Paul J. Meyer once said, “Communication is the key to personal and career success.” Communication is an especially important skill for senior managers who want to develop their current and potential frontline leaders (FLLs). Upper managers (who often hold the title of director or above) are those who oversee FLLs, who in turn supervise individual contributors. Developing FLLs is key because they not only ensure the productivity of individual contributors, they also are often the organization’s future upper managers and leaders.
According to the ATD research report Frontline Leaders: Developing Tomorrow’s Executives, an FLL is a person responsible for “leading, developing, and coaching the performance of the individual contributors of the organization.” A person in this role typically has the job title of supervisor.
ATD researchers looked at talent development for FLLs, analyzing data from survey responses received from 513 upper managers. The following three key strategies, derived from the report, will help upper managers effectively communicate with their FLLs.
1. Establish a Feedback Process
Not only should there be training and development opportunities for FLLs, but also a communication funnel that offers them the chance to relay concerns, questions, and needs to upper management. Open communication is also key with FLLs because they often are the link between individual contributors and upper management. According to the research report, 45 percent of organizations have processes to gather feedback from FLLs.
2. Ensure That There’s One-on-One Communication
New FLLs have different tasks, past experiences, and co-workers. This means they will need to develop different skills and will likely benefit from an individual talent development plan that their upper manager helps create. In fact, 68 percent of organizations recognized one-on-one communication with upper managers as a key success factor in talent development for new FLLs.
The main job of the upper manager as coach should be to get the new FLLs in the right mindset for their new position’s demands and to identify strengths and weaknesses. Coaching and mentoring programs, followed by informal training, are the best steps upper managers can take to ensure that they are developing FLLs.
With 43 percent of organizations admitting to having a “somewhat effective” development process for FLLs, there is clearly room for improvement. New programs, especially those that involve one-on-one communication, should be considered as resources allow.
3. Model Communication and Interpersonal Skills
Almost all organizations surveyed (96 percent) identified basic leadership skills, which included communication, to be a high priority in FLL development. Yet FLLs often lack communication skills, so upper managers should model these skills and emphasize their importance, such as through a leaders-as-teachers program. While communication is often seen as a soft skill, it should not be overlooked.
Additionally, it is critical that FLLs have strong interpersonal skills. Organizations should consider increasing the amount of formal or informal training spent on interpersonal skills, particularly initiatives aimed at Millennials, who are frequently identified as lacking in this area.
Whether it’s through feedback pipelines, one-on-one interactions, or direct training approaches, communication from upper managers is a vital component to FLL development. A copy of the full research report, with complete data, graphs, and analysis, is available for purchase.
