Growing Leaders Beats Anointing Them

According to an article in this week's WSJ, only 44% of managers have ever had training to be a manager/leader.  Furthermore, the managers who received it were anywhere from 10% to 22% more highly engaged in their work.  When managers were asked how they got their job, the top two reasons they give consistently are: I was a high performer as an individual contributor, or I had enough length of service to be promoted.  This what I refer to as “The Anointment Process”.

As legendary American football coach Vince Lombardi once said: “Leaders aren't born, they are made, and they are made just like anything else, through hard work.”

I have learned from experience that training your new leaders, rather than simply anointing them into positions based on tenure or performance, is crucial for a healthy dealership culture and long-term success.  While management typically focuses on just processes, tasks, and performance, leadership inspires people, drives culture, and creates alignment around a shared vision all of which ultimately leads to increased revenue.

DealerCulture.com was created to provide a pathway for managers to transition into meaningful leadership roles.