NCG's approach to leadership and professional development means allowing everyone across the organisation the chance to be a future CEO. That means equipping everyone with leadership skills.
Executive Principal Gerard Garvey spoke to FE Week about NCG's philosophy and development programmes. Read an extract below or the full article on FE Week.
Attracting the best talent is crucial; colleges need ambitious and responsible educators and leaders to shape the future. Our people are the heart of our organisations, so it is an important strategic pillar. That’s why over the past four years, NCG has developed a people-centred approach that prioritises recruitment, development and retention.
When we launched our Leadership Hub in 2020 to provide development for aspiring and experienced leaders, we knew that not everyone aspires to become a leader or a manager. However, the qualities of leadership should be accessible to everyone, so our programmes cater to colleagues across our organisation at every level and every stage of their journey.
We want our colleagues to know that they don’t need to be in a leadership position to be able to have influence and make contributions to their teams and departments. To back that up, we ensure our approach addresses their diverse needs.
So, alongside our Leadership Hub, we also launched a coaching pool and a mentoring programme. All new colleagues are assigned a mentor, many of whom have undertaken professional qualifications in these areas.
Differentiating between mentoring and coaching is important. Mentoring involves a more experienced colleague guiding a newer one, while coaching is about unlocking an individual’s potential by encouraging self-reflection and problem-solving. This tailored approach addresses the unique needs of each person.
Historically, mentoring might have been confined to subject-specific guidance, for instance matching a new dance teacher with an experienced one. However, our Leadership Hub has expanded to ensure that mentoring goes beyond technical advice to include personal and professional development.
Importantly, this creates relationships between people in different departments, and even in different colleges and areas of the organisation.
This strategic focus on development means that any of our colleagues, regardless of role, can be a future leader at NCG. Someone joining us in an entry-level position this year could be our future chief executive if we ensure the development opportunities are in place to support that possibility.