Staff Development Tip: Let Talented IT Staff Members Take Flight

Staff Development Tip: Let Talented IT Staff Members Take Flight

I once worked with Brian, a brilliant senior network engineer who struggled with the concept of personnel development. Methods were much more important to him than results. As long as staff members used his methods (and he monitored things closely to ensure that they did), he was happy. As a result, the turnover in his department was quite high. Talented people have difficulty constantly being told what to do and how.

I asked Brian to designate a member of his staff to rewrite our logon scripts so that it took less time to log on to our network. I explained that the desired result was a 50% reduction in the logon time, with the requirement that the project should be done in two weeks. Brian assigned this task to Chris, a member of his staff. But then the wheels started to fall off the project schedule. About a week later, Brian reported to me that he and Chris needed more time to complete the assignment.

When I asked why, Brian said that he had to rewrite Chris' code not because the logon still took too long -- Chris had cut the logon time 60% -- but because Chris had done it differently from the way Brian believed it should be done.

I leapt at the opportunity to coach Brian on one of the tenets of staff development. "As long as Chris met or exceeded the results, without violating the constraint, Chris succeeded," I said. "Whether he did it the way you would shouldn't matter to you. Part of your assignment is to develop Chris' talents. This won't happen if you require him to turn off his brain so that he can mimic yours."

Hands-Off Leadership

This started Brian and Chris down the path of staff development. Brian learned the seemingly contradictory truth that leadership is much more effective when we surround ourselves with motivated, talented people who don't need over-the-shoulder management. I have learned the following three principles in developing the skills and talent of my staff:

Be the conductor, not the concertmaster. My job is to know how and when to use the talents of my staff, not to take their place -- just like a conductor who does not grab the violin from the concertmaster during the big solo.

Create and maintain a relationship of trust. This enables us to exchange honest, nonthreatening feedback.

Clearly communicate expectations, then get out of the way. When a staffer gets stuck, I ask him to explain the barrier he has encountered, and then I ask my seven magic words: "What would you like me to do?" When the staffer sees that I'm not going to dictate a solution, he tends to figure the problem out for himself.

Helping People Help Themselves

Clearly defining both expected outcomes and constraints is critical to success. For example, the expected outcome might be a 5-percentage-point improvement in network reliability. The constraints might include the budget, timeline, available resources and architectural standards. Once I have defined these parameters, my involvement is limited to removing barriers that my staffers cannot remove themselves. I don't monitor their methods or constantly correct their course. They sort things out, resolve problems by themselves and, in doing so, improve their skills.

The result is a continually improving department that becomes a long-term organizational asset.

Niel Nickolaisen is CIO and vice president of strategic planning at Headwaters Inc. in South Jordan, Utah. To comment on this story, email editor@searchcio-midmarket.com.

This was first published in May 2006