From Good to Great: The Difference Between Managing and Developing Teams
As a leader, if you’re not actively developing your team’s capabilities, you’re not just falling behind—you’re leaving growth, innovation, and competitive advantage on the table.
While managing focuses on the execution of day-to-day tasks, development-oriented leadership aims to cultivate the long-term skills and capabilities of individuals to meet both current and future challenges. The transition from a “good” manager to a “great” leader requires a focus on personal growth, continuous learning, and strategic alignment with business goals. This article explores the benefits of shifting from task management to skill development and how PickleWork supports leaders in making this critical transition.
Understanding the Difference: Managing vs. Developing
Managing Teams: A Day-to-Day Focus
Managing teams traditionally involves overseeing daily operations, meeting deadlines, and ensuring that employees complete their tasks. While this approach is essential for maintaining productivity and operational efficiency, it often falls short in preparing teams for future challenges. Managers who solely focus on short-term outputs can miss opportunities to invest in their people’s development, leaving skill gaps unaddressed and limiting long-term growth.
Key characteristics of a “managing” mindset:
- Task-oriented leadership, focusing on project completion and performance metrics.
- Short-term problem-solving rather than long-term growth strategies.
- Little emphasis on skill-building or personal development.
Developing Teams: Building for the Future
Developing teams, on the other hand, is about taking a long-term perspective. Development-focused leaders invest in their people, helping them acquire new skills, broaden their perspectives, and prepare for future challenges. These leaders create environments where innovation thrives, and employees are motivated to go beyond their current capabilities.
Key characteristics of a “developing” mindset:
- Future-oriented, with a focus on building team capabilities.
- Emphasizes learning, coaching, and mentorship.
- Encourages employees to take ownership of their development and career growth.
The Benefits of Development-Focused Leadership
Shifting from managing to developing offers tangible benefits to both organizations and individuals. For leaders, fostering a development-focused culture enhances team engagement, drives innovation, and improves overall performance. Let’s dive into the major benefits for both large enterprises and small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs):
For Large Businesses:
Increased Innovation and Agility Large organizations often face the challenge of remaining agile in the face of market disruption. Development-focused leadership helps teams continuously adapt to changing demands. By encouraging employees to develop new skills and innovate, leaders create a more agile and resilient workforce capable of handling complex challenges.
- Research shows that companies with high levels of employee development and continuous learning outperform their competitors by 24% in terms of innovation capacity (Deloitte Human Capital Trends 2021).
Leadership Pipeline and Succession Planning For larger organizations, developing internal talent is essential to building a strong leadership pipeline. Leaders who invest in their employees not only enhance team performance but also ensure there’s a next generation of leaders ready to step up when needed.
- According to a 2022 Harvard Business Review report, 86% of large organizations with robust leadership development programs experience faster growth and lower turnover rates.
Improved Retention and Engagement Larger organizations often struggle with employee disengagement due to the size and scale of their operations. Development-driven leadership helps counteract this by providing clear career progression and growth opportunities, improving overall retention and job satisfaction.
- A LinkedIn Workplace Learning Report (2022) found that employees at companies with strong learning cultures are 47% more likely to stay with their current employer.
For Small to Medium Businesses (SMBs):
Cost-Efficient Growth For SMBs, every employee plays a pivotal role in business growth. A development-focused approach allows smaller businesses to maximize the potential of their workforce without the need for expensive external hiring. Investing in employee development can lead to organic growth and improved efficiency.
- Research from the World Economic Forum suggests that small businesses with a focus on continuous employee development achieve 30% higher revenue growth compared to those that don’t.
Agility in Scaling Operations For SMBs, scaling operations efficiently is critical. By focusing on employee development, smaller businesses can quickly adapt to increasing demands and scale without overwhelming managers. Developing in-house talent ensures the team has the skills needed to grow along with the business.
- The Small Business Administration (SBA) highlights that businesses with structured employee development programs are 50% more likely to survive and scale effectively within their first five years.
Enhanced Team Collaboration and Innovation In smaller teams, developing employees’ skills can lead to stronger collaboration, creative problem-solving, and increased innovation. Development-oriented leadership encourages cross-functional learning and fosters a culture of shared knowledge, essential for SMBs where resources are often more limited.
How to Transition from Managing to Developing Teams
The path from being a manager to a developer of talent requires intentional effort and a strategic mindset. Here are key strategies to make that transition:
Set Long-Term Development Goals Shift from setting only task-based goals to development goals that focus on skill acquisition, career progression, and personal growth. This helps align team capabilities with both current and future business needs.
Provide Continuous Feedback and Coaching Move beyond annual performance reviews and provide ongoing, constructive feedback. Regular coaching conversations not only improve current performance but also set the stage for future development.
Empower Employees to Take Ownership Encourage employees to take an active role in their own development by setting personal goals, seeking learning opportunities, and regularly self-assessing their progress. Leaders should act as enablers rather than controllers.
Create Development Opportunities Offer stretch assignments, mentorship programs, and access to learning resources that challenge employees to grow. Leaders who prioritize development create a culture of learning and innovation.
How PickleWork Supports Development-Driven Leadership
PickleWork is designed to help leaders transition from task management to development-focused leadership. Our platform supports goal-setting, capability building, and performance tracking, ensuring that teams are not just productive today but ready for tomorrow’s challenges.
Goal-Setting: PickleWork enables leaders to set clear, actionable development goals for individuals and teams. These goals align with both short-term performance needs and long-term growth plans.
Capability Building: The platform tracks each team member’s skills, identifies gaps, and provides personalized development pathways to ensure employees are continuously growing and evolving.
Performance Tracking: Through real-time feedback and performance tracking, PickleWork helps leaders coach their teams more effectively, ensuring consistent progress toward both operational and developmental goals.
Invest in Your Team’s Future Today
Whether you’re a leader in a large enterprise or a small business, transitioning from managing to developing your team is the key to unlocking greater engagement, innovation, and long-term success. PickleWork provides the tools you need to make this transition seamless and effective.
Explore how PickleWork can help you become a development-driven leader. Visit our products page or contact us today to schedule a demo!
References:
- Deloitte (2021). “Human Capital Trends.”
- Harvard Business Review (2022). “The Impact of Leadership Development on Organizational Growth.”
- LinkedIn (2022). “Workplace Learning Report.”
- World Economic Forum (2022). “The Future of Jobs Report.”
- Small Business Administration (SBA). “Employee Development in Small Business.”
