Fundamentals of Human Resource Management 6th Edition by Raymond Noe, John Hollenbeck, Barry Gerhart,Patrick Wright

Exercise 25

Managers Must Look Outside for Development Support
HR departments are failing at developing leaders, according to Herminia Ibarra, a professor of leadership and organizational behavior at the international business school INSEAD. In her experience, organizations provide training to their managers mainly after promoting them to a new position -but in today's economy, those promotions are rare.
Ibarra wondered what managers were relying on to develop leadership skills, so she conducted a survey that asked, "What, if anything, has helped you to become a more effective leader today " The top answers were an external leadership program (such as attending business school), support from friends and family, and peers or an external network. In other words, the top sources of support were all outside the company. The two lowest-ranked choices were formal training at the managers' company and, at the bottom, their company's human resource management.
Ibarra says the solution is basic: HR managers should be identifying the leadership skills that get results at the organization and then delivering opportunities for employees to develop those skills. Particularly important are stretch assignments, which provide meaningful experiences that prepare people for greater responsibility.
At the same time, managers do not have to wait for HRM to develop their careers for them. Managers who feel stuck in one position can take a look at whom they interact with-typically, the same job-related people, over and over. They can find reasons to contact people in other departments and at other levels of the organization. They can join outside groups, where they can learn what is happening in other organizations and industries. Building relationships in new areas is an effective way to expand one's career prospects.
Suppose you are an HR manager at a company with high turnover among middle managers (that is, many of them quit to work elsewhere). Write a brief argument telling the company's executives why a modest but well-planned investment in leadership development might help the company keep its best managers.