Leadership development goals: Your roadmap to success

Published: July 29, 2024
Updated: August 27, 2024

Managers come to their positions from a variety of backgrounds. Some studied business or a related subject in college. Others began with an organization in another capacity and worked their way up the ranks based on their performance. Similarly, managers vary in years of experience—from seasoned veterans to those taking on their first leadership role. Add to this the fact that individuals vary in leadership style, life experience, and personality, and it becomes even clearer that coming up with a leadership development plan is not a one-size-fits-all endeavor.

What is certain, though, is that organizations and their managers benefit from a growth mindset. Room always exists for professional and personal development. The competencies that each individual aspires to acquire to become a better leader may differ, but the need for continuous learning remains constant. The real question becomes what leadership development goals to set and how best to reach them.

Determining leadership development goals

Many companies offer formal leadership development programs. They develop a curriculum covering topics relevant to different career stages and teach these subjects through methods such as classroom instruction, online learning, job shadowing, and guidance from mentors.

Some places offer less direction. Managers are more responsible for directing their professional development as they see fit. Selecting leadership development goals on which to concentrate may seem daunting, but numerous ways exist to develop ones that enhance performance.

Practical tips for identifying your development needs

Start by examining company priorities and needs. (This also is an intelligent strategy for executives formulating organizational-wide leadership skills development goals.) Which abilities would allow a manager to uphold the company’s mission statement better? What does the brand pride itself on? What have top brass identified as goals they would like to achieve? Knowledge of these things can direct where to focus development efforts.

Next, think about educational gaps. For instance, perhaps the next level to which you aspire requires a higher degree. Alternatively, maybe a specific certification would increase your base pay or hireability. Ultimately, obtaining advanced credentials and the skills that go into achieving them is a popular way of growing as a leader.

Perform a similar analysis of potential skill or performance gaps. Suppose leaders one step up from you on the career ladder present regularly at industry events. In that case, setting goals to increase your involvement in professional organizations or hone your public speaking abilities makes great sense.

A look at past performance reviews can assist in identifying areas ripe for improvement. Don’t be shy about asking for additional constructive feedback, too. A 1:1 conversation with your boss can help pinpoint your strengths and weaknesses. They also may have a firmer grasp of what competencies the organization would like managers to acquire.

Job ads are another excellent source of information for setting leadership development goals. Understanding industry trends in hiring is beneficial, even if you do not plan on leaving your current position. Look at the desired qualifications for roles similar to yours and above. Where would you be lacking if you chose to apply? What abilities do postings list, such as adding “bonus points” to a candidacy?

The power of self-awareness in goal setting

Sometimes, coming up with leadership development goals hinges on self-awareness. What aspects of being a manager give you trouble or make you uncomfortable? Addressing these issues through goal setting can increase both job satisfaction and performance. Likewise, which managerial responsibilities do you enjoy most or do particularly well? Setting goals in areas of interest capitalizes on motivation and sets you up to shine.

Setting effective leadership goals

Every time the calendar changes to a new year, millions of people make resolutions. They vow to get in shape, save money, or accomplish other personal growth. The majority of them fail.

The lack of a roadmap contributes significantly to the poor success rate. These goal-setters grasp the main idea but must learn how to reach the desired endpoint. They need a template to spell out a plan.

The same goal-setting challenge exists with professional development. A manager might think, “I want to improve my listening skills,” but have no clue how to go about it or what a positive result looks like.

A popular action plan in the business world (and in life) is setting SMART goals. Each letter in SMART stands for an important element of successful goal-setting: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. These things promote success by eliminating vagueness, motivating through steady progress, and defining desired outcomes. Let’s look at each letter in detail:

Specific

Getting specific about what you want to accomplish turns a general notion into a tangible goal. It turns vagueness into answers to “W” questions (who, what, where, when, and why). If a friend told you he made a New Year’s resolution to get healthier, you’d congratulate him, but you might not be sure what he means. Yet if he said that starting next week, he is going to exercise every other morning and add a vegetable to each dinner so that he can lower his cholesterol level to under 200 by his yearly physical in April, you would look for him at the gym and hand him your broccoli casserole recipe.

Measurable

Practical goals are measurable. They define where you are vs. where you want to be. You don’t have to guess if you are on the right track to successful completion because the proof is in meeting the metrics. Breaking the goal down in this manner makes it feel more doable. It also keeps the goal-setter motivated by seeing evidence of accomplishment. Measurement methods may be quantitative (such as costs cut, time saved, or products produced) or qualitative (such as positive client feedback).

Achievable

Aspiring to greater heights is noble, but a first-time supervisor does not become a CEO overnight. Evaluate where you stand in relation to what you want to accomplish. Is the goal attainable based on your skills, knowledge, and experience? If not, break it down into smaller, more achievable goals. Reaching too high and failing leads to frustration, while staying reasonable builds confidence.

Relevant

Why is the goal important, and how does it relate to the larger picture? Someone setting goals to improve as a manager should make sure what she chooses to pursue will help the company or her own career. While learning to play pickleball may be exciting and worth doing for enjoyment, it is unlikely that current or future employers will see that activity as strengthening your resume. However, aspiring to pass the Project Management Professional (PMP) exam and receive certification will likely be helpful in career development.

Time-bound

Goals should have a time frame for accomplishment. Creating these boundaries creates a sense of urgency. Without specifics on what will be accomplished and when, the odds of procrastination or letting goals drag on increase.

Sample leadership development goals

As you chart your journey, it might help to see some examples in action:

Honing coaching skills

Edward reads an article about a company where scores on employee engagement surveys soared after an initiative to develop team leaders into coaches. After some self-reflection, he concludes that he would be a more effective leader if he let go of some micromanaging tendencies and focused on guiding and motivating instead. He uses the SMART goals template to plan out a course of action:

Specific: Complete a Coursera “Coaching Skills for Managers” class and apply things learned to the everyday work environment.

Measurable: Before starting the course, survey team members to gauge employee engagement. Present the same questionnaire after class to see if the results improve.

Achievable: Managers in a similar environment had good results when tackling this goal and following a structured program that organizes pertinent material.

Relevant: Employee engagement plays a large part in decreasing turnover rates, which benefits the company.

Time-bound: The selected training takes place in increments over a three-month period, providing a natural timeline.

Getting comfortable with public speaking

Angela has never been a fan of addressing large groups of people, yet doing so is increasingly becoming part of her job. This point truly hit home at her last performance review, where her boss noted that visible nervousness blemishes her well-constructed presentations. Therefore, she decides that addressing this deficiency once and for all would be in her best career interests, especially since she hopes to move up the managerial ladder quickly as the company expands.

Specific: Joining Toastmasters provides an opportunity to learn and practice public speaking and other communication skills in a supportive environment.

Measurable: Angela keeps a journal to record how she feels before, during, and after each speaking opportunity, which allows her to track her progress over time.

Achievable: Toastmasters has assisted numerous professionals experiencing the same sort of anxiety as Angela.

Relevant: Becoming more comfortable addressing groups will offer short-term rewards such as better performance review scores and increase her chances of promotion throughout her career.

Time-bound: Angela signs up to present at an industry conference six months away. By committing to Toastmasters during the months leading up to it, she wants to be ready to shine.

Effective communication with all staff members

Linda manages a team containing both on-site workers and telecommuters. Her employer has deemed it a company-wide goal to help the groups work together seamlessly. Upper management asks each department head to institute a measure they believe will improve communication and then report on the results at the end of two months. Linda asks her LinkedIn network for suggestions, which leads her to the following goal:

Specific: Adopting an online project management system available in real-time to everyone, regardless of location, would provide a central source for all to see progress, milestones, deadlines, who is working on what, and other crucial information.

Measurable: Linda can track who logs into the system and how often. As both on-site and off-site workers become more familiar with the procedure, the numbers should increase. She can also solicit feedback from both groups periodically to assess their feelings about its helpfulness.

Achievable: Other managers she knows have implemented such systems with positive results.

Relevant: Successful use of this system contributes to the organization’s stated objective.

Time-bound: The need to present the results of this initiative to higher-ups at the end of two months inspires Linda to stay focused and encourage team members to use the system daily.

Combatting stress

Things have been hectic lately at XYZ Enterprises, and Darren thinks the flurry of activity might be taking a toll on his staff. Therefore, he decides to make stress management a priority. Initially, he debates what actions could support his mission, but ultimately, he determines that regular evaluation of individual workloads would be a good idea. Indeed, such assessments would give a heads-up as to which team members are most at risk for burnout and allow Darren to redistribute tasks. With this in mind, he sets this SMART goal:

Specific: Meet 1:1 with each staff member monthly for 20 minutes to review to-do lists, inquire about challenges, and ask, “How can I best support you?”

Measurable: Darren can see he is working toward his goal by creating a schedule for these private conversations and sticking to it. He will take notes at each meeting to see if demeanors and attitudes change over time.

Achievable: Blocking out an hour every Tuesday, the least busy day of the week, will allow Darren to get to each employee over the course of a month.

Relevant: Lowering stress contributes to job satisfaction, mental and physical well-being, less absenteeism, and lower turnover.

Time-bound: He determines that six months is a good trial period, after which he will consider additional stress-reducing measures. Trying to tackle too many goals at once overwhelms!

More Resources:
Manager feedback questions to ask your employees and improve your leadership
Building a better talent development strategy for your business
Advice for new managers: Dos and don’ts of leadership