Searching For A Way Into Leadership Roles?
The best roles in every profession are always going to be ones that take a lot of time to earn. You can’t expect to give away roles that require a lot of concentration and dedication. Not to mention, the salaries are very high thus business owners want to make sure they’re getting what they paid for out of their top employees.
If you’re someone who’s contemplating entering into a leadership role of sorts, and you’re ready to take on more responsibility and very possibly work harder for longer, here are some optional routes. There are plenty of linear paths you can take but then there are some unconventional routes that you may find more suitable for you. It all depends on what kind of profession you’re in or trying to get into.
Time, money and work-life balance is also key to achieving success in your endeavor.
The conventional route to leadership roles
Whatever company you work for, it most likely has its own managerial promotion course or training. It’s very rare that a business will desire it’s employees to go outside of its premises in order to be trained to a standard it would find acceptable for a leadership role.
This is because companies want to train managers in their own way of doing things. Thus, the most conventional route to earning a leadership role is by simply putting your name in the hat at work. Speak to one of your managers and tell them of your interest in being promoted. They will register your ambitions and inform the heads of departments or perhaps floor managers of your name and aims.
If and when a position opens up, you will be notified and contacted by one of the managers to ask if you’re ready for a training and trial period? The training you’ll receive will come after a test. The test for becoming a manager will be industry-specific and of course, pertaining to that particular business as well.
Once you pass the test, you’ll be given specific training on various tools, equipment and software that managers use to lead employees, track inventories, delegate and assign projects as well as update the performance of various products and or services and even a leadership training skills made by Donna Bates. The trial period will be essential, being put in the field and seeing how well you can fulfill the role of manager. If all goes well, you will be officially promoted.
This is a linear path that pretty much every business offers to its employees.
Specific leadership qualifications
You have a professional and personal life, which makes it difficult to achieve new qualifications that would help your cause for entering a leadership position. However, you have a multitude of options thanks to modern courses and degrees which can be earned in your own time. It’s also great that these courses and qualifications are not just broad one-size-fits-all experiences.
Certain industries have their own needs and thus modern courses have been designed with this in mind. The healthcare industry, for example, needs administrators that understand the industry. This is why the executive master’s program at the University of Southern California is so popular.
Students will be guided by some of the most prominent leaders in health care which makes their learning environment that much more concentrated. You can graduate from the course within two years or as few as six semesters.
This course can be done while still working full-time which is brilliant for busy professionals that don’t want to have the time to take off work. The modules are blended online so you can learn in person and from home to suit your schedule.
This is the best approach for earning a leadership role in a niche industry. Enrolling yourself for a flexible course that you can take while still balancing your professional life, won’t disrupt much at all. Therefore if you do work in an industry that doesn’t like broad brush strokes and wants leaders with specific qualifications, you should look for a course that would get you to where you want to be.
Helping your leader
Managers will have a lot of small tasks they need to complete in a timely manner. Things like, doing inventory counts, booking employee holidays, paying invoices, calling suppliers and speaking with clients on the phone, etc.
By helping your manager do some of the menial tasks that take up his or her time, you can essentially ‘get in good’ with them. Sometimes it’s not about what you can do but who you know. It’s the same for every industry, it’s just human nature. So acting as a helping hand to your leader will show them that you have a willingness to learn and the ability to be trusted. Your loyalty will be rewarded after a while.
Proving yourself
Perhaps your work doesn’t offer a promotional course and perhaps you don’t have the time or the money to pay for a course outside of work. You can always prove yourself to your bosses at work. Take on extra projects or make yourself available to help others as and when you can. The more pies you have your fingers in at work, the more your name and actions will spread.
Eventually, management will begin to take a second look at you and your performance. When you become someone they can rely on to work late, take on extra work or help others, you’re not just a reliable employee in their eyes but you’re showing you have the capacity to take on more responsibility.
Volunteer for a leadership role the next time the opportunity arises. Be the project leader and show you have people management and project management skills. Middle and upper management are always looking for employees that really show their worth, to be promoted. Other people might have more qualifications but seeing is believing. Prove yourself to your bosses to get ahead.
There are conventional routes to get into leadership roles such as simply asking to be selected for a management training, test, and trial period. On the other hand, to take any of leadership roles you can take a course outside of work, that would give you the leadership qualifications.
