INVESTING IN THE FUTURE / 159Recognizing leadership stages
The first sign of leadership potential is a
transition from being self-focused, and
simply performing to a high standard in
your own individual role, to becoming
more aware of, and helpful to, others.
Potential leaders then start taking
on more responsibility and begin
questioning the ways things are done
at the moment and coming up with
ideas for doing things differently.
As the potential leader develops,
others in the organization start to
recognize their vision and that theyhave a talent for spotting important
opportunities that will benefit the team or
the organization as a whole. They thrive
on added responsibility, and when they
have a team to manage, they contribute
at a higher level, work well with their
peers, and show a talent for developing
team members. Others naturally
gravitate toward them to sound out
ideas; this process may be formalized
into mentoring or coaching roles.
Ultimately, they start to develop the skills
needed to nurture the next generation of
leaders in your organization.Ask them what they do
differently now they are
at this stageDecide between you the areas
you would like to develop nextIdentify role models who
could help them make the
next transitionWhen they have a team to
manage, they contributeat a higher level
billion is spent each year
in the US on leadership
development
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US_158-159_Investing_in_the_future.indd 159 30/05/16 3:02 pm