As a leader in any domain, the biggest responsibility that we carry is to up-skill and upgrade talent in a moving vehicle. Business is the moving vehicle and every leader needs to be able to train and coach their teams while traveling with all the fire and the challenges on board. Thus this has become a fundamental skill to be an impactful leader and even keep yourself relevant to times. You may be formally or informally doing the role, however, the proof of the pudding is the results that you create.
Often leaders are asked to make themselves redundant to the current role to be able to transition to higher responsibilities…however, the need to be perfect can sometimes rob you, of prospective growth.
In Maslow’s hierarchy, we talk of self-transcendence that maximizes satisfaction -growth -the feeling of elevation…however the physiological and security levels are also a need, and when that gets threatened a leader can rarely do justice to the primary reason of being in the system. Many organizations struggle to strike the balance as they are in a race to create cheaper -better -faster!! The balance starts with securing leadership to be able to do justice to their primary role -SKILL TRANSFER!! This transfer is as good as heart transfer or cloning tacit expertise and needs to be dealt with, acumen and focus.
In recent times a lot of focus is being given to empowering leaders to become better coaches -trainers and facilitators for business optimization. Inviting industry experts to constantly hone this attribute goes a long way to keep the leadership growth pastures hydrated.
Most often these sessions are done clinically, however, the best results are experienced when they are done as a lab workshop from time to time. A lab is an experimental space where leaders, can role play -ask questions and test out principles that are proven since time immemorial.
6 Fundamental methods to support our leaders become better facilitators of Skill transfer:
- Orchestrate – When we work with the best of minds it is important to understand every person’s strengths and accentuate them. Like a conductor in the orchestra, the leader can lead with the baton to give wings to what the composer creates, and passionate musicians play with perfection. Every team member is an asset who the leader needs to further align for the organizational vision and symphony!
- High Energy environment -Energy is a KEY component in facilitation. Whether in a workshop or lab setting or even a formal discussion -training setup, the energy decides how much is imbibed by the audience. Energy can also be induced through activities -role-plays and giving queues to the participants rather than controlling with your lung power.
- Managing Dynamics -No matter the team or company size, team politics and groupthink ALWAYS creep up. Being able to set aside the grave-vine yet address it, is an art that needs to be dealt with tactically.
- WIIFM -Keep the WIIFM (‘What’s in it for me’-crystal clear). In an age when our attention span is limited it is important to call out the return on investment of time. Engaging, interactive dialogue, group activities that involve moving about, brainstorming, and creating tangible outcomes.
- Building a secured Relationship -Having a secured relationship rather than one of interaction is what gives true value to any skill transfer journey. The comfort of asking questions -bonding with your target audience gives you an advantage of a seamless skill transfer. In most traditional classrooms in schools, children are asked to keep quiet…which is counterproductive as the questions or doubts for effective Knowledge and skill transfer don’t take place. Andragogy has always been practiced by the best facilitators from ancient times.
- Enforce Accountability -To see the best results of learning and facilitation, participants need to feel accountable for putting what they learned into practice. There could be follow-up sessions, discussions, weekly catchups to see the skill in action. Creating an accountability matrix and mechanism can help all stakeholders to view the results of the learning journey. This also translates into practice of the skill learned diligently.
What is your facilitation style? What is your biggest contribution as a leader? How comfortable are you in sharing all your techniques and expertise with others? Look forward to hearing from you.
To hone your Facilitation and Training Skills explore the following:
drsonaliduttabaanerjee 