A friend shared an insight about college sports that has direct implications for business.

Her son is a soccer player and she was helping him evaluate colleges. They were focusing on smaller Division III schools not too far from home and one of the things they liked to do was visit a school unannounced and watch a men’s soccer game from the stands. What a great way to see a team in action and coaches unfiltered! They went to schools with different levels of talent, some who were on track to make the D-III NCAA Tournament, and others who weren’t even close.

They noticed something interesting. Every school on their way to qualifying had a significantly deeper roster…they had a large bench!

In business, we all know it’s important to develop the next generation of leaders. We know that if we fail to develop a “bench” we will eventually face the consequences:

• leadership gaps, disruption and loss of institutional knowledge when people leave, retire or are promoted;
• slower growth because we don’t have enough capable leaders to scale the business;
• increased burnout among current leaders who are carrying too much responsibility; and much more!

But there’s more to it than having a large bench.

We need people on our team that want to grow, people who want someone to invest in them, care for them, and help them move towards their highest potential. When we invest in our people, retention and engagement go up, teamwork becomes easier, and results are achieved faster.

It’s not easy. Things get in the way of developing others. Almost daily we struggle with the tyranny of the urgent, we can’t seem to find the time, and some of us, well, we’re just not sure where to start.

Consider the following as you think about the people you want to develop to create leadership bench strength in your organization:

• Focus on “Being before Doing” (development focused on tactical skills is “training”)
• Schedule regular time to meet (and don’t cancel)
• Create a simple agenda and send it well in advance
• Ask for their input: Where do they want to grow?
• Share your feedback: Where do you want to see them grow?
• Create a plan together
• Listen and be curious
• Follow up, provide support, and be their biggest fan