Where should you start when it comes to building leadership practices in your startup?
I just wrapped up an incredible interview with Shelley Johnson (Founder of Boldside) on this very topic. We talked about how startups can get lightweight leadership development practices in place. Starting small, without budget and with something thats made for you.
Here's what we covered:
First: Define what “good” looks like
Name 3 north-star behaviours that represent what you want to see your leaders live.
Under each behaviour list 2–3 observable actions managers must do (eg. monthly one-on-ones; regular feedback; pre-empted pay conversations).
Second: Start small. Curate micro-learning and peer coaching, not courses.
Run a monthly 60-minute manager forum and set the following agenda:
Discuss one podcast/article,
Surface one insight,
Agree one action.
Small group coaching beats big annual workshops when it comes to creating insight. It doesn't have to be some huge offsite or full day retreat.
Third: Make it measurable and local.
Ask managers to self-assess against the three behaviours quarterly; use examples, not adjectives.
Track simple signals:
One-on-one coverage
Promotion discussions
Pay-conversation cadence.
Bingo. You've got a leadership development program.
You don't need to boil the ocean when it comes to getting something simple and effective in place.
What's one thing you would add to make something like this right for your startup?
(and don't worry, I'll share the full interview here once it's live!)