The Leadership Quarterly (02/01/2011) Vol. 22, No. 1, P. 33 Richard, Rebecca J.; Johnson, Stephanie K.

Leadership self-development allows leaders to adapt to continually changing environments, both inside and outside of an organization. The process of becoming a continuous self-developing leader is influenced by several factors on the individual, group, and organizational levels. Self-development is essentially an enhanced ability to solve problems quickly and generate creative ideas that support organizational adaptability and growth. Learning organizations composed of self-directed learners with an inclination to self-develop will have an advantage over competition. Leader self-development not only enables organizations to keep up with the dynamics of a changing environment, but is also a cost-effective way of developing human resources. For leader self-development to be successful as an organizational strategy, it must be in harmony with other organizational and group level practices. Adapting a strategy that promotes leader self-development may result in financial, attitudinal, and relational dividends to the organization over time. Creating an organization that supports leader self-development allows resources that were previously spent on managerial training to be reinvested. Instead of focusing on certain leadership competency programs, organizational strategy should focus on improving and supporting leader self-development.