Maintain Professionalism and
skills development
Maximise own performance
outcomes
Characteristics of Leaders
• Uncompromising integrity. Two parts, staying
power which refers to being committed for
the long-term and for the good of the
organisation and
Getting outside of yourself which is a
willingness to help someone else even when
there is nothing tangible to expect from it
Characteristics cont’d
• High energy. Includes a clear sense of direction ,an
ability to discern between what is intersting and
what is important and avoid getting involved in petty
issues.
• Good at working priorities. A good leader is good at
both setting priorities and actioning them.
• Courageous. Not afraid to tackle new challenges, to
push the boundaries of thinking and practice and to
take risks
Characteristics cont’d
• Committed and dedicated hard worker.
Demonstrate a passion for their work
• Unorthodox and creative. A innovator and
encourages colleagues creativity and unorthodox
approaches.
• Goal Orientation to make tough decisions
• Inspired and contagious enthusiasm
• Staying level –headed. Consistently demonstrate
common sense and confidently with situations.
• Desire to help others grow and succeed
( Cox 2002)
Strategies
•
Provide a vision. Is this information readily available?
•
Provide staff with relevant information. Make sure that your staff are provided
with sufficient information, regardless of task, to make informed decisions for
planning and goal setting.
•
Promote and model high standards. Make sure you communicate clearly about
what is expected and that concrete and achievable targets are defined. Ensure
your promises and undertakings to your staff are realistic and honoured.
•
Recognise and empower the individual. Encourage them to offer ideas, views and
suggestions
•
Work on building team cooperation. Cooperative work practices create an
environment in which the needs of all involved parties are considered and in which
people feel committed to working towards decisions and actions fostering the
success and achievement of the group.
Strategies cont’d
• Work on building team cooperation. Cooperative work practices create an
environment in which the needs of all involved parties are considered and
in which people feel committed to working towards decisions and actions
fostering the success and achievement of the group.
• Establish routines. People need to have a sense they are working with the
support of others and knowing there will be routine opportunities to debrief, discuss ,input ,feedback and plan.
• Provide opportunities to develop new skills. Encouraging people to
develop new skills, try new tasks and develop a practical understanding of
the range of roles carried out in the organisation will enhance the
workplace
• Encourage and provide honest feedback. It provides us with the
information we need to make positive and constructive changes to the
environment and to our behaviour
Professional Development
Professional development should occur within a range
of contexts ,such as
• The organisations’ strategic direction
• Your role within the organisation ( as described in the
job description)
• Industry standards and competencies
• Industry trends
• Agency guidelines
• Current and future needs
Strategies
• Regularly review your skills and development needs and select
appropriate learning and development activities
• Focus on maintaining and building upon your current competencies –
whether or not you intend seeking promotion, greater responsibility
professional recognition through membership of an institution or a
professional qualification.
• Draw up a career plan that will help you develop various pathways that are
open to you now and help you recognise options open to you as they
emerge
• Think about your goals and objectives – both work based and personal.
• Identify the skills you will need now and those you need to develop for the
future.
• Jot down the things you want to achieve next year ( short – term ), in 2 – 5
years ( medium term) and in ten years ( long – term)
Strategies
• Starting with your short –term list, think about what
actual things you will need to achieve those goals. It
might be that you need to learn new skills, gain
experience of a different role, take on more
responsibility etc
• Prioritize. Look at your list and consider which things
need to be done before you can start on others, or
which items are more important or time –bound.
Establish some time frames.
Strategies
• Set objectives. Look at the first 3 or 4 items on your
list and turn them into SMART objectives.
• Make a plan and commit it to paper. Finish by setting
a date when you will review your plan and put it in
your diary
• Consider the best ways to achieve your goals. Do
they require formal learning, will you need to access
learning materials (eg books or cd’s ), will you need
to relay on someone else to help you?
• Keep a log on your learning. Jot down things that you
learn
Strategies
• Decide which competencies and workplace/industry
standards each piece of your learning is linked to.
• When thinking about your learning plan consider
- when and how you learn best
- the type of activities that will be most effective
for you
- the financial and time resource implications of
your plan
-whether or not your employer is supportive of
your development
Industry Trends – current and future needs
• Relevant qualifications – an expectation of and he existence of
qualifications specific to industry
• A defined career path – the development of many industries
to involve a defined career structure rather than acting as a
revolving door to somewhere better
• Increasing privatisation
• Contracting out services traditional provided by the public
sector e.g. employment services , out of home care
• Competitive tendering
• Structure – the re shaping of the community services industry
along market lines
Industry Trends – current and future needs
•
•
•
•
•
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Increased uncertainty of funding – tied to government i.e.
who is in power, what their policies are in relation to the
industry, general perception of key issues to be addressed and
key policy areas
Financial literacy – an increasing expectation of organisations
being able to manage finances and report accurately
The growth of fee –for – service within the non government
sector
An increase in non-government sector and “for profit” sector
Policy of de-institutionalism
A growth in sub – industries
Ageing population
Reading
http://www.ncoss.org.au/content/bl
ogsection/1/111/