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Ines Mergel is assistant professor of public administration and international affairs at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. Her book, Social Media in the Public Sector, and its accompanying field guide are published by Jossey-Bass/Wiley.

Ines Mergel

The Social Intranet: Insights on Managing and Sharing Knowledge Internally, a new report from the IBM Center for the Business of Government looks at three ways internal social networks can support knowledge management in government.

3 Ways Social Networks Support Knowledge Management in Government

July 2016 - The Public Manager

Managing Government Knowledge on the Social Intranet

Spring 2013 - The Public Manager

Designing a Social Media Strategy to Fulfill Agency's Mission

It is often the goal of talent developers to run their own learning organizations, especially at a strategic level. Opportunities to become a chief learning officer (CLO) are rare. But it’s not enough to find (or create) one—you’ve also got to be ready for it when that happens! There’s a lot written about having “a seat at the table” and what to do when you get there. However, there is precious little advice on how to prepare yourself for the role. In this article, I’m going to suggest four areas for your development: Technical Expertise, Strategic Leadership Skills, Business Savvy, and Adult Stage Development.Technical ExpertiseAs managers move into more senior leadership roles, they still need to understand the ins and outs of their professional areas. This gives them context and understanding of their organization’s mission and activities, and what they bring to the table when helping to run the organization. Do you have one of our professional certifications, the Associate Professional in Talent Development (APTD®) or the Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD®)? Or perhaps one or more professional certificates, like ATD’s Instructional Design, Project Management, or Master Trainer? On the academic side, have you completed a degree (or advanced degree) in a talent development field? However you approach it, continuing to build your technical expertise will give you greater skills and credibility.Strategic Leadership SkillsCLOs must go beyond managing their function. They must become business leaders as part of the senior leadership team of their organization. To function at that level, they must learn to be strategic leaders. Managers solve technical problems with known solutions. But strategic leaders solve adaptive challenges—new and complex trials that require advanced leadership skills like innovation, adaptability, perseverance, and systems thinking.Business SavvyAt the CLO level, it’s no longer enough to merely understand your own contributions to the mission. You’ll also have to develop a full grasp of the entire enterprise and a true appreciation of the competitive, external environment. In short, you must become a businessperson. What does the business or organization do? How does it do it? For whom? Against whom? What are its headiest challenges and opportunities, and where are the weaknesses and threats to its success? And, most importantly, how does the talent development organization contribute to all of it?Adult Stage DevelopmentWe’re all familiar with the stages children go through as they develop into adults. But did you know that adults keep developing to later stages, too? They do. And these developments correlate strongly with leadership success. While the other three areas deal with various competencies, this is about your capacity to stay in uncertainly longer, to consider multiple alternative solutions to a challenge—or even multiple realities in a situation. Can you cope with—and succeed in—greater VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity)? Are you able to lead your organization through the unknown toward the new reality?So, how do you do all of that? I’m sure as talent developers you’re already thinking about the possibilities. There are specific methods for transforming managers into strategic leaders. But those will have to wait for another day!

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