How do you balance theory and practice in leadership training?

'Training' finde ich im Kontext von Führung nur bedingt passend - es schwingt mit, dass ich jemandem etwas beibringen will, bspw. Führungsmodelle. Die kann ich mir auch im Internet runterladen - meist ohne oder mit negativem Effekt ('Hast Du gerade ein Führungstraining besucht?'). Hilfreicher ist es mE, im Kontext der Unternehmenskultur von der einzelnen Führungskraft mit meist mannigfaltigen Erfahrungen auszugehen und individuelle Ansatzpunkte und Vorgehensweisen zu erarbeiten, um die Führungsleistung zu verbessern. Will man darauf ein Label kleben, würde ich mich für Sparring, Workshop oder Coaching mit kleinen, praktischen Trainingselementen entscheiden.

La formación de líderes es un proceso clave para el desarrollo de habilidades de liderazgo efectivas. Estas son algunas pautas teóricas que creo son base del desarrollo de lideres: -Desarrollo Continuo: La formación de líderes es un proceso continuo y progresivo que ocurre a lo largo de toda la vida. -Cultura de Liderazgo: Es importante crear una cultura de liderazgo en la organización y proporcionar un entorno de apoyo. -Capacitación Personalizada: Los programas de capacitación en liderazgo deben personalizarse según las necesidades y objetivos individuales, Mentoring.

In my experience with leadership training I have their directs, colleagues and any other stakeholder within the reach of the leader give constructive feedback so they see what the perception of them is throughout the enterprise. A leadership development plan is put into place only after that. You can't fix what you don't understand!

El equilibrio entre la teoría y la práctica en la formación de líderes es crucial para desarrollar habilidades efectivas y una comprensión profunda de los principios de liderazgo. Aquí te describo cómo se puede lograr este equilibrio: Integración Curricular: Los programas de liderazgo deben integrar la teoría del liderazgo con casos prácticos y experiencias reales. Esto incluye el estudio de teorías clásicas y modernas del liderazgo, así como el análisis de líderes y organizaciones reales para ver cómo se aplican estas teorías en la práctica. Formación Experiencial: La formación de líderes debe incluir componentes prácticos como simulaciones, juegos de roles y proyectos de liderazgo en la vida real.

En mi experiencia, me ha funcionado más una estrategia de mentoring; proceso de desarrollo personal y profesional en el cual una persona con experiencia, conocida como mentor, guía y apoya a otra menos experimentada. Este proceso se basa en la transferencia de conocimientos y habilidades, y se enfoca en el crecimiento del individuo en diversas áreas, incluyendo la intelectual, emocional y social. Con la confianza y delegación de autoridad y responsabilidad nos dan la pauta para crear nuevos lílderez, a futuro.

Theory is one thing, but is it practical, pragmatic, useful, and repeatable. Often I find textbooks have been written by academics lacking 'real world' application. Personally I find 'field testing' theories and applications on a small scale to be quite beneficial. When you look at customizing delivery of corporate training solutions for clients, with an ongoing innovative and adaptive approach, you will achieve far more wins than losses.

Theoretical concepts and knowledge give a systematic framekwork for leaders but do not validate their practical viability. For leaders, practical application gives strategic insight which theoretical concepts can be leveraged to their advantage. Practical application leads to gaining strategic insights from real world scenarios. Adaptability, critical thinking, problem solving are components which you can't learn from theoretical knowledge but are gained through practical exposure.

When thinking about practical application of theory I feel role playing has limitations and is never real world enough, because you can't add in the actual emotions on both sides. What I find effective is to take a theory & ask for people to share stories from the flip side, meaning from their time when a leader either abided by a theory or abandoned it with them. Exploring how it made them feel, how that in turn impacted their engagement & their productivity often hits home. If someone shares an example of poor leadership I will follow that up by asking how they would have handled the situation or how they do handle those situations now. It usually sparks some pretty powerful conversations & personalizes the theory at hand.

Leadership models are undoubtedly linked to the exposure to various scenarios, wherein the leader encounters situations that challenge their current abilities, accompanied by others to attain their maximum potential.

El aprendizaje reflexivo es un proceso de evaluación y análisis de contenido para generar reflexión e interacción. Se aplica en cualquier área del conocimiento humano y se puede fomentar desde los niños hasta las actividades empresariales. El aprendizaje reflexivo implica que los líderes piensen en lo que han leído, hecho o aprendido, relacionando la lección con sus propias vidas y dando sentido al material. Va más allá de simplemente memorizar hechos, fórmulas o fechas. En mi experiencia si no puedes relacionarlo con alguna actividad o experiencia cotidiana, el aprendizaje estara incompleto.

