Global Leadership Development: Why It's Important to Your Business

Global Leadership Development: Why It's Important to Your Business by Bettina Chang | Talent Management   A recent study by the American Management Association (AMA) showed that global leadership development programs are correlated with success at companies around the world. Competition was the main driver behind these programs, and almost half of the companies surveyed said that they had already implemented such programs or were currently developing them.   The survey included more than 900 organizations, 40 percent of which are headquartered outside the U.S.   "Whether or not you are only located in one country, you're competing all over the world with your products and services," said Sandi Edwards, senior vice president of AMA Corporate Learning Solutions. "[It's important] to have people all over the globe who understand what the [business] is about and how to compete successfully."   These leadership competencies, though not completely different from typical domestic leadership programs, emphasize certain global nuances. Important aspects include branding in other parts of the world, being agile and understanding cultures, and effectively working across cultures and remotely.   To implement an effective global leadership development program, an organization must first set business goals and determine the metrics through which they will be measured. "The most effective global leadership initiatives are tightly linked to the achievement of critical business goals," Edwards said.   Once the business goals are developed, it's imperative for senior-level executives to communicate why being a strong global leader has important business impact on the organization. "That can be stressed most effectively by senior leaders," Edwards said. "[The initiatives] are not successful if there isn't some component of executive sponsorship and senior leadership involvement."   Other ways for senior leaders to be involved are to be a part of the program and to contribute by co-teaching. They must also monitor the metrics to determine the return on investment of the program.   The study showed that organizations with successful programs can expect to see increased revenue, shareholder value and customer satisfaction. These programs also improve the bench strength of an organization. Of the targeted employees who participate in these programs, about 20 to 25 percent are upwardly mobile and able to take on higher positions. After the training, up to 40 percent will have the capability to take on higher positions and more responsibility.   "That's vital to the strength of the organization, to have a healthy leadership pipeline," Edwards said.   As with most leadership programs, global leadership development can increase engagement and retention, especially among high performers at a company.   "Top talent are high-value assets in every organization, there's no doubt about that - and the best performers always have options," Edwards said. "In the companies we studied, correlation was high between those organizations that were high performers and those that had developed and implemented global leadership curriculums."   Another finding was that almost 10 percent of companies said that they open their global leadership programs to everyone in their organization. Edwards said that this was unexpected, since scarce budgets for development programs typically limit the number of employees who are able to participate in them.   For the companies that do limit the employees who enter these programs, they often offer other development opportunities for all employees. Coaching programs, on-the-job learning, job shadowing and rotations can give an individual more exposure to the different parts and people in an organization. An employee's performance during these opportunities may qualify him or her for further development training.   Edwards stressed that while companies can do many things to ensure employees are engaged, there must be a consistent thread of logic that links every development program to competency expectations within the organization.     [About the Author: Bettina Chang is an editorial intern at Talent Management magazine.]