Companies spent $169.4 billion dollars on training employees in 2019. And of those dollars, only 10% were spent on executive level employees. Executives run the company, so why are they the least trained and supported group?
Senior executive training can offer a lot of benefits for an organization. From improved communication to strengthened decision-making skills. Well supported executives have more abilities, knowledge, and growth opportunities than their untrained counterparts.
Do you want to learn more about senior executive service training courses? And discover how executive training can position your company for greatness? Keep reading!
What Is Executive Training?
Senior executive training is for new and existing leaders. This type of training is used to educate and coach leaders to be better decision-makers. It also enables them to deliver strategic initiatives.
Executive training and development usually focuses on self and strategic leadership, organizational development and public presence. There are several types of training options, discussed below, to help you improve your leaders’ abilities.
Are Training and Coaching the Same?
While some might assume training and coaching are the same, they are distinct from one another. The intent of training is to impart knowledge or teach a specific subject or skill, often to a group of people. Typical in-person training lasts between one to three days, teaching on a specific area of leadership growth in a group setting. Micro-training can also be done through self-directed online programs.
Coaching is focused more on how knowledge is acted upon in day-to-day behavior and performance. Coaching is a more nuanced approach to executive development. Beginning with a roadmap tailored to the individual being coached, the focus can shift to meet different needs as the skills and opportunities of the leader evolve.
Early on, we identified a strong correlation between success and sustainability whenever coaching and training were combined. We also saw an accelerated speed in upskilling when 360 assessments were used to create individual roadmaps. Those observations led us to study the impact of blended learning and formed the basis for all of the work we do today. We assess to develop training priorities and we coach for applied learning and sustainability. To maximize the professional development of your team, a blend of the three is best.
Importance of Senior Executive Training
Improving the performance and skills of senior executives is important for an organization. Your leadership team guides and motivates the rest of your organization. They should model the performance and the behavior you want for the rest of the team.
You want your executive team to be able to keep up with your company’s growth, meaning you need to continuously train and develop your executives. Ongoing executive training can lead to many successes:
- Maximized performance
- Increased competencies
- Shifted mindsets
- More focused decision-making
- Better leadership skills
It’s important your senior executive team receives training just like the rest of your team. Executives do have more on their plates, so it is beneficial to strategically plan when and how to train these professionals.
How to Train Senior Executives
There are many types of courses and programs available to train your executive team. When you do it should reflect the needs of the organization and the strength of your bench. How you approach training is a matter of need and preference.
To fill in small gaps, a series of training focused on select topics over a few months might be the best way to go. If you are developing bench strength, supporting emerging and high-potential leaders or getting a senior-leader ready for a c-level role, your best option is to go all-in and support your leaders with an immersive program that has established goals and tracks performance and readiness.
No matter what type of training you are considering, there is an option out there for your organization.
Types of Training Courses for Senior Executives
We have a selection of courses for senior executive training to choose from. A few options include:
- Online Training Courses
- 1-3 Day Workshop Trainings
- Long-Term Cohort Training
Some organizations are better equipped for long-term training. However, many institute workshops and online sessions to develop their employees. Read about the types of courses below.
1. Short, Easily Digestible Online Courses
Online courses are an extremely popular type of training. These training sessions can be done in a week or even a month’s time, going at the pace of the participant. Using this type of training is good when you want to learn about a specific leadership area and don’t have the time to attend a live training.
These short pieces of training are easy to consume and will have executives applying them in their workdays immediately.
2. 1-3 Day Workshop Trainings
Often known as the most traditional training, our 1-3 Day Workshops are quite popular for organizations who want to dive into a particular area of leadership. From Building Social Capital and Leading with GRIT to Connected Listening and Dealing with Difficult People, these Workshops are designed to keep your employees engaged and transform their daily actions and thinking.
3. Long-Term Cohort Trainings
For companies looking to fully equip their managers and senior leaders for success in multiple areas of leadership, Leadership Cohort Training Programs might be the best fit. These immersive trainings combine Group Masterminds, 1:1 Coaching and more to help your bright leaders become brilliant executives.
How teams access these programs varies. Some are all virtual while others are a blend of online and face-to-face training. Since immersion programs support leaders for many months and it’s important your leaders are committed to the process and can see the upside potential for themselves.
Ensure they can take the time from running your company’s operations to dedicate to training.
Hot Topics for Senior Executive Training
You can find training in practically any topic you want. For executive leadership development, there are quite a few hot topics that are popular for executive training.
The most popular topics include:
- Powerful Presence
- GRIT
- Communication
- Building Social Capital
- Diversity in Leadership
- Public Speaking
- People Management
- Virtual Leadership
Each topic can help your executive team to enhance their leadership skills. And position them as industry leaders and experts. You can learn more about each of these topics below.
