Part III
Developing managerial talent

Some powerful examples of theory-based management development practices

This part of the book marks a sharp turn away from contributing to and interpreting research data and towards the application of management development strategies and initiatives based upon published theory.

The overall management development strategy reflects the application of a ‘grand theory’ of human development which emerged in the mid-20th century. It posits that overall management development arises out of individuals responding effectively to increasingly challenging managerial tasks and it offers a method to identify the most appropriate challenge, in a key result area, to drive each manager’s development.

Below the totality of the overall managerial challenge lie the individual’s personal competences which were first considered in Part I of this book. Of special interest are the interpersonal competencies cluster. The theory which is featured at this level is the author’s own Continuous Cycle Learning (CCL) model of skill development which draws heavily from his association with the late Don Binsted and his work with Centre for the Study of Management Learning at Lancaster University. The author reports on the use of this learning design model in (1) one-to-one managerial coaching around competencies, (2) the training of line managers as coaches and (3) an intensive training course in influencing and persuading skills.

The CCL model has been used to greatest effect when fully validated courses in a particular area of interpersonal skill were not available. Instead it sought to elicit and harness the skills of other course members to contribute alternative strategies to resolve individuals’ difficulties. The alternate use of telling and asking styles of relating to others, introduced in Part II, is particularly featured. Across an entire workshop, participants were encouraged to develop their own repertories for engaging with a range of interpersonal situations.