This week Aleen Bayard and Steven talk to you about training.  Once upon a time training, was all about covering up your weaknesses – remedial work to fix what you’re not so good at.

Now that’s really changed, one of the things we’ve come to recognise is that focusing on strengths is far more effective than trying to fix somebody.  In the end it’s not just about what the organisation needs, but to get the most out of your individuals and teams you need to think what they’re already good at. 

For example, some people are good at strategy, other people are good at hands-on, some people are more thoughtful, other people are more action oriented.  You can imagine the conflict if you try and put somebody who’s very thoughtful in the beginning of a project.  They’re just not suited for that. 

It’s a matter of looking at the personal attributes of the people in your team, the strengths they have, and looking at the organisational requirements. 

Competencies are not just about skills that you learn.  It’s also about what a person’s like in their behaviour.  If you ask someone what their strengths are in your team, they might tell you.  Then you’ve got a platform to move on with.  If they don’t know, as a manager you need to help them figure that out, that’s part of being a good career planner.

1.     For each individual in your team, identify their:

·                     Personal attributes

·                     Strengths and skills

2.     Identify the requirements of the organisation and team and compare with the above.

3.     Ask team members what their strengths are – if they don’t know create a process to help them identify their own strengths.

Let me know how you get on this week.

If you haven’t taken the opportunity to sign up to the Every Tuesday Club with MBE (Management & Business Education), then do so today by going to www.buseducation.com.