1. Powerful Presence
Executive presence can garner a 250% ROI in leadership and sales performance, which is why training in this subject area is so popular. No matter what stage of your career you’re in, exuding a powerful presence can change the trajectory of your career. When leaders learn how charisma and gravitas impacts the way you’re perceived and then leverage their unique talents and presence to command admiration, build loyalty and get things done, their entire world shifts. It’s a powerful thing.
2. GRIT
Do you ever wonder how some leaders are super achievers while others struggle? Many assume it’s something you’re born with; you either have it or you don’t. Yet, in reality, it’s actually GRIT that sets those high achievers apart. Our version of GRIT encompasses Growth Mindset, Resilience, Initiative and Tenacity; four markers required to navigate the unknown and overcome hurdles with grace.
This training topic has been especially beneficial in the post-COVID world we’re living in and recommend it for any company looking to nurture some GRIT amongst their leaders.
3. Communication
A leader without effective communication skills is a leader not listened to. As a senior executive, you interact with all types of individuals; many of who have different communication styles than yourself. It’s important to be able to adapt and navigate each person’s style of communication.
Communication training can teach leaders how to actively listen, influence others, and inspire a team. They’ll also learn to empower team members to reach goals.
4. Building Social Capital
Social Capital is the relational currency you have with others. Anyone can earn it and it’s up to you how to save it and/or spend it. Knowing how to build social capital will help leaders successfully connect with others in ways that advance their career and gain access to enriching opportunities and relationships with team members, partners, board members and more.
5. Diversity in Leadership
McKinsey & Co. research shows that when an organization’s executive team is diverse, they are 33% more likely to see larger profit margins compared to those that aren’t. Yet many organizations struggle with developing an executive team that is diverse in race, gender, and more. Furthermore, it can be a challenge to provide diverse leadership candidates the tools needed to succeed in their new roles. Enrolling these candidates into an executive leadership training can be the perfect fit to elevate their success at the executive level.
6. Public Speaking
Whether it’s giving a presentation to board members, talking to the press, or presenting a TED Talk, public speaking is extremely important for executives to master. It’s oftentimes a new skill that’s required of the C-suite, so being able to speak with confidence and command a room where their audience hangs onto your every word can be challenging for new leaders. That’s when attending a public speaking training can make all the difference.
7. People Management
Good people management skills is an important trait of a good senior executive. While executives might be used to managing those below them, they oftentimes do not have experience managing other senior leaders, which can be a challenge for those who are new to their roles. A strong and effective leader will be able to build trust and relationships with their teams. They’ll also be able to guide and manage teams to reach objectives and targets.
Training in people management is great for incoming and existing leaders. There are always new concepts and strategies trending in how to better manage people. By keeping your team trained, they’ll be up to date with the industry while meeting your team’s needs.
8. Virtual Leadership
Because of the pandemic, many organizations have opted to having their teams work semi or fully remote. Leading in this structure can be difficult at all levels of leadership. How do you stay connected with your colleagues when you’re physically distant? There are plenty of online trainings that can help your team push through the challenges of the digital world. Excelerate’s program, Staying Connected, helps individuals leverage the technology at their disposal to communicate virtually, effectively rally your team, and manage projects, priorities and deadlines with a remote workforce.
Why Should My Organization Invest in Senior Executive Training?
Executive education and training may seem a little overwhelming. And make you wonder why should you even bother investing in it? Your company is generating revenue, so it’s successful, right?
Wrong.
If you want your organization to continue to thrive and meet industry demands, it’s imperative you train your executive team. Senior leaders who can provide strategic planning and execution are leaders who will move your company forward and upward.
10 Benefits of Senior Executive Service Training Courses
There are many benefits to putting your executive team through service training courses. A few key enhancements from training include:
- Better communications
- Personalized coaching
- Stronger decision-making
- Understanding change management
- Improved leadership skills
- Shifted mindsets
- Enhanced performance
- Increased business acumen
- Problem-solving capabilities
- Resolution of knowledge or skill gaps
Learn more about each benefit in the following section.
1. Enhanced Communications Among Leaders and Across Organization
When you invest in communication and executive leadership training, your senior leaders become better communicators. Leaders who empower, inspire, and mentor are needed in many companies. A respected leader will motivate your team faster than one who can’t communicate clearly.
Learning communication styles and how to navigate difficult conversations can go a long way when leaders speak to employees. Leaders should be able to break down concepts and ideas so that employees at all levels of the organization understand.
Great communication will lead to more collaboration. And get everyone on the same page and reaching for the same goals.
