Why leadership development is important

As a young leader, I was not equipped for the requirements of the role. I was not ready for what it took, I was not able to deal with the challenges it presented. And I didn’t work for organisations that helped me develop the requisite skills.  

Leadership development is a key element of any leader’s journey. 

For me that meant watching good leaders, and modelling that. And watching poor leaders and trying to not do that. 

In 2023, though, leadership development is more than that. It is about training, it is about coaching, and it is about helping leaders be transformational in their approach.  

And it works, just ask The Journal of Management Development, who published an article in 2016 (authored by Erica Anthony) about leadership coaching. That article explained how important leadership coaching is as part of the development journey for a leader and their teams. 

Here are some of the key findings from that report. 

1. Leadership coaching in an investment 

Most organisations see leadership coaching (and training for that matter) as a cost. Actually, a lot of HR teams, or people development teams see training in general as a cost. 

Not an investment. 

In short, leadership coaching pays for itself in spades. The return on investment is significant, as the coaching relation can be focused on the needs of the leader. Providing the leader with the ability to upgrade (mindset) and upskill (tools).  

The benefit though is in the performance and the productivity of the teams involved, who were shown to have an increase in these areas, due to their leader’s coaching program. 

Invest in your leaders. Your teams will thank you for it! 

2. Leadership coaching creates transformational leaders 

The words transformational leadership are still relevant. Some organisations think those words are old fashioned, because they are a legacy of the 1900s – aren’t most of us ????. 

Here is what The Journal of Management Development reported, and what is the most important element of the article for me; leaders who are coached, become leaders who are coaches! Winner! 

When I say transformational, I don’t mean Optimus Prime styled leadership, I mean leaders who create more leaders. It can be put as plainly and as simply as that. 

Leaders who get coaching, understand how important it is to coach their team members to become better versions of themselves. To help their team members rise to their full potential, and to support their team members to go on a similar developmental journey as the leader. Double winner! 

Transform your leaders to transform your teams. 

3. Do you need any more evidence? 

If you need any further evidence on how important leadership coaching is, here is my favourite quote from that article: 

“Leadership coaching is a one-on-one partnership that focuses on strengthening the self-efficacy and performance of the individual, and consequently, improving organizational effectiveness (Baron and Morin, 2009; Day, 2001; Ely et al., 2010). In essence, it aims to improve the leadership skills, decision-making processes, and overall leader behaviours that will assist organizations with being more successful and competitive in an evolving marketplace (Bono et al., 2009). As part of their commitment to leadership development, organizations are becoming more aware of leadership coaching as a best practice for the leadership development process (Ely et al., 2010; International Coach Federation, 2009, 2013), thereupon, garnering much consideration and scrutiny.” 

More successful leaders create more successful organisations. 

Reach out if you would like to know more about how you can get world class leadership coaching and training. 

And please click the image below if you’d like to chat about what leadership means to you.

If you would like to learn more about Anton or The Guinea Group, please click here to book into Anton’s calendar, to:

UPGRADE your Mindset
UPSKILL your Leadership
UPLIFT your Teams

About Anton

Anton has dedicated his working life to helping leaders to upgrade their mindset, upskill their leadership, and uplift their teams! With a focus on helps leaders to better lead under pressure. Anton is an entrepreneur, speaker, consultant, bestselling author and founder of The Guinea Group. Over the past 19 years, Anton has worked with over 175+ global organisations, he has inspired workplace leadership, safety, and cultural change. He’s achieved this by combining his corporate expertise, education (Bachelor of HR and Psychology), and infectious energy levels.

Work With Anton!