What are the most effective entry-level leadership development programs?

Encourage continuous learning: Promote a culture of learning within your organization. Provide resources for continuous learning and skill development. Networking paves a way to get diverse prospective to learn and unlearn for the growth.

Rotational programs provide the most effective way to decipher the best fit for your skillset, build authentic strategic alliances, and deep dive into various aspects of a company which allows you to gather insights about available opportunities and how well your skills can serve in those opportunities that you wouldn't otherwise be privy to. Rotational programs also provide visibility with leaders within lines of business that you may not have immediate access to outside a rotational program.

The belief in others, and a willingness to guide, develop, and engage them, provides the platform from which entry level leaders are selected. How they are formally educated, what they learn from its self-directed application, and from the leaders who choose to willingly coach and their mentor their continuous professional development, cements the growth of entry level leaders. In other words, it is a blended leadership development program that has the greatest chance of success. Directed and self-directed learning is key, which is the push and pull of leadership development and life-long learning.

I believe we have moved beyond programs, courses, and camps. A continuous process of mastering the basic knowledge needed to establish a foundation for growth that will allow you to think critically and solve your problems. This process can be applied in any area you are personally engaging in the future.

There is a facilitative coaching style (action learning methodology) I've used to coach entry level leaders successfully. There are four steps to this simple methodology: Step 1. Thinking through, determines what and how something will be executed and its measures for success. Step 2. Working through, means executing against the activities, tasks, and success measures determined in step one. Step 3. Reviewing, establishes what worked well that should be incorporated into future performance. And potential solutions for what did not work well. Step 4. Adjusting, determines the areas for further development through self-directed or directed facilitation. Simple it is, hard work in practice, but with a return on everyone's involvement.

Exhibit leadership qualities yourself and guide your potential leaders in developing these qualities. It is not a classroom session. Leadership is a journey, as a mentor travels together. "Salt Leadership" is a concept I was really inspired by during my discussion with one of my mentors. Be there only when required with the required quantity to make sure the recipe comes out good.

New managers face specific challenges that should be addressed through development programs. 4 primary topics: 1) Communication - learning how to craft and communicate a compelling vision is critical for team engagement and motivation. 2) Delegate - moving from a doer to an inspirational leader is a mindset shift. New managers must see the value of delegating and the importance of trusting their team. As the military teaches, trust but verify. 3. Prioritization - learning what’s important based on division goals is paramount to doing the right thing at the right time at the right pace for on time delivery. 4. People Development - Learning how to develop, elevate, and coach for success will lead to greater job satisfaction.

In my experience, an entry-level leadership development program can include communication skills, interpersonal relationships, team building, goal setting, planning, organizing, creativity and innovation. Again, these should not be one-time events but a continuous process. The business impact of these trainings should be measured to check the effectiveness.

Examples of these development programs include: 1. Dale Carnegie Training: Dale Carnegie offers a range of leadership training programs that are widely recognized and respected. 2. Center for Creative Leadership (CCL): CCL provides leadership development programs catering to different experience levels, including entry-level professionals. 3. Toastmasters International: Toastmasters is a global organization focused on improving public speaking and leadership skills. It's a great option for building essential leadership skills.

I was asked to evaluate and make recommendations for SHRM’s People Manager Qualification (PMQ) certification. While it is self-paced, I considered it to be a great starter program for new leaders. The characters were diverse in look, mindset, and performance. Each had strengths and weaknesses, and the user learned through their mistakes. The real life scenarios were impactful for the learning experience. A company could easily take elements of the program to drive deeper discussions on topic critical for new leaders success.

A continuation of the development process used in the individuals personal and professional development program. Now that development centers around the individuals being able to convince others to follow their lead. Building relationships personally and professionally and allow those under your control to showcase their skills, talents, and abilities.