Benchmark - Professional Development Plan

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Essential Leadership Competencies

The purpose of this assignment is to examine essential leadership competencies to demonstrate leadership as a vocation, as well as successfully lead in an organization. Complete all of the questions for each category of essential leadership competencies. Be sure to address each question fully and support your responses with at least one supporting reference.

Self-Leadership

1. Self-leadership provides an opportunity to achieve your objectives through your own thinking, feelings, and behaviors. Self-reflection is a necessary tool to improve the way you function as a leader. Discuss how you plan to practice methods of self-reflection that contribute to the development of how you lead.

2. Recognition of characteristics of professional excellence plays a key role during interviews and performance evaluations. These characteristics must be visible to colleagues and stakeholders in order for you to benefit from them. Describe which characteristics of professional excellence you currently have and which characteristics you want to have.

The first step that would help one plan how they will practice methods of self- reflection is the identification of essential questions (Szűcs, 2018). In this case, one should ask the questions that will be useful daily, weekly, or monthly to assess their self-reflection. For example, what habits did I achieve this month? What can I do to improve my working habits? The second is to choose an appropriate method that will help in answering the set questions. One can choose to meditate, write down, walk, and talk loud. The third is to schedule time. In this case, one can choose time according to their abilities. One can select minutes or hours. The scheduled time will be specifically for self-reflection.

3. Emotional and social intelligence skills translate to communication skills. Leaders who are able to access their emotional center have an advantage over leaders who only rely on intellect. Emotional and social intelligence can be an area of significant personal growth. Discuss the emotional and social intelligence skills you think you most strongly possess and those you want to work on.

4. Continued professional development delivers benefits to individuals, their profession, their community, and possibly the world at large. Most notably, continued professional development keeps you desirable in your current position and attractive to potential employers, if needed. Discuss the ways you can utilize professional development to ensure ongoing professional progress and growth, specifically in leadership.

I possess the following characteristics of professional excellence and plan to work towards getting others. They include respect for self, others, and environment, integrity, and confidentiality (Chinn, 2019). All these elements play an essential role during interviews and performance evaluations. However, I plan to get other characteristics, such as commitment and empathy.

The following are emotional and social intelligence skills that translate to communication skills. They include self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management (Park, 2016). Among the four, I only have self-awareness, social awareness, and relationship management. I am planning on working on self-management so that I can boost my personal growth.

5. Organizational responses to change in the workplace are the result of individual leaders who are employed within the organization. As a leader, the ability to manage change is essential. Describe how you can demonstrate flexibility and adaptability in response to changing or unknown circumstances.

The following ways are useful while utilizing professional development to ensure that professional growth and progress continues (Dickerson, 2020). They include, first, researching to identify if my company is willing to support my professional development. The second is to find a mentor. In this case, if the company is not ready to help, I should find an outside mentor for my own. The third is to attend conferences and workshops. Visiting such places will help me learn about the latest developments in my field, hence keeping my skills and knowledge up to date. Also, it can be an excellent way to meet and exchange ideas with other professionals in the industry. Fourth is volunteering as it will help me master skills that I have not been using in my field of work. Lastly is joining the online community. Technology has contributed significantly to the growth of online groups and platforms that have become essential tools for professional development. With this, I will be able to ensure professional progress and growth in my field of work.

I will look for positive ways to make changes instead of identifying why change will not work (Laureiro‐Martínez, 2018). The next thing will be to think creatively. With this, I should explore different avenues that will help me foster and accomplish work goals with a new mindset. Another thing will be to embrace ambiguity and exercise emotional intelligence. The last will be to shift focus. In this case, I will maintain or change focus following the employers changing priorities.

Leading Others

1. An effective leader has followers and inspires them. This relationship is mutually beneficial. Leaders and followers support each other in order to achieve goals, vision, or objectives. Evaluate the role of authentic leadership in creating trust and followership. Describe how you plan to inspire followership through the utilization of such leadership and motivation theories.

2. Diversity can be a strength within a team and organization. First, diversity must be recognized and leveraged as a strength. Diversity provides fresh ideas and perspective for a team or organization. Discuss how you will analyze people's strengths in order to leverage diversity to improve performance outcomes.

3. Communication and collaboration are increasingly important in a global and digital environment. Effective communication and collaboration among different stakeholders are prevalent in the workplace to meet business goals. Explain what strategies you will use for effectively leading teams and fostering collaboration among various stakeholders and how you will apply them.

For me to inspire followers, I will empower my self-awareness, transparency attributes, and moral codes (Guenter, 2017). Through these, I will be able to create strong trust and followership.

I will perform test scores among my team to determine their strengths and weaknesses (Lee, 2017). Through these, I will be able to leverage diversity that will, in return, improve performance outcomes.

Communication and collaboration are increasingly important in a global and digital environment. Effective communication and collaboration among different stakeholders are prevalent in the workplace to meet business goals. Explain what strategies you will use for effectively leading teams and fostering collaboration among various stakeholders and how you will apply them.

