Leadership 101: Leadership Development and Succession - 702010 Rule, Experience Exposure Formal Education

What This Is

The 70-20-10 Rule is a leadership development framework that emphasizes the importance of experience, exposure, and formal education in developing effective leaders. This rule suggests that 70% of a leader's skills and abilities come from experience and on-the-job learning, 20% from exposure to new experiences, mentors, and networking, and 10% from formal education and training. For example, Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, has spoken about how his experiences as a leader in various roles within the company have shaped his leadership style and approach.

Key Frameworks & Concepts

• 70-20-10 Rule: A framework for understanding how leaders develop their skills and abilities, emphasizing the importance of experience, exposure, and formal education.
• Experiential Learning: Learning through direct experience and hands-on practice, which is a key component of the 70-20-10 Rule.
• Mentorship: A critical component of exposure, where leaders learn from experienced mentors and gain valuable insights and guidance.
• Networking: Building relationships with other leaders and professionals, which is essential for exposure and learning.
• Formal Education: While only 10% of a leader's skills come from formal education, it is still an important component of leadership development, providing a foundation in leadership theories and best practices.
• Self-Awareness: Understanding one's own strengths, weaknesses, and leadership style is essential for effective leadership, and is developed through experience and exposure.
• Coaching: Providing guidance and support to others, which is a key component of leadership development and is often developed through experience and exposure.
• Feedback: Receiving and giving feedback is critical for leadership development, and is often developed through experience and exposure.
• Adaptability: Being able to adapt to changing circumstances and environments is essential for effective leadership, and is developed through experience and exposure.
• Resilience: Developing the ability to bounce back from setbacks and failures is critical for effective leadership, and is developed through experience and exposure.

Step-by-Step Process

1. Reflect on Your Own Leadership Development: Take time to reflect on your own leadership development, identifying areas where you have learned and grown through experience, exposure, and formal education.
2. Identify Areas for Improvement: Identify areas where you need to develop new skills or improve existing ones, and create a plan to address these gaps.
3. Seek Out New Experiences: Seek out new experiences, such as taking on new roles or responsibilities, attending leadership development programs, or seeking out mentors.
4. Practice Self-Awareness: Continuously practice self-awareness, seeking feedback from others and reflecting on your own strengths, weaknesses, and leadership style.
5. Develop a Coaching Mindset: Develop a coaching mindset, providing guidance and support to others and seeking to develop their skills and abilities.
6. Emphasize Feedback and Adaptability: Emphasize the importance of feedback and adaptability in leadership development, and seek to develop these skills in yourself and others.

Common Mistakes

• Mistake: Confusing management with leadership, and focusing solely on tasks and responsibilities rather than developing the skills and abilities of team members.
• Correction: Leadership is about developing the skills and abilities of team members, and creating a positive and productive work environment.
• Mistake: Failing to prioritize self-awareness and continuous learning, and assuming that leadership skills are innate rather than developed.
• Correction: Self-awareness and continuous learning are critical components of effective leadership, and leaders must prioritize these skills in order to develop and grow.
• Mistake: Focusing solely on formal education and training, and neglecting the importance of experience and exposure.
• Correction: While formal education and training are important, they are only a small part of the leadership development process, and leaders must prioritize experience and exposure in order to develop the skills and abilities they need.

Leadership Practice Tips

• Practice Situational Leadership: Be aware of the needs and abilities of team members, and adjust your leadership style accordingly.
• Emphasize Feedback and Adaptability: Prioritize feedback and adaptability in leadership development, and seek to develop these skills in yourself and others.
• Develop a Coaching Mindset: Develop a coaching mindset, providing guidance and support to others and seeking to develop their skills and abilities.

Quick Practice Scenario

A team is resistant to a new strategic direction. Using Kotter's model, what should the leader do first?

Answer: Create a sense of urgency and establish a clear vision for the team.

Explanation: Kotter's model emphasizes the importance of creating a sense of urgency and establishing a clear vision in order to drive change and inspire team members.

Last-Minute Cram Sheet

• The 70-20-10 Rule emphasizes the importance of experience, exposure, and formal education in leadership development.
• Experiential learning is a key component of the 70-20-10 Rule.
• Mentorship and networking are critical components of exposure.
• Self-awareness and continuous learning are essential for effective leadership.
• Feedback and adaptability are critical components of leadership development.
• Coaching is a key component of leadership development.
• Resilience is essential for effective leadership.
• Adaptability is essential for effective leadership.
• Formal education is only 10% of leadership development, but is still an important component.
• Transactional leadership is not inferior to transformational leadership – it is effective for maintaining routine and clear expectations but may not inspire innovation.