8607-531 Improving Own Leadership Performance Through Action Learning

Introduction

Unit 8607-531 Improving own Leadership performance through action learning is a part of the ILM Level 5 qualification in leadership and management that focuses on improving the capabilities of leaders. Leaders should ensure that they achieve gradual and continuous improvement in their areas of operation. This helps them to improve their input and influence over the activities of the people under them in areas where they are leading or managing. Improving leadership capabilities and performance requires the leaders to understand different phenomena and principles, which include the responsibilities that they should play and their roles in improving the group dynamics in action learning.

Action learning is one of the most effective approaches that can be implemented within the organisation setting to ensure that leaders can use evidence-based practice in improving their impact on the teams and the organisation in general. This is therefore important to identify effective action learning activities that are relevant in supporting the process of improving and developing own leadership capacity. Unit 8607-531 Improving Own Leadership Performance through Action Learning is a unit that focuses on improving this understanding and capability.

This unit provides the leaders with the necessary training to ensure they can effectively identify their learning needs and implement activities and strategies revolving around action learning that focus on promoting the acquisition of the skills and knowledge that they lack. This unit has the purpose and aim of enabling the learners, potentially leaders, to effectively participate in an action learning set and use action learning to develop their leadership performance and capability. The unit is taught in 36 hours of guided learning and contributes 15 credit values towards the completion of the module, making it one of the major units within this module.

Unit purpose and aim(s)

Helping individuals take part in an action learning group and utilize action learning to enhance their leadership skills and performance.

Who is this unit suitable for?

Improving leadership performance is crucial for successfully handling tasks and responsibilities at work. As the business environment changes rapidly, the roles of everyone involved in the organization are also evolving. Leaders need to adapt to these changes by enhancing their capabilities and skills to contribute effectively to organizational activities.

In this context, unit 8607-531 Improving Own Leadership Performance through Action Learning, is essential for all stakeholders responsible for units, teams, or specific project areas within the organization. This unit equips them with the reasoning and methods to optimize their performance in these areas. It is specifically designed to address the learning needs of middle managers, focusing on enhancing their leadership capabilities through action learning.

While tailored for middle managers, this unit is also suitable for other leaders and influential stakeholders in the workplace, including external consultants involved in strategic planning. Even general employees can benefit by pursuing this unit, preparing them for leadership responsibilities and helping them develop leadership competencies as part of their professional growth.

What are the learning outcomes of this unit?

After finishing the unit, learners should be able to:

1. Use Action Learning for Leadership Development:

Understand how to utilize action learning to enhance leadership skills.

Assessment Criteria:

• Explain individual responsibilities within an action learning set.
• Describe how group dynamics in action learning contribute to leadership development.
• Actively participate in action learning to improve personal leadership and the leadership of others in the set.
• Evaluate action learning as a technique for leadership development and its role in personal leadership growth.

2. Plan and Undertake Activities for Own Leadership Performance:

Develop the ability to plan and engage in activities to enhance personal leadership skills.

Assessment Criteria:

• Identify and select suitable activities and sources of help and support to enhance personal leadership capacity.
• Plan activities to improve personal leadership capacity.
• Execute planned activities to enhance personal leadership performance and assess their effectiveness.

What are the key learning areas of this unit?

Unit 8607-531 Improving own Leadership performance through action learning is a unit that focuses on ensuring that leaders can effectively develop their skills and knowledge hence improving their influence over other organisational activities. This unit covers critical areas of learning that include:

Action Planning for Leadership Development

This area of learning provides the learner with basic principles of action learning as a tool for leadership development. The learners are guided to understand the differences between cognitive and affective skills as well as the effect of personality development and the application of these skills. They are introduced to group dynamics as a component of action learning as well as learning styles that they can use to improve their roles and behaviour in the action learning set. In this area of learning.

The learners are guided to understand the nature of action learning and sources of programmed learning that can be used to develop leadership skills and knowledge. Lastly, the learner needs to understand the emotional and political aspects of group processes, and this information is provided within this area of learning.

Implementation of Activities for Developing Leadership Performance

This area of learning helps the learner build the ability to implement a systematic approach to developing leadership skills. It involves being able to set effective objectives and identifying techniques that can be put in place to achieve the set goals and objectives of development. In this area of learning, the learners are guided to understand the sources of support for leadership development practices.

They are introduced to different theories that can be implemented to overcome barriers and obstacles to leadership development. In this area, the learner is also guided to understand the techniques that they can use to monitor, analyse and evaluate the performance of the implemented activities. Learners are also guided to understand the significance of 360-degree feedback on personal leadership performance as a tool for evaluating performance and needs of development.

How is the unit evaluated?

After finishing the unit, learners need to complete a written assessment. Other assessment methods include supervised practice and simulated exercises.

References

“Embedding Action Learning into Leadership Development Programmes: A Systematic Review of the Literature” by Sarah J. Dawson, Paul T. O’Neill, and Peter S. Lees (2018)

“Action Learning for Leadership Development: A Comprehensive Overview” by Michael J. Marquardt (2018)

“The Impact of Action Learning on Leadership Effectiveness: A Meta-Analysis” by Paul T. O’Neill, Peter S. Lees, Sarah J. Dawson, and David C. Waring (2017)

“Action Learning: A Powerful Method for Leadership Development” by John Adair (2016)

“Action Learning: A Guide for Leaders, Managers, and Developers” by Michael J. Marquardt (2016)

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