Are great managers born—or made?

July 2017
Are Great Leaders Born—or Made?

"Great managers aren't born—they're trained." That's the message Scott Blanchard, principal and EVP with The Ken Blanchard Companies, is sharing with audiences as he speaks to groups of leadership, learning, and talent development professionals.

Blanchard points to research that shows most managers don't receive that necessary training, however, until they are about ten years into their managerial career.

"The effects are damaging at both an individual and organizational level," says Blanchard. "More than 60 percent of new managers underperform or fail in their first two years. And those who survive without managerial training often find themselves with negative habits that are hard to break—which can hold them back for years to come."

With over two million new people stepping up to leadership for the first time each year in the US alone, Blanchard believes organizations need to take management training a lot more seriously.

"It is very important that those responsible for organizational training put together an effective curriculum for developing people into trusted professional managers. As a professional manager, you are responsible for what your direct reports do, and to some degree, how they feel—especially the emotional connection they establish with their job and the company."

While some people's influence and communication skills come naturally, every manager can learn and develop the skills they need regardless of their starting point, says Blanchard.
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"We wanted to unlock potential and create even better and stronger relationships between leaders and their direct reports," explains Michelle Drager, director of training and development for Columbia Bank. "We needed a leadership development program that could be used consistently across the organization."

Shana Erickson, VP and director of leadership development, was familiar with Situational Leadership® II (SLII®) from The Ken Blanchard Companies and trusted it would be a good fit for the culture.

"I knew SLII would provide the foundation our leaders needed to be able to identify the needs of their people and help with those needs."
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Positive mentoring relationships can change the way we lead and help us succeed.

In One Minute Mentoring, Ken Blanchard and Claire Diaz-Ortiz, a former Twitter executive and early employee, combine their knowledge to provide a systematic approach to intergenerational mentoring.
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