Untapped Talent: Why investing in individual contributors is just as important as investing in managers

When you think of the word “leader,” often the first thing that comes to mind is someone with the title “manager” or “director.” You think of someone who oversees a team and whose opinion and expertise is highly respected at the company. 

But a title doesn’t always define a person’s impact. In fact, behind every manager is a team of individual contributors who lack the senior title, but still, make important and unique contributions and exercise strong influence within a company.

While managers and leaders play vital roles within organizations, they are just one piece of a much larger puzzle. I know from experience that building a well-rounded team is crucial to the success of any company. Whether C-level or entry level, in my eyes, every person at hint? plays an integral role on our team. 

Companies spend tons of money every year investing in and training managers and directors, but oftentimes, talented individual contributors are overlooked when it comes to professional development. Individual contributors serve as huge assets to every organization and bring just as much value and perspective to the table as anyone else.

The best ideas don’t always come from the top and these contributors’ innovative concepts and fresh outlooks contribute greatly to a company’s growth. In fact, according to a study conducted by Gallup, talented individual contributors increase revenue per employee by 6%. Case in point — some of hint?’s most exciting and fruitful ideas were put forth by our team’s very own individual contributors.

So, how can you harness the power of these individual contributors? At hint?, I’ve always believed strongly in empowering people at every level. Everyone is a leader in his or her own way and I’ve found that investing time and resources in individual contributors, as well as managers, has yielded long-term benefits not only for my team members but for the overall success of hint?:

Feeling Valued and Talent Retention

Investing in leadership training for every one of your team members, regardless of their title, instills a sense of value in the individual. It shows that you appreciate their contributions and are willing to put time and resources behind them to continue to develop their skills. 

An employee who feels valued will be more inclined to stay at your company if they feel they are making professional strides. Providing individual contributors with the necessary tools to grow and learn will help them to be more passionate about not only their own work, but also about the mission and vision of the company. 

Improved Performance

During leadership training, managers often learn skills in collaboration, communication, coaching, and delegation. If everyone on your team has been taught these same skills, it sets the stage for an improved performance. Individual contributors will better understand the goals and motivations of management, resulting in team synergy.

Developing this common leadership language that everyone within your company understands will lead to increased productivity and effective communication across the board. 

Shaping Tomorrow’s Leaders 

Providing leadership training for individual contributors will also help your company identify those who have a natural knack for leadership and shine a light on those who show interest in becoming a leader in your company in the future.

Providing your individual contributors with development opportunities early on will better position them to hone in on those leadership skills and develop them fully so that when the time comes, they are ready and prepared to take on management roles at your company.

At hint?, we believe individual contributors are some of the most impactful members of our team and are just as, if not more, imperative to our success than their managerial colleagues.

Failing to provide individual contributors with the same training and development as managers would be doing a disservice to them and their talents AND our company. Investing in our people means investing in hint?’s future and right now, I think our future looks pretty bright!

Kara Goldin is the founder and CEO of San Francisco–based hint, a healthy lifestyle brand that produces the leading unsweetened flavored water and a scented sunscreen spray that’s oxybenzone and paraben-free. Listen to her podcast, Unstoppable, where she interviews founders, entrepreneurs, and disruptors across various industries and keep up with her on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

#Leadership #IndividualContributors #Development