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Training: Where to Begin With Young Leaders

Meet hypothetical retail employee and young leader, Joe.

Joe started working for the local hardware store in his town as a cashier at age 16 and continued through high school and college. Afterward, he decided to continue his career with the business. Over the years he moved up to lead cashier, to department manager and has recently become store manager.

Joe is bright, motivated, great with customers, knows his company inside and out and has extensive industry knowledge. He’s likely to succeed, but could excel even further with proper leadership training.

Perhaps you have someone like Joe employed at your company. How can you help that person develop their leadership capabilities to excel as a leader and benefit your business long term?

Qualities of a Strong Leader

Learning Leadership: The Five Fundamentals of Becoming an Exemplary Leader,” by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, is an NRHA Recommends resource. It identifies five elements that make a person a better leader.

  1. Believe in Yourself
  2. Aspire to Excel
  3. Challenge Yourself
  4. Engage Support
  5. Practice Deliberately

Young leaders like Joe should understand these key concepts of leadership and personal development, and sometimes that requires training beyond what one learns on the salesfloor.

NRHA Foundations of Leadership Program

Understanding the journey to improved leadership and performance starts from within. The North American Retail Hardware Association’s (NRHA) Foundations of Leadership Program is designed to move students from learning about their core identity to building and leading teams. Ideal for new managers like Joe or those looking to improve their leadership skills, this 16-week online course arms early leaders with the skills they need to successfully build strong teams, which can lead to improved employee retention and less turnover.

“We’re facing an issue where employees who are new to management are being placed in positions without any formal leadership training,” says Scott Wright, executive director of the NRHA Retail Leadership Institute. “The Foundations of Leadership Program is designed to provide this critical missing link.”

Additionally, the course culminates with a business assessment project, where students address core issues and recommend ways to improve operations.

For more information about NRHA’s Foundations of Leadership Program, visit nrha.org/RLI.

About Hilary Welter

As marketing and research coordinator, it’s Hilary’s duty to keep retailers informed about NRHA products and services and to help coordinate industry research projects. Additionally, Hilary is the voice behind NRHA’s and Hardware Retailing’s social media accounts. She appreciates a good book, spicy food, well-made horror films, craft beer and exploring new places near and far.

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