In the last post, I defined the term “leadership barriers” which are an important part of the Self-driven Leadership Development process.
Leadership barriers are important to individuals who want to progress to leadership roles, and they are also important to organizations that want to stay competitive and adaptable.
The first reason is easy to see. People do not want biases and negative attitudes to stand in the way of their career advancement. These barriers are about groups the person belongs to and not about the person. It is a combination of intentional and unintentional stereotyping. Women and minorities and geeks and others get labeled as having certain characteristics. That labeling can keep them from career advancement. Some people belong to multiple groups – like a woman with technical geek tendencies – that have negative biases and get a double or triple whammy.
The second reason is more indirect. Organizations should be concerned about leadership barriers that exist in their talent development processes. There is a lot of research that shows that diversity – of groups and of thought – is critical to business success and flexibility. If an organization is systematically denying groups access to leadership roles, the organization will suffer. It also strengthens the employment brand for a company to support diversity.
Four steps of the Self-Driven Leadership Development process
- Own your future
- Break down barriers
- Learn critical leadership skills
- Apply your skills to your work
Leadership Barriers model:
