Developing Your Leadership Potential

Natalie Saiz, DirectorNatalie Saiz, Director

JSC Human Resources OfficeJSC Human Resources Office

October 2009October 2009

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Agenda

Setting the Context: Factors Shaping Your Leadership PotentialSetting the Context: Factors Shaping Your Leadership Potential

Leadership is…Leadership is…

Develop YourselfDevelop Yourself Career Options

My Journey

Career Planning: How to Get Started

Career AdviceCareer Advice

Thoughts on LeadershipThoughts on Leadership

Questions & AnswersQuestions & Answers

Factors Shaping Your Leadership PotentialFactors Shaping Your Leadership Potential

Your Career Goals &

Objectives

Training & Development Opportunities

Organization’s Vision &

Goals

Environment for Personal Developmen

t

Supervisor’s Coaching & Feedback

Opportunities for

Growth

Performance Enhancing Feedback

from Leads & Mentors

Honest Self-Assessment

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Leadership is…Leadership is…Influence Any time you seek to influence the thinking, behavior, or

development of people in their personal or professional lives, you are taking on the role of a leader.

Not inherent in a management position or title…

Leadership begins with…Leadership begins with…You Your attitude sets your expectations, which in turn determine

your success. To earn the right to lead, you must model the Agency’s Core

Values & the Expected Behaviors outlined by the JSC Joint Leadership Team

Identify your strengths through honest self-assessment and feedback from your supervisor, lead(s), and mentors.

Use your strengths strategically.

Leadership is…

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Individual Development is a set of processes Individual Development is a set of processes designed to maximize your contribution designed to maximize your contribution and potential toward the achievement of and potential toward the achievement of

NASA’s mission & goalsNASA’s mission & goals

Examples of Development Activities:Examples of Development Activities:• On the Job Experiences• Training and Seminars• Mentoring and/or coaching• Stretch assignments, including rotations• Conferences (usually in your discipline area)• Assessment Tools (performance feedback instruments;

individual difference assessments)

Develop Yourself

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job experiences

job experiences

Education

Training

Development

Activity

Training

Development

Time

On-the-Job Experiences…On-the-Job Experiences…

…connect training & development

The best leaders never stop learning.

Lincoln on Leadership

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A Formula for Results

Individual Capabilities x Learning Experience x Work Environment = Results

Are you ready to learn?

Did you & your manager select the right development

opportunity?

Is your learning reinforced on the job?

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Career Career Development

Career Development - Career Development - A process of personal and A process of personal and professional growth composed of two elements:professional growth composed of two elements:

• Career Planning Career Planning – You identify opportunities, make – You identify opportunities, make choices, and set goals based on self-assessment then choices, and set goals based on self-assessment then devise appropriate action plansdevise appropriate action plans

• Career Management Career Management – JSC Team (both NASA and – JSC Team (both NASA and Contractors) establishes systems and processes that:Contractors) establishes systems and processes that:

Develop individual talent Balance employee career goals with organizational needs Provide employees with career counseling Provide training and development Ensure JSC has the skill mix needed to accomplish its

mission

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Career Career Options

• VerticalVertical - Moving up the career ladder, typically - Moving up the career ladder, typically into management or senior technical positions.into management or senior technical positions.

• LateralLateral – Changing positions, but not necessarily – Changing positions, but not necessarily level of responsibility/grade level. Opportunity to level of responsibility/grade level. Opportunity to gain breadth of knowledge by understanding gain breadth of knowledge by understanding responsibilities of different organizations. responsibilities of different organizations.

• ExplorationExploration – – Initiating change in order to Initiating change in order to improve your personal job satisfaction. This can improve your personal job satisfaction. This can include a temporary rotational opportunity or include a temporary rotational opportunity or informational interviews with managers of other informational interviews with managers of other areas.areas.

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Career Career Options

• EnrichmentEnrichment - - Growing positions into what you Growing positions into what you would like to do—aligned with your passions. would like to do—aligned with your passions. Expand current job, by refining expertise in your Expand current job, by refining expertise in your current position current position

• RealignmentRealignment – Allowing you an opportunity to – Allowing you an opportunity to move down into positions that are more aligned move down into positions that are more aligned with your priorities. This could be to move back with your priorities. This could be to move back into a position in line with what you want in the into a position in line with what you want in the future. future.

