Previously, leadership development was about content; content development, scheduling multi-day content delivery workshops, and measuring how many people have received your content (attendance and completion).
Everything began to change when smartphones appeared. Once people were able to learn "how to resolve conflicts" on TikTok and watch "delegation" tutorials on YouTube, the content retention premium went down. Instead, senior leaders in leadership development began doubling down on the metric they thought was most important: behavior change.
Behavioral change is ultimately the key to improving the employee experience, building a high-performing team, and building a healthy culture. Simply put, behavior change is the only way to get a return on your investment.
How has the behavior changed?
Of course, the goal of leadership development has always been to change behavior. The problem was that for decades, learning and development professionals had to spend their time assembling and delivering the content their students needed to succeed. Because their time and resources were dedicated to content, they lacked the tools, technology, and resources to fully invest in delivering that learning.
With the advent of tools, technology, and resources, the industry has stuck to its old way of doing things. When behavior didn't improve, L&D doubled and tripled the improvement in content. Tunnel vision prevented them from zooming in and seeing the best way forward.
To change your perspective on behavior change, you need to stop thinking of yourself as a “content curator” and your team as a “content delivery service.” Instead, consider yourself an "outsider leader." The Sideways Guide recognizes that most of what content managers need is right at their fingertips, and that most of their time, effort, and budget should be spent on what really matters: helping leaders form new habits.
Here are three valuable ways to move from content curator to leader.
Three Ways to Promote Behavior Change in Your Training Program
#1 - Use a 3 on 1 learning model. The 3 on 1 learning model is simple and applicable, but it represents a major departure from content-based leadership development. According to him, for each formal lesson, three practical lessons should be developed and conducted at work. The 3 to 1 ratio also applies to budget and time. If, for example, you have $40,000 for a program, you will spend $10,000 on tuition and $30,000 on addictive classes. And if you have four hours of productivity, then you need to spend only one hour on traditional training, three hours on applied exercises.
For example, consider effective feedback training for managers. According to the 3-to-1 model, the training program might look like this:
- A live workshop to learn and apply a feedback system such as the BIG (Behaviour, Influence, Consent) model.
- A peer learning course in which participants act out conversations with feedback.
- Each member uses feedback, providing only positive feedback to their team members.
- Each participant practices giving constructive feedback in a lower level conversation.
#2 - Use a coaching approach. No one bridges the gap between knowledge and action better than business coaches. Ultimately, their success depends on helping leaders change their behavior. Coaches use a proven repertoire of activities and exercises to help their trainees form new habits. You can apply many of the approaches used by business coaches on a larger scale to your own training programs.
To create the exercises required by the 3-in-1 model, just refer to the trainer's toolbox;
- Commitment exercises. Leaders discuss, write, or sign a contract about what they hope to achieve as a result of the training and how they plan to overcome obstacles.
- Self-awareness. Ask your leaders to reflect and think about why they behave the way they do and not the other way, especially in the context of your training. The idea is to raise awareness of potentially limiting thought patterns and beliefs.
- Estimates. Evaluation, both by peers and by managers themselves, can provide important information about gaps and weaknesses.
- Exercise. Often, applying a new concept (eg Kotter's 8-step model) can be intimidating. Offer low-risk hands-on opportunities, such as role-plays and workshops, to "lighten" the application.
- Social support. social support encourages action. Use group learning, peer learning networks, group coaching sessions and learning events.
- Plan it. Encourage managers to actively plan for the application of training in the workplace. For example, ask managers to set aside fifteen minutes each Friday to "write a thank you note."
- Reflection. Provide reflection exercises after the exercises and keep a diary to help students develop a long-term action plan for practice and improvement.
3. Incorporate learning into your workflow. By providing content as part of their natural workflow, you allow students to consume content during short breaks that fit more easily into their schedule. So you don't have to distract students from work for a long time. Incorporate the following technological tools into your training and development programs to guide you in behavior change:
- Microlearning. small pieces of easily digestible content are available upon request. The most effective microlearning content is two to five minutes long, so it can include short videos, articles, book summaries, and podcast excerpts.
- Tips: Little reminders or lessons to help leaders form new habits. Requests can be in the form of push notifications, text messages, or email reminders. For example, if a manager is learning to give effective feedback, the "click" might serve as a reminder to "give constructive feedback with compliments to Nikita, who is very knowledgeable."
- Training on demand. Training in the style of "Office hour". The ability to chat or communicate directly with an experienced teacher helps deepen learning by supporting them in their daily work and problem solving. And instead of waiting for the next scheduled lesson, students can ask questions about their learning assignment or pace as they get closer.
A focus on behavior change is a competitive advantage for leadership development professionals.
Getting a seat at the negotiating table, increasing the budget, and achieving measurable results depends on the ability of the leader development professional to help leaders change their behavior. Those who have begun to shift their focus, budget, and approach to becoming behavior change agents are positioning themselves for competitive advantage.
Kevin Kruse is the founder and CEO of LEADx , a leadership development system that scales and maintains habits through micro-coaching and behavioral stimulation. Kevin is also a New York Times bestselling author . Great leaders have no rules. 15 secrets of time management and employee engagement that successful people know 2.0.
.png "Admin")