2. Personalized and Focused Coaching
Some training programs include one-on-one coaching. Executive coaching can increase performance and resolve skills gaps.
Personalized and focused coaching can help executives on a more personal level. It addresses only the areas of improvement they need in order to advance their careers.
3. Stronger Decision-Making Skills
Senior executives must know how to make fast and sound decisions. They are tasked with strategic planning and execution, so decision-making is a part of their daily functions. Training can make them stronger decision-makers who feel more confident in their operational moves.
4. A Deeper Understanding of Change Management
More than likely, companies across every industry will have to face change at some point. Training your executives to understand change management will make the transition much easier when the time comes.
5. Improved Leadership and Management Abilities
Obviously, executive training will mean better leaders. They’ll also be able to better manage teams, operations, projects, and programs. Developing both soft and focused skills will help you to have a well-rounded executive team.
6. Changed Mindsets
A shift in mindset can lead to big changes in your business. Thinking positive thoughts or affirmations can create significant results across your operations.
Leaders who participate in mindfulness and positive thinking offer many benefits to an organization. It helps to build their confidence, reduce stress, and they are healthier. Not to mention, a happier, more positive leader is one that a team will want to work for.
7. Better Performance–Both Individual and Organizational
Coaching and training will lead to better-performing executives. And executives that perform better will generate more positive results across the organization. So, if you want to increase performance across the board, you should invest in executive training.
8. Develop Business Acumen
Effective training will develop the business acumen of your senior leadership team. And that can only lead to better performance, improved processes, and increased revenue. Strong business acumen helps with profitability and strategic direction.
9. Increase Problem-Solving and Conflict Resolution Capabilities
Senior executives should know how to solve problems and conflicts. Whether they are dealing with conflicts between teams or departments, this is an important skill to have.
Many organizations face problems every day. Training your senior executives in how to use sound judgment and quick thinking is a vital skill. Developing problem-solving skills is important so leaders can see the bigger picture and understand the possible consequences.
Problem-solving requires analytical and creative thinking. Strengthening these skills will roll over to other areas of leadership.
10. Fill In Knowledge or Skill Gaps
No one can be great at every skill. Executive training can help fill the gaps in the senior leadership team. Perhaps they are really great at improving performance yet could use a few lessons on communicating more clearly. Or how to put out the fires that arise during an organizational change.
Using executive training to fill knowledge and skills gaps will build better leaders. And that can only lead to positive results.
Plus, when you invest in and develop senior leaders, they become more confident and capable. When they feel like they are appreciated and valued, they will give 110%.
Executive Training Tips
Now that you understand what training types are available and why you should do them, you may be wondering how to measure them. How can you make the most of your executive training? What needs to be established before you begin training?
How do you decide who goes to training? How do you make it practical and appealing for your executive team? What if the executive team doesn’t like the training?
Read the following tips on how to maximize senior executive training and get the most from the selected program.
Garner Feedback Throughout the Program
Talk to your senior leadership team. Do they like the program? Are they learning? What could be improved?
Learning directly from participants will help you to know if the program is successful or not. If the participants are talking about how boring it is or say they haven’t learned anything, it might be time to find a new option.
Gathering ongoing feedback will help you assess and revise as needed.
Determine Training Needs
Determining which training is best suited for your organization is dependent upon a few different things. First, companies must identify the areas of leadership their team is lacking. It’s also important to determine what their development budget is, how much time they can allot to training and coaching, and which individuals should attend. Then, while working in tandem with Excelerate, they will determine what trainings make the most sense for their training needs.
By identifying areas of improvement in the organization and within the senior team, you’ll be able to implement a more focused and effective training program.
Define Measurable Key Performance Indicators
What good is training if you don’t know how you’re going to measure it? We will assist you with various assessments so you can measure your progression from start to finish.
Setting clear, attainable goals will show the connection between operational outcomes and training.
And tying the two together will help you to highlight how important training is to your senior leadership team. And this will get everyone on board to learn more and develop their skills.
Make Training Practical and an Opportunity to Network with Other Leaders
If you’re sending your team off to train for a week, make sure they understand the importance of the training. And what it will do for them and the business.
It’s also important to encourage your executive team to network and brainstorm together. Great minds can solve problems very quickly when given the chance to collaborate. Allowing for presentations or question and answer sessions during training sessions could lead to a lot of creative problem-solving.
Train Your Executive Team Today
Are you ready to implement senior executive training? Do you have a group of middle management leaders ready for the next step, however, do you feel they need just a little more training?
You can avoid failures and ready your team for success with our Executive Accelerator program. Designed to level leaders up in several areas of management, our program will develop your executive team like no other. If you’re ready to check out our comprehensive senior executive service training courses available, contact us today.
