How do you assess the leadership skills of your employees?

In my experience, defining leadership competencies is crucial for assessing employees' leadership skills effectively. These competencies encompass the knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes that enable leaders to perform effectively across various situations and contexts. Utilizing established frameworks like the Leadership Competency Model by the Center for Creative Leadership or developing custom ones tailored to the organization's vision, mission, values, and strategy is essential. Additionally, considering the level and scope of leadership required for each position, whether individual contributor, team leader, manager, or executive, ensures alignment with organizational goals and expectations.

IMO, the two foundational competencies are: Leadership of Self and Leading by Example. 👍 Leadership of Self: Self-awareness and self-mastery are critical for understanding how you show up and how that influences/impacts others. Leading by Example: Taking the initiative to exemplify the attitude and behaviors, in alignment with company values and expected behaviors. An effective way to assess leadership skills, once they have been identified, is to conduct a 360 feedback survey. 📋

Recognised leadership qualities are: Vision, Honesty, Integrity, Authenticity, Empathy Fairness, Ability to listen, Communication skills, Inspirational, Provides direction, Ownership but shares success, Development focus, Builds great teams, Gets people decisions right, Flexible, Insight driven, Says no even if it hurts, Looks beyond the facts. All build trust which sits at the heart of organisational leadership.

Just knowing what characteristics you want your leaders to have is great, but understanding who can make those decisions is critical. One way I have heard that I like is the "above" and "below" the water line decision model. Pretend you're a ship and any hits below the water line could sink the ship, but above it may just rock the boat. Understand what those decisions look like and where you are comfortable giving that accountability. Each department and team should do this exercise to see which level of the team can rock or sink the ship with their decisions.

Leadership competencies are the guiding stars for navigating organizational challenges and combining skills, behaviors, and attitudes. They include the compass of decision-making, the anchor of integrity, and the sails of empathy and innovation, tailored to each role, from individual contributor to executive. These competencies empower leaders to steer their teams through diverse situations, fostering unity and driving success. Essential for effective leadership, they enable the setting and achieving shared goals, adapting to each unique organizational voyage.

One trait I've found in great leaders is ownership. Not blaming others, but yourself. If someone is asking for more ownership within the team, works additional hours to get things done & is the first to respond and fix things, they're pretty good fits for leadership.

* Lead by example and demonstrate integrity * Communicate effectively * Inspire and motivate others * Take initiative and show accountability * Collaborate and build relationships * Adapt to change and foster innovation

Assessing leadership skills can be a subjective process. 🤔 Ideally, work with a certified professional that is experienced with leadership assessments, frameworks, and coaching. Engaging a third party also helps in obtaining unbiased and accurate feedback from colleagues.

Utilize performance metrics and outcomes to evaluate the effectiveness of leadership skills in practice. Analyzing tangible results can provide a clearer picture of an employee's impact on organizational goals.

To assess the leadership skills of employees, I use multiple methods and sources for a comprehensive evaluation. This includes 360-degree feedback, where insights from peers, subordinates, and supervisors offer diverse perspectives. I also observe how individuals handle real-world challenges, including decision-making, conflict resolution, and team motivation. Leadership simulations and scenario-based assessments further help gauge problem-solving and adaptability. Additionally, I analyze their communication effectiveness, emotional intelligence, and ability to inspire and drive results. Regular performance reviews, coupled with ongoing mentorship and coaching, ensure continuous leadership development.

Analyzing and effectively communicating the outcomes of leadership assessments is crucial. Gather information from various sources to identify consistent patterns, trends, and gaps. Interpret these findings against defined leadership competencies and role expectations. When sharing results with employees, do so in a timely and respectful manner. Highlight their strengths and areas for improvement with specific examples and evidence. Provide constructive feedback and actionable suggestions. This approach ensures clarity and assists the employee's professional growth, creating a roadmap for progress and development in their leadership journey.

If you want to make effective decision making part of your company culture, its critical to support both good and bad outcomes. More specifically your reaction to decisions that lead to poor results. If you want to end all effective decision making, be the leader who blames people for poor outcomes and provides no learning opportunities. I have seen this with CEO's and Founders creating huge roadblocks because even their VP leadership team was afraid to make decisions on their own due to potential backlash. Give up the power, provide the necessary information, and let others decide. You might be shocked what can happen.

Set clear, actionable development goals based on the assessment results. Providing a structured plan helps employees understand the next steps and reinforces accountability in their leadership journey

To assess the leadership skills of employees, I focus on their ability to analyze and communicate results effectively. Strong leaders demonstrate the capacity to critically evaluate data, identify trends, and propose actionable insights. I look for individuals who not only understand the outcomes but can articulate them clearly to their team and stakeholders, ensuring alignment and shared understanding. Leaders should foster transparent communication, turning complex information into simple, actionable steps while inspiring and guiding their teams toward achieving organizational goals.

It is essential to evaluate and celebrate the outcomes of leadership development. It is recommended to document changes in leadership behaviors and their effects on performance and relationships. It is also important to acknowledge and reward your employees' efforts and achievements. Additionally, continuously providing feedback and support for further growth is crucial. After the assessment process, it is recommended to reflect on what worked well and identify areas for improvement for future evaluations. By doing so, you can reinforce positive behavior and outcomes, and build a culture of continuous improvement and recognition within the team.

We all make good and bad decisions on sometimes daily or weekly basis. If you want to foster a culture of leaders up and down your org chart, be vocal about the mistakes you've made. This will show people its ok to make a decision that isn't perfect and still grow in your career, and capabilities. Most of the time a fear of failure is what limits decision making. And the most impactful thing that can happen to a company is indecision taking place within your company. Poor decisions are still decisions that provide learning and course correction. No decisions leave you falling behind.

To assess the leadership skills of your employees effectively, we can follow several key steps: Start by defining the relevant leadership competencies for your organization. These competencies include knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes that enable effective leadership in various situations and contexts. Utilize various methods and data sources to evaluate leadership skills. This can include self-assessment, feedback from peers, subordinates, supervisors, and standardized tests or tools to measure leadership skills and behaviors. Interpret the results in relation to leadership competencies and communicate them to the employee in a timely and respectful manner, highlighting strengths and areas for improvement.

For me, it's the small endeavors that count, the extra mile that people go. For instance, a project was to be submitted by our company, and the individual working on it had an emergency a couple of days before submission. His teammate dropped him home, took over the project, and made sure it was submitted on time. His effort to go the extra mile echoed throughout the company. Such characteristics reflect a quality that sophisticated mechanisms, appraisal systems, and KPIs might fail to capture.