74% of leaders who participated in the 2016 In-House Creative Services Industry Report survey feel they do not have enough time to develop team members. It’s not just in-house creative management that struggles with this development issue – it’s a problem for supervisors across all industries.
How can leaders hope to squeeze in individual development programs when they are already spread too thin between priorities? Here are some ideas that managers can implement to make every moment matter when it comes to developing and coaching your team – even when there doesn’t seem to be enough time in a day:
Identify needs and gaps for development in your team.
As you work with your team, you should be asking lots of questions in order to identify missing aptitudes, skills that need improvement, and talents that would be considered “nice to have.” Once you’ve got a good understanding of each individual’s expertise and the missing skills gaps within the team, you can start thinking about ways to incorporate development and training on a daily basis.
For example, one of these strategic meetings can be a brainstorming session – and they don’t have to be long and boring. For example, take your team to lunch and ask employees to prepare training ideas for the meeting ahead of time. Encourage them to share feedback about past and present developmental experiences and make sure you are equally as open with them.
If time allows, schedule one-on-one sessions with individuals so that you can begin to make plans for their training and development. And if you simply can’t meet with each employee on a one-on-one basis, you can be accessible.
Be accessible and welcome involvement.
Employees can learn a lot just by watching you work and by being able to ask you questions. Transparency and support to pursue career development can set a tone of progress for your team environment. Offer opportunities to grow with special projects or through cross-department partnerships – keeping in mind your knowledge about each individual’s professional aspirations.
Encourage peer-to-peer learning, sharing, and mentorship.
You won’t always be able to lead training sessions with your team. However, this doesn’t mean that you can’t inspire peers to train one another! You have employees with different strengths and weaknesses – this is a chance for these individuals to foster and learn from each other.
For instance, schedule weekly meetings where one or two individuals offer a brief training session. They can share an activity, advice, or identify something they frequently see that needs improvement and offer some ideas for solutions. Or, create a simple mentorship program for more seasoned employees to share their experience and techniques with newer workers.
Point your team to external resources for further development
Development doesn’t have to stay inside the workplace. Sometimes, an employee just needs a few additional tools to help them get to the next level in their career. A great way to keep learning and expand their knowledge is through local organization events. Or you can share some great online resources like these with your team:
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