METHODS FOR DEVELOPING MANAGERS

Several of the methods used to train floor level employees are also used to develop managers and supervisors, there are other methods that tend to be reserved for management development.

ON THE JOB DEVELOPMENT:Methods of equipping managers on the job experiences include:

1. Coaching, 
2.Understudy Assignments, 
3. Job Rotation, 
4. Special Projects and Junior boards, 
5. Actual Learning, 
6. Staff Meetings, 
7. Coaching. 

The incessant flow of instructions, suggestions and remarks from the manager to the subordinate comprises  
Coaching. 
Understudy Assignment:  
Understudy assignment groom an individual to take over a manager’s job by gaining experience in handling important functions of the job. 

Job Rotation: Job rotation can be either horizontal or vertical. Vertical job rotation is nothing more than promoting a worker into a new position. Horizontal job rotation is also known as lateral transfer. Job rotation proves to be an excellent method for broadening the manager or potential manager. It turns specialists into generalists. Job rotation increases the manager’s experience and permits the manager to absorb new knowledge and information. Job rotation also decreases the boredom arising from performing the single task and stimulates the development of new ideas. It provides opportunities for a more comprehensive and trustworthy evaluation of the manager by his supervisors. There can be two broad bases of horizontal job rotations:

Planned basis

Horizontal job transfers can be done on a planned basis by means of a development program whereby the employee spends two or three months in an activity and is then moved on;

Situational basis

This is done by moving the person from the existing to another activity when the first poses no more challenge to him, or to meet the requirements of work scheduling. People may be in a continual transfer mode. Many large organizations use horizontal job rotations in their programs to develop managerial talent including moving people between line and staff positions, often closely coordinated with understudy assignments

      The job rotation broadens employees and increases their experiences, reduces boredom and monotony, enables a greater understanding of other activities within the organization, prepares people to assume greater responsibilities, especially at the higher levels, permits employees to understand the intricacies and interrelationships of activities, makes employees acquire quickly different abilities by moving about within the organization.

Committee Assignments

Committee assignment enables learning by watching others and provides an opportunity for the employee to participate in managerial decisions, and to examine specific organizational problems. Ad-hoc committees often take on task force activities aimed to delve into a particular problem, identify alternative solutions, and recommend to implement a solution. These temporary assignments can provide employees both interesting and rewarding to the employee’s growth.

            Serving on permanent committees exposes the employee to other members of the organization, increases his understanding and gives him an opportunity to grow and make recommendations under the scrutiny of senior committee members.

Action Learning

Action learning permits managers to have free time to work full-time on projects with others in the organization. In specific cases, action learning is added together with conferences, lectures and discussions.

Planned Career Progression

This method utilize all these different methods to provide employees with the training and development necessary to progress through a series of jobs requiring higher and higher levels of knowledge and/or skills.

OFF-THE JOB DEVELOPMENT

While on-the-job experiences constitute the core of management training and development, off-the-job methods of management development supplement these experiences. Off-the-job methods include:

Seminars and conferences

Seminar is an established method for training. It is conducted in several ways:

        It may be based on a paper prepared by one or more trainees on a subject selected in consultation with the person in charge of the discussion. It may be a part of a study or related to theoretical studies or practical problems. The trainees read their papers followed by a critical discussion. The convener of the seminar concludes the proceedings of the papers and the discussions which follow their reading.
        It may be based on the statement by the person in charge of the seminar or on a document an expert prepares invited to participate in the discussion.
        The person in charge of the group discussion distributes in advance the material to be analyzed in the form of required readings. The seminar compares the reactions of trainees, encourages discussion, defines the general trends and guides the participants to certain conclusions.
        Valuable working material may be provided to the trainees by actual files. The trainees may consult the files and bring these to the seminar where they may study in detail the various aspects, ramifications and complexities of a particular job or work or task.

Management Games

The development of management games have brought training experiences to life and made them more interesting. In management games trainees face the task of making a series of decisions affecting a hypothetical organization. Effects that every decision has on each area within the organization can be simulated with a computer programmed for the game. This technique requires a high degree of participation. Games are now widely used as a management development technique. Several of them have been designed for common purposes but more recently have been adapted specific industries. As the development of industry specific games has increased, simulations are now for a variety of organizations. Some are using simulations of organization dynamics as tools for change. Practitioners in the area of management training have realized that vast preparation, planning, and questioning about completed mission are required to realize the potential benefits of management games.

Behavior Modeling

Behavior modeling technique combines several different training methods and multiple principles of learning. Behavior modeling involves four basic components:

Learning points

The essential goals and objectives of the program are articulated in the beginning of instruction. In specific cases, the learning points follow the behaviors that are to be taught. For example, the learning points might explain the recommended steps for giving employees feedback.

Model

Participants see films or videotapes that portray a model manager dealing with an employee in an effort to improve his performance. The model exhibits specifically the way to deal with the situation and demonstrates the learning points.

Practice and role play

Learners participate in extensive rehearsal of the behaviors models demonstrate. The greatest percentage of training time is spent in these skill-practice sessions.

Feedback and reinforcement

As the trainee’s behavior increasingly resembles the model, the trainer and trainees provide social reinforces such as applaud, recognition, encouragement, and heed. Video-recording behavior rehearsals give feedback and reinforcement. Throughout the training emphasis is placed on transferring the development to the job.