| It seems that the economic news gets worse | | | | Some organizations try to outsource leadership |
| each day. Many organizations are faced with | | | | development and training, as well. While times are |
| constant challenges ranging from job cuts to | | | | good this is a great thing because leaders get an |
| budget cuts to major changes in structure and | | | | outside view on their organization and their skills. |
| delivery. Training and talent management can fall | | | | But if there is no budget for outsourcing, there is |
| to the bottom of the list in these times, so | | | | still no excuse for creating training. Experiment |
| maintaining the leadership pool you've built is | | | | with "home grown" training programs, both for |
| extremely difficult. What can talent managers and | | | | and by the leadership pool. Employ the |
| training organizations do to challenge leaders, keep | | | | organization's training department to create |
| them motivated and focused, and to minimize the | | | | leadership seminars or courses that take up less |
| fear of losing their jobs? | | | | time than an outsourced piece. You can even |
| One of the best things you can do to maintain | | | | consider having members of the leadership pool |
| the leadership pool in tough times is to use them | | | | deliver "brown bag" lunch sessions in their individual |
| above and beyond their current responsibilities. | | | | areas of expertise. In addition, don't forget about |
| Staffs may be smaller, but the organization's | | | | leadership development at lower levels. |
| problems and issues will continue. To that end, | | | | Remember that the lower levels of the |
| keep a list of organizational issues that are | | | | organization often suffer the most from training |
| "bubbled up" and turn them into special projects | | | | budget cuts, so why not have the leadership pool |
| or assignments for the leadership pool. Leaders, | | | | conduct leadership programs or even send out |
| especially those who have never been through an | | | | informative leadership emails to the rest of the |
| economic crisis, should be aware that their | | | | organization? With this type of training in place, |
| responsibilities may grow even if their positions | | | | you're saving the training budget but continuing to |
| and salaries do not. If the leadership pool is | | | | develop leaders at all levels. |
| challenged with solving problems, especially with | | | | Another way to challenge the leadership pool is to |
| low or no budget, their training will continue. The | | | | create a benchmarking program specifically |
| bargaining chip for this type of project is that the | | | | geared toward the economic downturn. Have |
| organization benefits from high professional and | | | | your leaders find out what other organizations |
| high potential leaders working together to solve | | | | both inside and outside your industry are doing to |
| problems. | | | | weather the economic storm. In leadership |
| On simpler terms, talent managers should keep | | | | meetings, discuss how those benchmarks can be |
| the leadership pool on a schedule of meetings or | | | | applied within your organization. Even if the |
| gatherings. Some organizations tend to have the | | | | information cannot be deployed, it is still worth |
| leadership pool together for special training or | | | | discussion. |
| annual meetings, and these events are more likely | | | | Finally, look for free events through Chief Learning |
| to happen when budgets are flush and the | | | | Officer, Talent Management Magazine, and other |
| economy is booming. Get the talent pool together | | | | trade publications. Online seminars and events, |
| on a regular basis to discuss their issues and solve | | | | while low in cost, are sometimes high in learning. |
| problems. Even if the pool is geographically | | | | Use these seminars as opportunities for the |
| diverse, get them on tele- or videoconferences to | | | | leadership pool to come together for discussion |
| keep them communicating. If you want to | | | | and implementation of new ideas and techniques. |
| formalize the process, create an action log or | | | | The creativity, usefulness, and challenge of these |
| action plan from which your special projects can | | | | ideas will retain your leadership pool, keep them |
| grow. You can also use the meetings for | | | | thinking, and reemphasize their importance to the |
| brainstorming; as money shrinks, creativity grows, | | | | organization. The organization will win with new |
| so use your leaders to solve issues creatively. | | | | ideas and problems solved, and the leaders in the |
| Budget cuts are no reason to cut meetings | | | | pool will be able to focus anxiety and fear on |
| between the organization's current and future | | | | progress and learning. |
| leaders. | | | | |