• RelocationRelocation – Allowing you to leave your the – Allowing you to leave your the organization, pursuing positions which match your organization, pursuing positions which match your skills, interests and values.skills, interests and values.

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My JourneyMy Journey

NASA Co-op from

University of New Mexico

HR Rep for 6 years

Lead HR Rep for 6

years

Supervisor of HR

Reps for 4 years

Supervisor for new HR Ops

Office for 1 year

Asst to HR

Director then HR Director

for 5 years

NASA Leadership

Development Program

Graduate – 8 months

experience at NASA HQ

in 2005

The most common cause of executive failure is inability or unwillingness to change with the demands of the new position. The executive who keeps doing what he has done before he moved is almost doomed to fail.

Peter Drucker in The Effective Executive and Marshall Goldsmith in What Got You

Here Won’t Get You There

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Career Planning: How to Get Started

Perform an honest self-assessment of your Perform an honest self-assessment of your

strengths and areas for improvementstrengths and areas for improvement

Identify opportunities at JSC and/or within AgencyIdentify opportunities at JSC and/or within Agency

Define your career goalsDefine your career goals

Devise action plans to attain your career goalsDevise action plans to attain your career goals Initiate discussions with mentors, colleagues, & Initiate discussions with mentors, colleagues, &

supervisorsupervisor

Individual Development Plan (IDP)Individual Development Plan (IDP) Identify relevant training and development

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Developmental Conversation Topics

Your strengths & Your strengths & weaknesses (weaknesses (from your self-from your self-assessment & other’s assessment & other’s perspective)perspective)

Short-term and long-term Short-term and long-term goalsgoals

Time-frame you would like to Time-frame you would like to achieve your goalsachieve your goals

Areas you are interested in Areas you are interested in developingdeveloping

Training you would like to Training you would like to completecomplete

Your personal career driversYour personal career drivers

Your view of how you can Your view of how you can contribute to the contribute to the organizationorganization

Skills you wish to enhanceSkills you wish to enhance

What you like about your What you like about your current position & current position & responsibilitiesresponsibilities

External opportunities you External opportunities you would like to explorewould like to explore

Options you may not Options you may not currently be aware ofcurrently be aware of

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Career Advice Be inquisitive and ask questionsBe inquisitive and ask questions Seek continuous feedback and areas for improvementSeek continuous feedback and areas for improvement Be willing to step outside your comfort zoneBe willing to step outside your comfort zone Keep an open mind when working with othersKeep an open mind when working with others Interact with people that bring diverse views to the teamInteract with people that bring diverse views to the team Learn the Agency’s business and always consider NASA’s Learn the Agency’s business and always consider NASA’s

mission and where you fit in the big picture—knowing mission and where you fit in the big picture—knowing this will inform your career opportunities and choicesthis will inform your career opportunities and choices

Rotate to different parts of the organization, including Rotate to different parts of the organization, including Headquarters. This is valuable and necessary to gain an Headquarters. This is valuable and necessary to gain an appreciation for different perspectivesappreciation for different perspectives

Maintain a broad view of career growth and Maintain a broad view of career growth and development—there’s more to your career than the next development—there’s more to your career than the next promotion…be sure to enjoy the journeypromotion…be sure to enjoy the journey

A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go but ought to be. - Rosalynn Carter

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Thoughts on Leadership

Lead by example Lead by example

If you’re responsible for leading a team or If you’re responsible for leading a team or organization:organization:

Select a leadership team with diverse opinions, Select a leadership team with diverse opinions, who are willing to express those to enhance the who are willing to express those to enhance the organization’s effectiveness.organization’s effectiveness.

Actively develop your staff—you cannot go wrong Actively develop your staff—you cannot go wrong with a capable and competent staff.with a capable and competent staff.

A leader with a humble heart looks out the window to find and applaud the true causes of success and in the mirror to find and accept responsibility for failure.

Jim Collins in Good to Great

Nothing of significance was ever achieved by an individual acting alone.

John Maxwell’s The 17 Indispensable Laws of Teamwork

It marks a big step in your development when you come to realize that other people can help you do a better job than you could do alone.

Andrew Carnegie

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Questions?