We live in interesting times. Previous economic fluctuations saw development budgets being wound back but it is harder to justify it this time round. Macro changes are taking place, disruptors are aggressively entering markets, customer expectations are growing. Your organizational development is a key measurement of your L&D ROI.
Eskil has been involved in boardroom development since 2001 and, from the get-go, training has been a key element in our methodology: if you have been using consultancy or delivering projects, then there is a chance that, bundled into the budget, there has been training.
When there is a downturn (and, as this is a cyclical event, it is an inevitability), many executives react by cutting discretionary spending across the organization but can fail to distinguish between operational and strategic activity: deal with the operational inefficiency but avoid sacrificing your strategy.
So here’s the first point: training is strategic.
Training for regulatory compliance
Regulated industries view good corporate governance as a mandatory issue. You want people to go through their compliance as quickly as possible and have them back in the workplace. You also want people proving capability.
In this instance, we are seeing an increase in elearning supported by post-education mentoring.
Boardroom Development
The modern business landscape challenges your organizational design. New team models will call for a reduction in job levels; different reward systems; evolving goal management; young professionals promoted quicker into leader roles; managers will be re-engineering into ‘coaches’ and ‘sponsors’; learning will be ongoing / continual. It’s too easy to talk about changing the way the Board is constructed and it is a different matter when it comes to carrying it out.
“The capability of Board members is a primary factor in shaping the success of any organisation. From the position at the top of the organizational hierarchy, Directors and boards determine culture, business ethics (and subsequent work ethics), stakeholder engagement, market share, innovation, and much more – all within an empowering and fit-for-purpose corporate governance.”
Leadership Development
Today’s leaders are expected to be agile, flexible, ROI-driven, socially-aware and relationship-oriented. We work with organizations to develop your own 70:20:10 leadership development journey:
Eskil considers Leadership Development to be a key organizational development initiative – blending education, guidance, consultancy and projects in order to help your senior talent team to create an exceptional leadership.
We are able to deliver this as your branded ‘Leadership Academy’ or as part of our wider Eskil Leadership series.
Eskil’s facilitators have an impressive history of delivering Management & Leadership Development programs to corporations around the world.
The Case for Organizational Development
Your corporate success relies on a series of factors: clarity of strategy; leadership ethics; boardroom capability; and the capability & commitment of your people.
As a leader or manager, you may now be looking to develop the business case for investing in your people – so here are a few reasons for developing your training program:
- Corporate strategy informs divisional / departmental goals which translates to individual targets – but staff need to have the appropriate skills to deliver;
- As competitors start to recruit new staff, a structured training program shows your key people that they are important – and makes them more likely to stay;
- With the right training, your staff can contribute to the innovation of products and services;
- You attract and retain customers;
- Raise skill levels to increase efficiency, productivity and job satisfaction that lead to reduced operating costs;
- Develop safety in the workplace safety (occupational health and safety practices);
- Create positive attitudes by making it clear what behaviours and attitudes you expect from staff; and
- Develop the capacity of staff for the purposes of career progression and succession
It’s unlikely that there is anything here that is earth-shattering news but it does bear repeating: training is strategically critical but how often does a board include a learning & development strategy on its agenda?
Feel free to contact us to discuss your organizational development initiatives and one of our facilitators will speak with you about their own experiences and how they can support your corporate ambitions.