Staff development is not only about training and coaching your employees, but also about improving your own skills and abilities as a leader and a decision maker. In this article, you will learn how to develop staff and become a better decision maker by following some practical tips and strategies.
Before you can develop your staff and yourself, you need to have a clear vision of what you want to achieve and why. What are the objectives and outcomes of your organization, your team, and your role? How do they align with your personal and professional values and aspirations? Setting SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) can help you focus your efforts and track your progress.
To develop your staff, provide training and support based on their needs. For example, if someone wants to learn new skills, offer courses or coaching. Also, give feedback and guidance to help them improve. To make better decisions, gather information and consider different views. For example, when deciding on a project, ask for input from your team. Learn from past decisions, too. If something didn't work before, figure out why and use that to make smarter choices in the future. By helping your staff grow and making informed decisions, you can create a more successful workplace.
For us to be able to develop our staff to become a better decision maker, we should first build relationship with them. With this, we can identify their strength and weaknesses. If we wanted them to become decision maker, we should put them in an atmosphere where they can freely talk and share opinions. Leaders must create an employee development plan as guide in developing talents among staff from day 1 until results are achieved. EDP consists of the expected result, strengths, help needed, Gantt chart of the action plans, assessment and the day to day, week to monthly results.
Once you have your goals in mind, you need to evaluate your current situation and identify where you excel and where you need to improve. You can use various tools and methods to assess your strengths and gaps, such as feedback, self-reflection, performance reviews, surveys, or assessments. You can also ask your staff to share their insights and opinions on your leadership and decision making skills. Be open to constructive criticism and learn from your mistakes.
Based on your goals and your assessment, you can create a development plan that outlines the actions and resources you need to take to improve your staff and yourself. You can use the 70-20-10 model to balance your learning activities between on-the-job experience (70%), social learning from others (20%), and formal training or education (10%). You can also use the SMART framework to make your plan more specific and realistic.
The next step is to put your plan into action and start developing your staff and yourself. You can use various techniques and approaches to implement your plan, such as coaching, mentoring, delegating, shadowing, collaborating, reading, taking courses, or attending workshops. You can also use the GROW model (goal, reality, options, and will) to guide your conversations and interactions with your staff and help them achieve their goals.
The final step is to monitor and evaluate your results and see how well you are developing your staff and yourself. You can use various indicators and measures to track your performance and impact, such as feedback, metrics, outcomes, or satisfaction. You can also use the PDCA cycle (plan, do, check, and act) to review your progress and make adjustments as needed.
Developing your staff and yourself is not a one-time event, but a continuous process that requires ongoing learning and improvement. You can keep developing your staff and yourself by staying curious, seeking new opportunities and challenges, asking questions, listening to different perspectives, and embracing change. You can also keep developing your decision making skills by using frameworks, tools, or models that help you analyze situations, generate alternatives, evaluate options, and implement solutions.
To develop staff and enhance decision-making skills, prioritize continuous learning and skill-building opportunities for yourself and your team. Encourage a culture of collaboration and feedback to foster collective problem-solving and critical thinking. Invest in training programs, workshops, and coaching sessions that focus on decision-making techniques, problem-solving strategies, and leadership development. Delegate responsibilities and empower team members to make decisions autonomously, while providing guidance and support as needed. Regularly evaluate decision-making processes and outcomes, seeking feedback from stakeholders to identify areas for improvement and refine your approach over time.