4. A great leader seeks to coach and guide in order to develop leadership qualities in others. Most leaders have had the opportunity to be coached by other great leaders. Coaching others enables people to improve their performance. Discuss some of the methods of coaching and providing guidance that can help develop leadership qualities in others.

Some of the methods of coaching and providing guidance include (Kiersch, 2017). First is formal instructions by leaders. These instructions are essential in that they develop leadership qualities to the instructed persons. Second, executive coaching. This method is the most preferable.

Leading an Organization

1. Analyzing organizational behavior can drive innovative change and encourage organizational growth, including improved outcomes. When new leadership is established, the leader often sets a vision. The leader must evaluate systematic interdependencies among individuals, teams and departments to inform their vision and apply innovation to improve organizational outcomes.

Explain how you can develop and communicate a compelling vision to guide organizational development. Include a discussion of how you plan to analyze organizational behavior to determine systemic interdependencies among individuals, teams, and departments. As well as how you plan to integrate creativity and innovation to improve organizational outcomes through leadership.

2. New and existing leadership requires the leader and the followers to be of the same mind. Explain how you can foster a climate of learning and development within an organization.

I can develop a vision based on the achievements of the organization or the future state my organization wants to accomplish. Then I will employ several mechanisms of communication that are effective in ensuring that the vision passes to the relevant parties (Adnan, 2019). First, I will apply one on one conversation that will help in transmitting and building support around my idea. Second, I will use communication technologies such as Facebook, wats up, etc.

For me to determine systemic interdependencies among individuals, teams, and departments, I will set protocols that will help in analyzing workers' behaviors towards achieving a common goal. Also, I will come up with a reward system that will aim at encouraging employee's creativity and innovation.

3. Organizational responses to technological advances and economic shifts contribute to change in the workplace. Determine which strategies can be utilized for implementing and managing change within an organization and how you plan to use them.

Several ways are crucial when creating a learning culture and development within an organization (Chanani, 2019). First, is to formalize training and development plans. These plans will help in ensuring that the learning culture is taken seriously among the employees. Second, is to give recognition to learning by providing credit to employees who have acquired new skills and encourage others to follow suit. These ways will create a climate of learning and development within the organization.

Some of the strategies that are useful while managing change within an organization include planning, transparency and honesty, communication, and employee participation (Ginter, 2018). I will employ these strategies. First, I will align the change with organization goals. Second, I will determine the impacts of the change. Third, I will develop an effective communication strategy. Fourth, I will involve all stakeholders. After measuring the impacts of the change, I will implement it for the benefit of the organization.

Leading as Vocation

1. Compare the strengths and weaknesses the characteristics of transformational leadership theory and leader-member exchange theory (LMX). Explain the responsibility leaders have in improving organizational performance. Discuss how you would integrate aspects of transformational leadership theory and leader-member exchange theory in your personal approach to leadership.

2. Numerous historical and recent events provide examples of leaders who did and did not understand they had a moral obligation to lead with kindness, compassion, and justice for the good of followers and the community. The outcomes of these events may directly and indirectly affect you, your peers, the community, and society. Discuss guidelines to ensure you lead with moral obligation for the good of followers and the community. Include how you intend to lead with kindness, compassion, and justice.

Strengths: Transformational leadership focuses on the leader’s ability to transform followers through an inspiring global vision while LMX concentrates on the critical leader’s unique relationships with their employees (Cote, 2017). Weaknesses: transformational leadership is more conceptual and misses a task focus that some workers need as they go about their work. At the same time, LMX is vague and lacks details on how to foster leadership. Leaders are critical drivers in improving organizational performance. Some of their responsibilities include; they determine values, culture, change tolerance, and establish a sufficient motivation for employees. These responsibilities help in improving performance. As a leader, I would consider both theories to foster effective followership with my organization. The LMX theory will help in ensuring that there are ranks within my organization since I will treat all members of my team differently but with respect.

Some of the guidelines include (Allen, 2017). First, I would promote open communication with my followers. Second, I would define and align my values. In this case, I would focus on treating people the way I would like them to treat me. Third, I would look for an active role model. In this case, I would do some research on effective leaders and try to implement their leadership styles into mine. These guidelines would enable me to lead the followers and the community with kindness, compassion, and justice.

3. Leaders who consider leadership their vocation consider it a service to others and for the common good. Explain how the moral imperatives of servant leadership are distinguished from other forms of leadership. Describe how you intend to implement servant leadership that promotes the common good and contributes to the benefits of communities and society at large.

Servant leaders share power, puts the needs of others first, and promotes the growth and well-being of people and the communities while traditional leaders do not share power and do not put the needs of people and communities first. Since servant leadership places the needs of people ahead of the leader (Eva, 2019), I would promote servant leadership that supports the common good of the city by employing active listening, empathy, and awareness. These plans will help me in implementing leadership that is effective and efficient.

References

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