Ontario’s Best Municipal Leadership Training Program
Ben Walters knew he needed the training to excel at his municipal leadership role. A bioresource professional, Walters was now Forest Manager for Northumberland County.
He had a lot of education, two college diplomas and he’s working on his Ph.D., but neither of these prepared you for the intricacies of leading people, nor leading through municipal office procedures.
When the Loyalist Training and Knowledge Centre (LTKC) offered Deepening Your Leadership Skills as a follow-up to Managing and Leading in a Municipal Environment Walters says he jumped at the chance to participate. He knew LTKC’s courses would boost his capacity in his current role and be excellent for his career. “I have the younger staff and I wanted to find ways to engage with them and work with them differently than was my natural inclination,” Walters explains. And, while his relationship with his team was solid, Walters says the course helped him see things differently so he could better support and motivate his staff. Walters says the course was a game changer because it wasn’t just theory: every element was tied to his role. The result went beyond Walters’ learning. The tools of the course helped teach his team too. Together, they found new meaningful satisfaction in their jobs. As a bonus his employees better understand the challenge of his role too and how the organization works as a whole.
What’s So Special About LTKC’s Leadership Training?
Firstly, it’s not a course, it’s a process to improving daily life in your current role. This hands-on connection to your actual work means this course doesn’t create more work for you: it helps you with the challenges you already face. Secondly, presented in an open learning style, participants built a repertoire of leadership skills by listening to each other’s experiences in sharing staff and a management point of views. Thirdly, the course blends cutting edge technology to further learning for participants, along with the three themes: Thinking Clearly, Acting Wisely and Engaging Well. And finally, LTKC facilitator’s Mark Norman brings a wealth of leadership development knowledge and workforce experience to the group making sure everyone gets the outcome they need from the program.
Three Takeaways From Municipal Leadership Training:
“LTKC filled a gap in my field. They’re an innovative community asset and help us stay efficient and effective,” he says. Walters’ advice? Learning happens for life. Here are his three takeaways:
- “I think more about root causes of issues, listen more, and I stopped trying to solve everyone’s problems on my own.” Thinking Clearly
- “I tell my staff my expectations and they deliver a higher quality of work.” Acting Wisely
- “We communicate more – there’s a willingness to ask questions to help us reach a greater purpose.” Engaging Well