A well-known management writer and theorist Peter Drucker once stated, “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.” In the training world, a long-standing dilemma is how to differentiate that ideal. Training leaders must ask, “How do we train managers to manage and leaders to lead? Is there a needed difference?” As training leaders, we must acknowledge this superlative; both roles are essential and existentially different. Managers and leaders require different skill sets and by extension, training goals. Understanding these differences is crucial for developing effective training programs that cater the unique needs of leaders, managers and, ultimately, our organizations. The differences in management and leadership training are rooted in their distinct objectives, content, methodologies and outcomes.
Content and Training Objectives
The objectives of management training should be more task-oriented, while the objectives of leadership training should be more people-oriented. As trainers, we must stay focused on the primary objectives of each type of program before us in all curricular development or curricular review meetings. The principle of training managers to handle processes and systems while training leaders to inspire and engage people is a simple rule of thumb. When we acknowledge that leaders create vision, inspire and establish goals while managers execute, create plans and drive operations, then we easily create focused training programs.
We identify the focus of management training to include skills such as: create structure, organize and guide process. It should equip individuals with the skills necessary to oversee and coordinate resources effectively. This includes planning, organizing, directing, controlling organizational activities and the achievement of organizational goals. The content of this training would encompass a more quantitative approach such as data analysis, decision making, forecasting, risk management, resource allocation, and procedural aspects of their teams. Activities would include practical application type actions a manager would be supervising in their position.
On the other hand, leadership training focuses on holistic competencies, such as: creative thinking, embracing chaos, inspiring and creating and driving vision, among others. Leadership training aims to cultivate the ability to inspire, motivate, and guide individuals or teams toward a shared vision. As we create or review our leadership training programs, it’s important to emphasize emotional intelligence (EQ), strategic thinking, and the capacity to foster a positive organizational culture. Our leadership training curriculum should be rich in less quantifiable but equally vital skill sets. The curriculum includes topics such as: team dynamics, communication strategies and ethical decision-making. The activities are centered around case studies, role-playing exercises, and experiential learning to develop interpersonal skills and self-awareness.
Methodologies and Training Outcomes
The methodologies employed in management and leadership training should differ significantly. Management Training adopts a more formal and structured approach, utilizing traditional instructional methods such as lectures, workshops, and standardized assessments. This method allows for the efficient dissemination of knowledge and the development of specific skills that can be measured through performance metrics. This measure is critical so we can accurately identify a change in applicable behaviors in their job performance based on specific managerial tasks that were trained to. When we use structured metrics, we can see improved operational efficiency, enhanced productivity and better adherence to organizational standards. Managers who undergo effective training are better equipped to implement systems and processes that drive organizational success. They are also more adept at analyzing performance metrics and making data-driven decisions.
To meet today’s global needs with a diverse workforce, our leadership training should include interactive and real-world experiential learning activities. Techniques such as coaching, mentoring, group discussions and simulations are very useful in leadership training programs. These practices encourage higher-level thinking skills, such as evaluating and synthesizing, requiring members to reflect on personal and interpersonal experiences, engage in self-discovery, analyze approaches and create new ones to develop their unique leadership styles. This type of methodology lends itself to a more qualitative evaluation program. We measure the success of these programs through metrics that identify increased employee engagement, higher morale, improved team dynamics, business growth, effective communications and a stronger organizational culture.
Summary
As organizations continue to navigate complex challenges and opportunities, the need for both effective management and transformative leadership becomes increasingly critical. We, as training leaders, can address this need by recognizing and addressing the differences in training approaches. We then can influence and cultivate a workforce that is not only skilled in managing resources, but also capable of leading with vision and purpose.
As we look at the purpose of each role in the organization, it’s clear that management training programs must focus on the efficient execution of organizational processes and the achievement of specific goals. And leadership training must emphasize the development of interpersonal skills and the intrinsic values of the company and our trained leaders’ ability to inspire others to that goal.
