Duration: 5 Days
Time: 8:30am-4:00pm

Develop Managers to Develop Employees

lead with clarity, consistency, and impact

Set clear expectations → manage priorities and time → coach consistently → give meaningful feedback → support development → review progress and adjust

Managers have more influence over day-to-day employee performance than almost any other factor in a business. The way they set expectations, assign work, handle pressure, and respond to the people around them determines whether employees perform with energy and focus, or gradually disengage. Yet many managers receive limited preparation for this responsibility. They are promoted for technical competence, handed a team, and expected to figure out the rest.

The business case for investing in management capability is well established. Organisations with stronger managers see better retention, higher productivity, fewer performance issues, and teams that adapt more readily under pressure. When managers understand how to develop staff in the normal flow of work, rather than waiting for formal review cycles or HR intervention, the cumulative benefit to the organisation is significant.

This five-day programme is built for managers who are ready to work on the practical side of people leadership. Each session builds on existing foundational knowledge, focusing on integration, application, and the kinds of situations managers actually face. The emphasis throughout is on developing a clear, repeatable approach that participants can use immediately with their own teams.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND

This programme is designed for professionals who want to lead people more effectively and improve the performance of their teams, including:

• Team leaders, supervisors, and junior to middle managers with direct responsibility for people performance
• Managers who have completed foundational training in supervisory management, coaching, or performance management and want to apply those skills in an integrated setting
• Experienced managers who want to sharpen their development conversations, accountability practices, and coaching consistency
• HR business partners and L&D professionals supporting operational and frontline managers
• Line managers preparing to adopt a more structured and deliberate approach to employee development

HOW YOU WILL BENEFIT

By attending this programme, participants will be able to:

• Apply a practical end-to-end process for developing employees within the normal demands of the working week
• Set clearer expectations and objectives so that employees understand what is required and how their work connects to team and business goals
• Create the time and structure needed for regular development conversations, coaching, and meaningful follow-through
• Coach employees more consistently, adapting your approach to different performance needs and working styles
• Give feedback that strengthens performance, builds trust, and supports genuine improvement
• Lead more productive conversations about career growth, contribution, and readiness for greater responsibility
• Strengthen accountability and follow-through across your team through a more deliberate management routine
• Leave with a concrete implementation plan for applying the full manager development process with your own people

WHAT WILL BE COVERED

Section 1: Leading Beyond the Task

Theme: From supervising work to developing people

This opening section helps participants shift focus from task oversight to people leadership. The emphasis is on understanding how daily management behaviour shapes trust, accountability, confidence, and team engagement, and on the practical responsibilities that come with leading others. Prior learning in supervisory management and team leadership is assumed.

• The manager’s role in shaping team performance and employee engagement
• The transition from individual contributor to people leader, and what it requires in practice
• Core responsibilities at supervisor, team leader, and junior manager level
• How disengagement develops in teams, and the early warning signs managers often miss
• Building credibility, trust, and accountability through consistent day-to-day behaviour
• Leading with clarity, fairness, and structure in a pressured environment
• Creating conditions where employees can contribute, grow, and take genuine ownership

Section 2: Creating Clarity Through Objectives, Priorities, and Time

Theme: Making time to lead properly

Managers who struggle to develop their staff often point to time pressure as the primary barrier. This section addresses that directly, equipping managers with the structure to set clear expectations and create the operational space required for effective people leadership. Prior learning in objective-setting and time management is assumed.

• Translating business goals into clear team and individual objectives
• Setting expectations that employees can understand, act on, and be held accountable for
• Aligning roles, responsibilities, deliverables, and standards across the team
• Breaking objectives into practical actions and measurable outputs
• Monitoring progress without micromanaging or losing oversight
• Managing time, priorities, interruptions, and competing demands more effectively
• Building a management routine that creates consistent space for coaching, check-ins, and development conversations

Section 3: Coaching in the Flow of Work

Theme: Helping employees improve through everyday conversations

This section gives managers a coaching framework they can use in real workplace situations. The focus is on making coaching part of normal management practice rather than a separate formal exercise. Prior learning in coaching models and feedback techniques is assumed.

• What coaching is and where it sits alongside instruction, correction, and support
• When to coach, when to direct, and when a different kind of conversation is needed
• Using coaching to build employee ownership, confidence, and problem-solving ability
• Asking better questions and listening with intent rather than listening to respond
• Giving strengths-based feedback grounded in real, observed work
• Coaching employees through mistakes, setbacks, and performance gaps without creating dependency
• Turning routine one-to-ones and informal conversations into genuine development opportunities

Section 4: Developing People with Intention

Theme: Career growth, meaningful feedback, and everyday development

Employees are more likely to remain engaged when they feel seen, supported, and appropriately stretched. This section equips managers to play a more deliberate role in the development of their people, particularly in the space between formal reviews. Prior learning in performance management and career development conversations is assumed.

• Why development cannot be left to formal review cycles alone
• Identifying strengths, potential, readiness, and development needs in the context of actual work
• Holding meaningful one-to-one conversations about performance, growth, and contribution
• Discussing career progression honestly and constructively, without overpromising
• Supporting employees who want to stretch, specialise, or take on broader responsibility
• Using feedback, exposure, delegation, and guided challenge as practical development tools
• Balancing individual growth aspirations with the realistic needs and constraints of the organisation

Section 5: Applying the Full Manager Development Process

Theme: Follow the process, build the person, strengthen the team

The final section brings the whole programme together. Participants apply the complete manager development cycle to realistic scenarios, integrate their learning from the preceding sessions, and leave with a structured plan for applying the method with their own people.

• The manager development cycle: clarify → observe → coach → support → review → develop
• Diagnosing common employee situations accurately before deciding on the right response
• Applying the full process to realistic workplace scenarios involving different employee types and challenges
• Practising performance, potential, attitude, and progression conversations through structured role play
• Building a practical development routine for the next 30 to 90 days
• Identifying simple, credible measures to track consistency, progress, and impact
• Creating an individual manager action plan for immediate implementation back in the workplace

PREREQUISITES FOR DELEGATES

• This is an applied programme. Participants are expected to arrive with prior experience or foundational training in the core subject areas covered across each session. These include: supervisory management and team leadership, setting objectives and managing accountability, time management and prioritisation, coaching and giving feedback, and career development conversations.
• Sessions will cover essential background, critical theory, and concise summaries of required prior learning.