Want to know a hiring secret? A self-directed development strategy can help you attract and retain top-notch talent in today’s transient employment climate.
J Carlton Harwood, a consultant and 30-year vet of Ferguson Enterprises, believes that staff success isn’t acquired through mandatory coursework. Instead, he champions a “hands-off,” self-directed model. Give employees autonomy and an environment where they can create unique improvement plans. Jason welcomes Carlton to share talent development lessons learned throughout his enviable career. They also discuss strategies for turning challenging company assignments into golden career opportunities.
“A lot of associates just kinda wait for the development to come to them. They give [management] too much credit for knowing what they want and what they need,” Carlton concedes. He has informal case studies that reinforce his position, starting with his career path. “I never had aspirations of working for a plumbing supplier,” he laughs. Thirty years later, he’s now retired, enjoying a burgeoning second career as a consultant. Carlton credits Ferguson for allowing him to drive his development. It’s a tactic he instituted as a branch manager and C-suite executive with the global powerhouse.
To better understand your employee’s developmental needs, Carlton urges managers and execs to simply ask. “That’s an important part of being the manager or leader,” he says. “Do you really understand what’s important to that person? What they want to do because then you can help with that.”
Get to know your employees “why,” then give them tools to build a solid self-directed path. “I think people feel like there are certain levels in the organization that [employees] really aren’t interested in,” says Carlton. “In my experience, that’s actually not the case.”
Greater transparency stimulates innovation. “If you spend time educating people on how [the business] makes money and what they can do in their role to impact that, you can get a motivated, engaged group.”
Carlton insists that giving associates the keys to their own career improvement tracks within the company is a two-way street. Be flexible when carving out time for employee learning, be generous with your contacts, and be open to unconventional pursuits.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
HARDI Emerging Leaders Conference
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QUOTES
“Development is a two-way street.”
“It’s always important to encourage associates to seek training themselves. There’s so much out there today. It doesn’t always have to be stuff that the company offers.”
“I’ve always encouraged people, hey, seek out people that you really respect and start building a relationship.”
“Take some ownership in your own development.”
“Really think about what it is you want to do next and talk to those people who have experienced doing that.”
“I think letting people understand how the money flows and then they start understanding why you are setting the goals that you are setting.
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Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.
This episode was edited by The Creative Impostor Studios
Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Profit2, helping distributors charge the right price, and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.
