{"id":13045,"date":"2018-09-15T00:12:19","date_gmt":"2018-09-15T07:12:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/getlighthouse.com\/blog\/?p=13045"},"modified":"2024-07-15T12:47:21","modified_gmt":"2024-07-15T12:47:21","slug":"employee-development-plans-competitive-edge-team-thrive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/getlighthouse.com\/blog\/employee-development-plans-competitive-edge-team-thrive\/","title":{"rendered":"Employee Development Plans: The Competitive Edge to Winning the World Series and Helping Your Team Thrive"},"content":{"rendered":"

When you hear words like \"big data\u201d or \"statistics,\u201d you probably think of finances or high tech research. You probably don't think of Major League Baseball.<\/span><\/p>\n

For decades, Wall Street and Silicon Valley have had the best pickings of super-smart graduates from elite schools. However, starting\u00a0in the mid-1990's, these graduates found a new home: professional sports.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the book, <\/span>Moneyball<\/span><\/a>, it describes how teams like the Oakland Athletics struggled to find great players. This is because many were selected by scouts and managers who were following more instinct and gut feel, than empirical evidence of skill. A tight budget as a small market team only made it harder.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Because these teams couldn't afford to pay for great players, they had to try something different to compete. Teams like the Athletics hired statisticians to find the most undervalued athletes to add to their team.<\/span><\/p>\n

Their plan was a success. After an 8 year drought, the Oakland Athletics made the playoffs in 4 straight seasons from 2000-2003.<\/span><\/p>\n

Seeing Oakland's success, others quickly followed suit, most notably Theo Epstein. He was able to use the approaches to win 2 World Series championships with the Boston Red Sox, before moving on to the Chicago Cubs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>In a previous post,<\/span><\/a> we introduced Epstein, the architect of the Chicago Cubs's World Series championship who focused on a healthy team culture.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Search for the Next Competitive Advantage<\/b><\/h3>\n

By the time Epstein moved to the Cubs, the Moneyball secrets that helped him win 2 World Series with the Red Sox had become popular industry-wide. <\/span>
<\/span><\/p>\n

So, he had to search for new competitive advantages. Ones that almost every team was too impatient to execute. That's why he invested in having a healthy culture from the start<\/a>. However, he didn't stop there.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He revealed to <\/span>The Chicago Sun-Times<\/span><\/a> that his players<\/em> would be his new secret weapon:<\/span>
<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"Fifteen years ago there weren't that many teams specializing in the statistical model to succeed...Now the world is so flat \u2014 everyone's doing that!<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

I think the real competitive advantage now is in player development<\/strong>\u2014understanding that your young players are human beings. Understanding them physically, fundamentally, and mentally \u2014 investing in them as people \u2014 and helping them progress.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Today, we take a look at how the Cubs invested in employee development plans for their players to help them win, and how others are doing the same. You can do this, too.<\/p>\n

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Why Creating Employee Development Plans is Key to Your Success<\/b><\/h1>\n

You don't run a professional sports team, but like Epstein, you want to win your version of the World Series.\u00a0<\/span>You may have a big event, an OKR, or big project you want to knock out of the park.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, dreams and reality can be different. Things can stall out. Your projects could be taking longer than expected to finish, your team may not seem engaged, or maybe you're losing some good people on your team.<\/span><\/p>\n

This could be a sign that you should focus more on <\/span>employee development.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0It's really a win-win for you and them; they build new, valuable skills, and those skills help your team and company succeed. Yet, many miss out on those benefits because they do not take the time to invest in their people.<\/span><\/p>\n

To inspire you to do the same, here are two big ways the Chicago Cubs used employee development plans to improve their team's performance:<\/span><\/p>\n

1) Create Employee Development Plans<\/b><\/h2>\n

Epstein had a long-term vision. Instead of competing with other teams for popular athletes, he selected talented, but underdeveloped players to <\/span>invest in their growth.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Although elite players have the most experience, they're expensive, and can have attitudes and habits that work best for them, but not always for an entire team.<\/span><\/p>\n

