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DEVELOPMENTAL ASSIGNMENTS
Creating Learning Experiences without Changing Jobs
The Center for Creative Leadership is an international, nonprofit educational institution founded in 1970 to advance the understanding, practice, and development of leadership for the benefit of society worldwide. As a part of this mission, it publishes books and reports that aim to contribute to a general process of inquiry and understanding in which ideas related to leadership are raised, exchanged, and evaluated. The ideas presented in its publications are those of the author or authors.
CENTER FOR CREATIVE LEADERSHIP
Cynthia D. McCauley
DEVELOPMENTAL ASSIGNMENTS
Creating Learning Experiences without Changing Jobs
CENTER FOR CREATIVE LEADERSHIP
Greensboro, North Carolina
CCL Stock No. 189
© 2006 Center for Creative Leadership
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America.
Published by CCL Press
Martin Wilcox, Director of Publications
Peter Scisco, Editor, CCL Press
Karen Mayworth, Associate Editor
Joanne Ferguson, Production Editor
Cover design by Joanne Ferguson
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McCauley, Cynthia D. (Cynthia Denise), 1958–
Developmental assignments : creating learning experiences without changing jobs / Cynthia D. McCauley.
p. cm. — (CCL ; stock no. 189)
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-1-882197-91-0 (print) — ISBN 978-1-932973-67-9 (ebook)
1. Executive ability—Handbooks, manuals, etc. 2. Career development—Handbooks, manuals, etc. 3. Needs assessment—Handbooks, manuals, etc. 4. Leadership—Handbooks, manuals, etc. I. Title. II. Series: Report (Center for Creative Leadership) ; no. 189.
HD38.2.M3932 2006
658.4'07124—dc22
2005033642
CONTENTS
Chapter 2: Development in Place
Chapter 3: Challenge-Driven Assignments
Chapter 4: Competency-Driven Assignments
Appendix B: Developmental Assignment Plan Template
Appendix C: 360 by Design Cross-References
Appendix D: Executive Dimensions Cross-References
Appendix E: Benchmarks Cross-References
Appendix F: Prospector Cross-References
Appendix G: Skillscope Cross-References
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This fieldbook is based on a stream of research and application on learning from job assignments that involved numerous colleagues over many years. In particular, I have drawn heavily from the work of Kerry Bunker, Maxine Dalton, Bob Eichinger, George Hollenbeck, Mike Lombardo, Morgan McCall, Patty Ohlott, and Marian Ruderman. More recent conversations with Ed Betoff, Bill Howland, Sharon Lamm, Stephanie Lischke, and Joe Toto about their use of the Job Challenge Profile also sparked ideas for the book. Thanks go to Pete Scisco and Kelly Lombardino for their encouragement to undertake this endeavor. Finally, I am grateful to Stephanie Lischke, Steve McMillen, Clare Norman, and Joe Toto for their careful review and feedback on earlier drafts of the book.
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this fieldbook is to help you as a leader more intentionally seek out and design your own developmental assignments (and to help others do the same). It focuses in particular on how to shape your current job and nonwork pursuits so that these activities will provide opportunities to continuously stretch and grow as a leader. We often refer to this approach to learning as development in place because it doesn’t require a major job shift or a move to a new organization. It often does, however, require working with your boss or with others inside or outside the organization to add responsibilities to your job or engage in temporary tasks or roles. We refer to these responsibilities and tasks as assignments. They become developmental assignments when they serve as a source of learning and growth.
This fieldbook is modeled after Eighty-Eight Assignments for Development in Place (Lombardo & Eichinger, 1989), one of CCL’s most popular publications. In the years since that report was published, we have learned more about development in place—from research, from working with managers and organizations who are making use of developmental assignments, and from our colleagues in the field. Our frameworks for describing job challenges and the competencies managers develop from facing those challenges have evolved. Thus, we believe it is time once again to consolidate our knowledge into one tool to help people add developmental assignments to their current jobs.
This fieldbook is organized as follows:
