and modes of operating.

Leaders should be empowered to play to their strengths rather than conforming to a set style, opening the door to greater diversity in leadership.

2. Focusing solely on skill development

Vertical development is essential to build a leader’s capabilities and capacities in addition to skills. Without this, leaders fail to transfer skills into their daily routines.

3. Using standard 360 assessment tools

Assessment tools should measure and track a leader’s development over time, using a feedback loop from leaders, managers, and coaches for continuous learning.

4. Relying on ranked or traditional performance evaluations

Instead of subjective evaluations, organizations should focus on manager/employee alignment tools to ensure everyone is aligned to the same priorities, goals, and objectives.

5. Manually managing leadership development programs

Technology should be used to manage leadership development programs to eliminate human errors and increase engagement among leaders.

Is your organization guilty of clinging to these outdated practices? If so, it’s time to finally get your company’s leadership development into the 21st century. Failing to do so will guarantee a weak leadership bench that is unprepared to adapt and thrive within today’s ever-changing economic environment.

Lori Mazan is a distinguished 25-year executive coach who has provided tens of thousands of coaching sessions to today’s top leaders, from Fortune 100 CEOs to venture-backed startup executives. She’s the co-founder, president, and chief coaching officer of Sounding Board, Inc., and author of Leadership Revolution: The Future of Developing Dynamic Leaders.

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