Employers may be relying heavily on managers to shepherd employees — and various company initiatives — through a potential recession, but to maintain success, manager training may need more investment, various sources have said.
In the wake of the pandemic, manager discretion has become especially important. For example, a March 2021 report from Perceptyx noted that, without training, managers may accidentally overlook female candidates for promotions. And a 2020 report from the Disability Management Employer Coalition noted that managers generally lack training on workplace benefits and resources, especially for caregivers.
Coaching, generally, has emerged as one way to individuals for supervisory roles — especially front-line managers who may never have had training in how to lead a team. And learning companies are upping their offerings to meet rising demand.
Kantola, for instance, recently announced a new manager training program focused entirely on inclusive management as one way for employers to engage leaders and maintain D&I.
“For [managers] to become a positive force for change, they must be equipped with the tools and guidance they need to be effective,” a Kantola spokesperson said in a statement to HR Dive. “And those tools need to be practical and actionable, dealing with real-life issues like recruitment, hiring, onboarding — and other management practices, such as managing diverse teams, facilitating meetings and conflict resolution to name a few.”
D&I is especially important for managers to understand, other studies have shown, because role modeling inclusion is one of the most important ways leaders can improve diversity and inclusion at work.
“Many are grappling to make progress on their DEI initiatives — and it’s clear the solution lies in engaging managers more deeply in the process,” Kantola said.
Below, we’ve gathered recent HR Dive stories on how employers are connecting with managers and why training investment matters.
