News: Performance Management
Well-trained leaders 'adept' at communicating, negotiating and motivating staff
17 October 2008
Managers who have had effective leadership skills training will return "significantly better" results from their staff, it has been claimed.
International performance consulting firm dta Worldwide says successful leaders possess well-honed communication skills and are adept at thinking "tactically and strategically".
A multinational study by the organisation, carried out across 20 countries in the US, Europe and Asia-Pacific, analysed information from 6,320 managers and more than 30,000 of their colleagues in industries ranging from banking and finance to telecommunications.
The People Bulletin reports that competencies including teamwork, communication and negotiating skills were assessed with regard to leaders' self-perceptions and the perceptions of others.
According to the results, some of the managerial skills that would benefit most from training include interpersonal flexibility, problem-solving and "analysing perceptively".
"Interaction effectiveness" is a critical skill in maintaining good communication and business relationships in the workplace, dta Worldwide managing director Malcolm Dawes added.
The benefits of ongoing leadership, communication and negotiating skills training was further underlined in recent weeks, as the US-based Institute for Corporate Productivity suggested that too few firms are prepared for the sudden loss of a senior manager.
Small and medium-sized enterprises in particular tend to neglect such succession planning, the institute concluded.
