Why do business leaders get less training than Macdonald’s employees?

Why do business leaders get less training than Macdonald’s employees?

Recently I was in sweden in a meeting with a new and potential client discussing the merits of employee engagement programmes and the role of the middle managers.

We were both in violent agreement when she told me of her cousin who, several years before, had taken a summer job at MacDonald’s. The story really brought home to me how we really do just expect our managers to be inspiring and yet we do very little to support them.

My clients cousin was given three to four weeks of training for this particular job which was to last just one season. In comparison many organisations go through a rigorous selection process, often at great expense, and then welcome the new appointed business leader into the organisation with a half day induction (often several weeks after they start).

On day one they are shown the basics (health and safety, facilities etc) and then do the beauty parade in front of the relevant people before an intensive few hours surfing the intranet! This is how we expect them to discover values, strategy, visions and very often culture.

If MacDonald’s can ensure that someone who is going to contribute to the success of the company for one season gets sufficient training then why don’t organisations put more emphasis on supporting and training managers from the beginning?