Apart from leaders being aware of their employees’ intrinsic values, they must be able to provide honest and valuable feedback. This can be done formally or informally. Continuous feedback may be more beneficial being that both parties are able to actively see growth, or the lack thereof, and if the developmental opportunities are valuable (Lerner, 2016). When doing feedback, or even determining which path to take, leaders must ensure the focus remains on the development of the employee versus doing it just to have someone else trained on a task that falls under that leader.
Another factor to consider is leaders must ensure they are not biased to whom they want to provide developmental opportunities to. Showing preferential treatment to star performers over those who may be mediocre can portray a negative image to employees. Both could benefit from the opportunity and the ending results could ultimately strengthen the organization from within due to having a staff with increased aptitude which can lead to increased quality of results in the workplace (Vuta & Farcas, 2015).
Example of Employee Development
According to the Air Force Doctrine Document 1-1, force development incorporates a multitude of challenges and experiences combined with training and education opportunities that help develop Air Force leaders (Scheiner, 2006). Within the United States Air Force, individuals are provided skills needed to be an efficient Airman by being challenged physically and
This concerning issue is apparent between the total force leadership and the subordinate commands. It can be felt at the operational level with the advent of a new evaluation form that encourages more competition among Airman for promotion. The purpose of the assessment is to capture the workers’ job performance over a course a year to compare ratings with others in and outside of a career field. This systemic problem is only exacerbated by ignorance of the issue or intentionally disregarded. Whatever the case the sense of individualism is embraced where team effort is preached. For example, at my rank I have to withhold my intentions when it comes to professional development and volunteer opportunities so I can stand out more for the sake of promotion competition. In addition, there is another arbitrary test that is used to measure your ability to lead and influence others in the Air Force. This test is a replacement for face-to-face training for personnel to learn these interpersonal skills. This unnecessary examination puts another obstacle for the airman that care more about the mission than studying a 1400 pages’ worth of material to prepare for such
By focusing on the top performers within your organization you allow them the latitude to make their own decisions for the tasks that they were assigned. This makes your job as a leader and a manager easier and makes the employees feel they belong to a higher purpose and the satisfaction that they are an integral part of the organization. It will also allow you to focus more on the development of others help them achieve higher degrees of satisfaction and possibly accelerate their career by getting promoted to higher positions within the organization.
Self-development is an essential part of mission success and the welfare of the unit. A mission’s success predicates itself on the effective training of each individual. This training is not confined to military training. For example, I am pursuing an M.P.S in Cybersecurity. Doing so provides me with a better understanding of my role as a 35Q in the Army. It also allows me to train my soldiers better. All levels of leadership should
Leadership development in the military is critical to its mission and objectives. Understanding and embracing leadership will foster an agile culture and facilitate attainment of strategic goals. People desire quality leadership to assist with achieving their goals, albeit personal or professional development. Having a clear vision and the motivation to perform at high-levels influences others to work synergistically together to achieve organizational goals. Insomuch, employees value being treated respectfully, fairly, and ethically. Leaders serve people best when they help them develop their own initiative and good judgment, enable them to grow, and help them become better contributors.
Buckingham and Coffman (1999) suggest that good leadership comes from people who look at employees as individuals, rather than a position. Exceptional managers do not observe and critique surface level behaviors and performance. Instead, they look at inner qualities to what uniquely motivates each individual and what their innate strengths are. As a supervisor, I find this to be of the essence. Often times, employees work unhappily in positions for less than desirable pay and little to no recognition. It is, in my opinion, important to acknowledge that you value each employee as a person and you notice the work they do; they are not a disposable and replaceable position that you can fit anyone in to.
The department’s leadership is responsible for providing appropriate manpower and resources to each mission using an increasingly tight budget, while also following strict laws for high priority missions, such as nuclear defense, which mandate both high levels of training and manpower (Air Education Training Command, 2015). Additionally, warfare technology has become incredibly advanced. Due to this complication, the educational and technical requirements for military service members and employees are steadily increasing.
The training and development that is part of building leaders is important, but there is a distinct difference between "training" and "development," and the authors make that clear. Training in this context means ""¦creating proficiency through specialized instruction" (Mensch, et al, 2008, p. 263). Moreover, training focuses on the "measurable aspects of technical and tactical proficiency," Mensch explains. On the other hand "development" is much broader in scope; it's a "deep, fundamental, and irreversible process," and it stretches out over an extended period of time, Mensch explain (264).
Development is a life long trait or goal. Develops and development are linked. Development is defined as the deliberate, continuous, sequential, and progressive process, grounded in Army values, that grows Soldiers and civilians into competent and confident leaders capable of decisive action. Senior Warrant Officers are significant in the role of developers. They are commonly tasked with the role of becoming a front line leader. Senior Warrant Officers are also in the business of leader development especially for young lieutenants. This development is achieved through lifelong progress of gaining knowledge, skills, and experiences through institutional education, organizational training, operational experience, and
The primary challenge for leaders in the Army is taking a group of individuals and molding them into a team. The framework that is employed to the
It is important for a leader to understand that completing essential tasks to meet mission goals, personal development, and providing future leaders the tools to procure success are all equally important and should be balanced. Times may call for one responsibility to be a higher priority that the other, so it is imperative that leaders are able to differentiate what skills apply to certain situations. “Strategic leaders, for example, must control personnel development, evaluation and certification, and assignment and utilization processes in ways that motivate aspiring professionals as they progress through a career of service,” (TRADOC, 2010). The cycle of learning, training, and accomplishing goals creates a culture of duty-oriented Soldiers with dedicated character and leadership
My time in the military has shown me that I have a need for order and discipline. I want to instill this trait into my subordinates and affectively give them the tools to succeed and complete the mission both home and abroad. I lead from the front and never leave those willing to strive for betterment. My plan involves completing my degree and obtaining the knowledge level needed to effectively take care of and train my replacements in true values, pride in ownership and family values. A stepping stone is that anyone can learn from anyone, even if it’s what not to do. I challenge myself to right all the wrong styles of leadership that I have experienced throughout my career and be that exception to the policy/good ole boy club members. The Air Force can change with assistance from those willing to make the change. I have given blood for my countries ideals and know I will give my every effort to help produce the most capable and experience airmen for the purpose set by our CINC. I
The Institutional Training Domain of Leader Development includes military schools and training centers. At these schools and training centers, junior
Throughout history, leadership has always been one of the cornerstones contributing to the success of the United States military. Whether in a Garrison or a combat environment, the applicability and level of effectiveness of leadership can be rooted to the resources made available to leaders. To form a clear comparison of garrison and combat leadership; mission and responsibilities must be taken in consideration. A common leadership responsibility, in both garrison and combat environments, is improving the efficiency and development of Soldiers. Utilizing the Army’s Leaders Development Model, the three domains of institutional, operational, and self-development can be used to gauge the comparison.
The first way a growth mindset can support leader is by encouraging to continue studying and learning from the feedback. Why is this an advantage of
Feedback is a key part of a Leadership Development Plan (LDP). It is designed to improve the performance and share information during this process. Feedback is essential and should be clear about its purpose and intent. It is important to address feedback with the specific individual that it 's intended for. This will help limit confusion and negative feedback. This paper will identify the different types of feedback that will be in the Leadership Development Plan, along with how often each type will be used. In additional to how the feedback will be discussed, tracked, and will also provide sample forms that evaluate the feedback. “Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor (1