Management Development

The broad term management development describes both the process of and the associated content used in[Page 342] creating, enhancing, and developing the skills of individual managers and groups of managers in an organization.

Management development incorporates both on-the-job learning and formally structured education and training. The on-the-job learning aspects of management development usually include assignments of a short -or medium-term nature, which provide learning opportunities for managers. Structured management development usually involves the assessment of the strengths and weakness of individual managers and/or groups of managers, followed by a program chosen/designed to enhance the managerial skills and knowledge of both individuals and the group.

Learning from education often deals with the “what and why” of management job content. Training more often deals with the “how” of specific aspects of jobs and responsibilities. General technical knowledge, job-related education, specific training, and interpersonal skills development are typical components of a management development process/program.

Coaching and mentoring are other aspects of management development, which involve personal interaction with experienced people who have either held similar jobs or are responsible for groups of managers working in similar jobs. Coaches can be both personally and professionally oriented and often help managers learn to deal with the nontechnical portions of their jobs.

A good management development process makes opportunities available to managers but relies on the initiative of those managers to seek out and use the content of the management development process. A frequent error is to “send someone” to a management development program or to “put them through” a process without ever first determining that the manager wanted to “be developed.” Such processes are usually wasteful and unsuccessful.

Another part of a management development process deals with the larger issue of organizational development and succession planning. Although it is easy to think of management development as a one-person process, management is a plural effort in most instances. Groups of managers must work together in a collaborative and complementary manner to achieve the objectives of the organization. Doing this requires diversity in perspectives, skills, talents, and experience. It also requires the willingness to work together and the presence of a leader—with a plan—to make the management group cohesive and effective.

As in most processes leading to programs, planning is a critical element. Creating a management development plan is usually the assigned job of the human resource function but in fact is actually the job of the leader, whether hisor her title is director, vice president, president, chief organizational officer, chief executive officer, chairman, or whatever. Unless the leader has strong input into and ownership of the management development plan, it will be mediocre at best and a failure at worst.

The most important reason for the leader' critical role is that many elements of management development can be postponed, deferred, and canceled whenever there is the slightest pressure on earnings. Training programs are considered discretionary expenses, although good ones should be considered strategic investments. Expenses get cut in difficult times, and some get trimmed even in good times.

Without the leader' ownership, the critical on-the-job learning that comes from rotating assignments, project team roles, and so forth don't happen at all or happen only infrequently. Strong management groups understand how different jobs within the group contribute to the overall success of the management as a whole. The best way to gain this understanding is to work in several related areas and develop managerial skills and know-how from different perspectives.

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