Reflective learning can be very effective at the moment of learning, but it is often times hard to translate that to change later. A big piece of putting it into practice is understanding why something was successful or not and setting tangible goals around the self reflections. Inviting someone like a mentor into the process to hold them accountable to those goals is also an often overlooked part to the reflective learning process.

Wertvoll für mich ist immer auch das Reflektieren mit meinem Team und Feedback bekommen. Durch das Teilhaben lassen bekomme ich weitere wertvolle Sichtweisen zu meinem Führungshandeln. Wenn ich meine Mitarbeitenden an meinen Auseinandersetzungen teilhaben lasse, dann ergibt sich eine Vertrauenskultur ➡️Just culture

Prior to being in an official leadership role, an exercise I found helpful was to journal observations of other leaders. Weekly, I would write about behaviors, observed interactions and leadership communications. Nothing formal. Just notes about the context and what I observed. It helped me begin to develop perspective on positive and negative leadership behaviors. I maintained this practice throughout my career. The journal expanded to include my leadership behaviors once I entered management roles.

Undoubtedly, feedback scenarios will be a powerful tool enabling individuals to achieve their goals. Self-awareness will be the starting point, particularly in identifying areas for improvement.

Theory provides the knowledge bedrock of the inherent requirements of leadership. It is the base of the leadership and critically sets one apart. However it is important to note that practice is where the 'rubber hits the road' and where the bulk of the 'real' learning happens. Practice taps into emotional intelligence, self and social awareness, immediate action and reaction and so many other facets. Reflecting on these experiences closes the feedback loop and allows one to take learnings to be equip themselves for the future. A healthy balance of these two matters and complementarily strengthens a leader's tool arsenal

Balancing theory and practicality through feedback loops involves several key factors. Begin by thoroughly grasping theoretical concepts relevant to your field or area of interest. This could involve studying leadership models, psychological frameworks, or business strategies.Application in Practice translate theoretical knowledge into practical actions. Implement strategies or approaches based on the theories you've learned. This could involve leading teams, making decisions, or solving problems in real-world scenarios. Feedback Collection actively seek feedback from mentors, coaches, peers, or even direct reports. Encourage honest assessments of your leadership approach in relation to the theoretical concepts you're trying to apply.

Conocer la teoría es fácil, además en la era de la comunicación y la IA podemos encontrarla con facilidad. Sin embargo, la práctica requiere de destreza, practica, puesta a prueba, análisis y mejora continua. La teoría nos sirve para generar hipótesis de trabajo y unidades de medida para poder evaluar, pero la práctica es la que nos da feedback objetivo, nos pone a prueba y nos da resultados medibles y evaluables que nos permiten hacer mejoras y ajustes en el tiempo. Por tanto, un buen lider ha de conocer e investigar la teoría, poner a prueba sus hipótesis y en base a los resultados prácticos hacer ajustes pragmáticos o teóricos según sea el caso.

Adaptive leadership is a powerful framework for balancing theory and practicality. Here's how it plays out: 1.Flexible Application of Theory : Adaptive leaders understand theoretical concepts but recognize that real-world situations may require deviations from these theories. 2. Responsive Decision-Making: When faced with challenges, adaptive leaders don't rely solely on predefined theories or models. Instead, they assess the situation dynamically and make decisions that are best suited to the circumstances at hand, drawing on both theoretical knowledge and practical experience. 3.Continuous Learning and Adjustment: Adaptive leaders actively seek feedback and use it to refine their approach over time.

I recently decided to take “life long learning” to heart, it’s quite sad actually all I do in my free time is read business books, listen to podcasts and studying. The stuff I have learned I’m implementing all the time, getting buy in from staff is huge and having them be part of the leadership removed the “them & us”. Finding ways to organically encourage upward leadership is paramount to my success.

Balancing theory and practice in leadership training, especially with AI integration, has been pivotal in my journey. Embracing theoretical insights alongside hands-on AI applications transformed our operations, fostering innovation and efficiency. This fusion empowers leaders to navigate dynamic challenges effectively, driving organizational success.

There are so many resources for continuous learning, it does not need to be formal coursework. Some of my favorite resources for continuous learning are, watching TED talks, reading articles, and Linkedin Learning.