Lean Quote: Good Leaders Develop Employees

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"The growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership."   —  Harvey Firestone

A good leader knows the benefits of personal growth and development, both for themselves and for those who are around them, their employees, their families and friends. A good leader knows how establishing and declaring values, both personally and professionally provide a foundation for their character. A good leader uses power to support and strengthen those around them and therefore shows his/her character.

Do the people you're leading, coaching, teaching, etc., feel like they're growing? Most people know that if they're not growing, they're not getting closer to success. Then, it's only a matter of time before they leave your organization for someone who gets them closer to their goals. Every day, those people have a chance to either get a little bit better at what they do, or not. Development can, and should, be constant.

Effective leaders develop the leadership potential in others and improve performance through consistent feedback and coaching. When leaders coach potential, they move from solving problems by telling others what to do to developing other leaders and building team members’ capacity.

Employee development is the process of ensuring that your talent becomes more effective and is capable of tackling major or critical challenges. Like leadership development and leadership coaching, developing others is an imperative for all people managers.