To avoid this, Epstein wanted to find players that he could shape to work specifically for the Cubs. They would accept their advice and systems with little resistance. <\/span><\/p>\n

One of these systems was their Individual Player Development Plans. These plans were customized learning and action paths that helped players improve their skills and achieve goals specific to each individual player.<\/span><\/p>\n

For example, <\/span>USA Baseball<\/span><\/a> published their Long Term Athlete Development Plan (LTAD) on their website. These are blueprints designed to help athletes better plan their baseball career:<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Cubs' Development Plans<\/h3>\n

Epstein created similar plans to the USA baseball ones pictured above. <\/span><\/p>\n

As important as the plans themselves was how they created and worked on them. They were a collaborative effort. Similar to 1-on-1s<\/a>, Epstein met with each player privately to discuss them, and they would also meet with managers and coaches. This ensured everyone was on the same page, and working together towards the same goals.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In these meetings, managers would review and discuss a player's physical and mental strengths and weaknesses. <\/span>
<\/span><\/p>\n

In <\/span>The Cub's Way<\/span><\/a>, Epstein noticed a positive trend with the players who embraced their employee development plans:<\/span><\/p>\n

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\"[We say], \u2018Here's what we see. Here's what you need to work on to become a big leaguer. Here's a plan to work on it.'<\/strong> Then a player gets to give their feedback and give their input. They get to argue, \u2018No, that's actually not a weakness. I do that fine. Here are things I want to work on.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

And you see this transition. Their first year they're just listening...But by the time they reach Double-A..they're starting to take responsibility and accountability for their own development. <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The kids who really start to take responsibility start to run the meeting. \u2018Okay, here's what I need to work on. Here's where I'm at.' That's the key to player development\u2014 when you stop developing them and they start to develop themselves.<\/strong> They start to trust you that you're in it for their best interests because you're being transparent.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

When the sessions were over, both the managers and athletes signed and were given a copy of the plans. <\/span><\/p>\n

These customized plans showed that management cared about their employees' future. It also gave them a clear path for how to improve and advance. A healthier farm system of talent for the Cubs was a win-win; more players growing, meant more talent for the major league roster, or for trades to improve the team. Meanwhile, as a player, they were likely to have longer, more lucrative careers by growing and improving.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Most managers could be doing\u00a0a lot<\/em> more<\/b><\/h3>\n

There's a surprisingly large amount of data that shows that employees crave growth and development, yet aren't getting it.<\/p>\n

In a <\/span>Jumpstart: HR survey<\/span><\/a>, job seekers from all employment status, gender, age, and educational background all wanted this from their employer: <\/span>opportunities for growth and professional development.<\/b><\/p>\n

They even picked this over compensation and benefits. <\/span><\/p>\n

Similarly, a survey conducted by PwC discovered that millennials seek the <\/span>same opportunities:<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"employee<\/p>\n

Like players, employees want to improve their skills and help their company win. However, Jumpstart's report found that employee development programs tend to be the first area cut from a company's budget. <\/span><\/p>\n

This has a very negative impact on your employees. <\/span><\/p>\n

In <\/span>APA's 2017 survey<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0they reported that employees who don't have a supportive supervisor tend to feel a variety of negative emotions towards work:<\/span><\/p>\n

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They are less motivated to do their best work and are usually not satisfied with their job. Only 16% reported that they felt valued at their company, while only 22% would call it a \"good place to work\u201d compared to 80% when an employee felt supported by their supervisor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Not surprisingly, with these kinds of numbers, about half of those feeling unsupported planned to look for work elsewhere. This is troubling because <\/span>employee turnover is so costly (often 2\/3rds of an annual salary).<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Your employees could be suffering from the same problem. If they're disengaged, it may be because they seek a more supportive leader at work. You can help them by creating employee development plans that fit their needs.<\/span><\/p>\n

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How to Get Started on Employee Development Plans<\/b><\/h3>\n

As a manager, your employees look to you for guidance about their career. Help them out by asking them a <\/span>few questions in their 1-on-1 meeting <\/span><\/a>with you and helping create a plan.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the meeting, you should try the following:<\/span><\/p>\n