Leadership training design and content must evolve with the times to develop leaders of the future. Identifying some of the key challenges facing leaders of today is the first step to ensuring that leadership training will help leaders resolve these challenges.

Moreover, challenges include global insecurity and stakeholder accountability, increased need for collaboration, and customer loyalty.

Competitive Recruitment Techniques for Securing Top Talent

Certain markets and industries have labor shortages and need to look at innovative and creative techniques to recruit and retain top talent. The current recession and corresponding increase in available talent are expected to be short-lived as the economy recovers. The talent crisis predicted a few years ago due to a low fertility rate and a surplus of retiring baby boomers is still in the news as statisticians predict a severe shortage of skilled talent in the future.

Leaders need to look at ways to recruit top talent now with a succession plan for the future. Training leaders today to be savvy interviewers and giving them the tools to build team cultures that encourage staff to feel empowered, valued, and well-compensated for their efforts will ensure that the applicants continue to appear when job openings are posted. More than ever, leaders of tomorrow need to be cognizant of labor market changes, including emerging new competitive compensation packages, recruitment techniques, and workplace cultural shifts.

Technology Changes and the Impact on Business Processes

Web design techniques, including assessing user navigation and information needs, have become a more important aspect of the business. A web presence is needed to sell a product or service to a customer. Leaders of tomorrow need to understand the importance of a web presence and ensure that all visitors to the site have a positive experience and find the information they are looking to find. Leaders must find ways to support their IT departments and encourage collaboration between departments to build a strong web presence.

The advent of social media is another key factor for businesses to compete in today’s markets. Leaders need to understand the basic principles of social media, including what a social media presence means, how it can benefit the company, and what resources are needed to maintain that presence.

Information Management – Privacy and Security of Information

Information management is another hot topic to include in new leadership training. Issues of customer and client privacy and security of corporate/organizational proprietary secrets such as intellectual property rights are important topics as companies do more and more business electronically and databases are created to house information for ease of access.

Leadership development programs must introduce leaders to information privacy and security problems and their solutions. Leaders who lead by example in customer privacy and company information security will build the trust of their customers and their employees.

Training managers who are aware of industry and business trends and challenges can include topics that will develop leaders who can respond to change.

Global Insecurity and Increased Need for Accountability to Customers and Stakeholders

The current global insecurities are putting added pressure on companies and organizations to evaluate their effectiveness and give quantifiable results to demonstrate to stakeholders, customers, clients, and employees that corporate/organizational stability exists and professional practices are in place.

Training leaders on ways to develop metrics measuring results through careful and consistent evaluations, as monitoring the results once the metrics are in place, can help leaders convey to stakeholders that they are maintaining a watchful eye on the company or organization’s performance.

Increased Need for Collaboration to Meet Market Demands

As the old saying goes, if you can’t beat them, join them. To meet the growing demands of today’s global marketplace, collaboration with other companies and organizations is the way to pool resources to meet a wide variety of needs. Collaboration and partnership-building techniques need to be taught to today’s executives to expand thinking beyond the walls of the company offices.

Customer Loyalty with Increased Ease of Comparison

The internet has made it much easier for clients and customers to research brands to determine the best fit for their needs. Online research can determine price, features, turnaround time, and other competitive advantages by comparing one supplier to the next. This increases the chances that customers will be fickle and change brand loyalties often.

The ease at which customers can compare products and services puts new challenges on leaders today to find innovative ways to position the company to market the benefits of repeat purchases or contracts with the company. New leadership training should include training on the psychology of today’s consumers and innovative marketing strategies that can address brand loyalty challenges.

Training for leaders that includes an introduction to emerging challenges, such as the need for more accountability to stakeholders, will ensure that executives are in touch with the reality that the front-line workers are facing in a highly competitive global market. Leadership training that includes information on building brand loyalty and partnership development will help leaders support operations.