Page 7 - ZenkerFolkman How Extraordinary Leaders Double Profits

So, if an organization desires more inspiring and Conducted every four to six months, these mini-
motivational leaders, one promising approach is to surveys reveal areas for improvement “before and after”
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develop in its leaders the competency companions to the individual takes part in the leadership program.
this behavior. These include:
There is no substitute for measurement and feedback,
• setting stretch goals for employees and there is an assortment of follow-up metrics and
tools that work with customized leadership devel-
• establishing a clear vision and direction for the
opment as well as more traditional programs. For
organization
instance, Zenger | Folkman’s leadership development
• being more innovative and risk taking solutions include the ActionPlan Mapper™ online
tool that records accomplishments and milestones. It
• developing others
delivers routine progress and completion reminders,
• practicing greater teamwork and collaboration and asks specifically what the leader has done and
plans to do to achieve his/her goals.
• demonstrating greater initiative
This type of internal mechanism keeps leadership
• being a role model
development at the forefront of the leader’s awareness
sustAInIng ChAnge and shows progress. Progress which leads to improved
productivity, which takes us full circle back to how
Leadership development isn’t a new concept. There
leaders can double profits!
are many approaches to developing leaders and each
organization has to decide for itself which process PArtIng thoughts
will serve it best.
Most of us intuitively know that leadership affects
One thing that is for certain, however, what leaders the bottom line and we have presented a variety of
learn in any leadership program will have to be re- evidence to support that assertion.
peated if there is a lack of follow-up. New skills and
In our Extraordinary Leader research we have decoded
behaviors will rapidly evaporate if there are not follow-
what it takes to develop extraordinary leaders and
up mechanisms in place. To put it in statistical terms,
confirmed that it is possible to measure leadership in
87% of what a person learns in a leadership program
dollars. Boiling it down to the simplest of terms, good
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will be gone within 30 days if there is no follow-up.
leaders create more economic value than poor leaders
Follow up can be as simple as asking for monthly and extraordinary leaders create far more value than
progress reports from team members, colleagues, good ones. That being the case, you may wisely choose
employees, and/or peers. Specific suggestions for to develop great leaders in your organization.
improvement can be requested. Mini-surveys can be
part of the follow-up process.

Goldsmith, Marshall, Lyons, Laurence, Freas, Alyssa.
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“Teambuilding Without Time Wasting” Coaching for Leadership:
How the World’s Greatest Coaches Help Leaders Learn. Jossey-Bass/
Rackham, Neil. SPIN Selling New York: McGraw-Hill. 1988. Pfeiffer: San Francisco. 2000.
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Copyright © 2010 Zenger Folkman. 7