NGC Experience: Kyle Lynch
Kyle Lynch, Manager of Onboarding at Adwerx, enrolled in the NextGen Center’s Foundation for Effective Leadership Program. In this candid interview, he shares his impressions of the course, of the one-to-one coaching experience, and the community feedback he received.
Read on to find out how the program impacted his leadership style, transformed his understanding of himself, and helped him to develop his approach to day-to-day team management.
Kyle Lynch, Manager of Onboarding, Adwerx
How did you hear about the NextGen Center’s leadership training?
My direct supervisor had worked with Brian Alvo, the founder of NextGen Center. She went through his course and was enthusiastic about it, saying she got a lot of value from attending. As a result, she encouraged our C-Suite leadership to allow managers at Adwerx to enroll in the program.
For me, it was a great opportunity to learn concepts, skills, and techniques that I can use to manage and lead my teams better.
Did you have specific goals when you entered the NextGen Center's Foundation for Effective Leadership program?
I wanted to come in with an open mind and, over the months that I was enrolled in the program, think about what strategies and skills I could apply in my day-to-day with my team.
After each session, I found myself looking over the materials, referencing them, and figuring out what skills and methods I could put into practice while engaging with my team, both as a whole and with individual players. Specifically, how could I manage up or manage down the people on my direct team.
What was the one-on-one leadership coaching experience like for you?
The one-on-one coaching was great. It comprised a series of like three one-hour sessions. Having coaches outside the organization allowed them to provide objective guidance. Working with a leadership coach helped me expand my thinking to visualize the bigger picture. It also showed me how to use the models and practices discussed in the course as a framework.
The experience was introspective and key learnings I took from the coaching sessions include:
There are multiple ways to think about everything.
Be mindful about applying knowledge and information to your day-to-day work.
Think strategically and holistically about approaches for changing our own views and actions in order to lead others to change their views and actions for the common good or to achieve a specific goal.
Find a space for open discussion, where you can share a moment from your past and have your coach help you see the situation from different angles.
What are some of the changes you made as a leader after going through the NextGen Center Program?
I became more inquisitive. Not in a micromanaging way, but I started asking more open-ended questions to go deeper into the why of what people on my teams were thinking and doing. Asking questions from a place of curiosity helps the individuals on my team come to realizations themselves, through talking and active listening as opposed to being lectured to or told the answer.
So the biggest thing was that I was more open to asking questions of my team. In turn, they became more comfortable and confident answering questions and thinking about problems and solutions.
What do you think is the foundation for an effective leadership program?
The foundation is to look more at yourself, and your own approaches to problems, than the team you’re managing, or even the team you hope to manage one day.
You, as an individual, can take everything you've learned from these courses and apply and absorb it. You can pick and choose the models which work for your team. Sometimes, that might mean not doing anything at all.
In the coursework, you examine your own behavior and attitudes and think about:
What are the things that are important to me?
What are my values?
What is it that I'm trying to accomplish?
How can I use this understanding to improve my approach to leadership?
In turn, by improving my leadership, how can I guide, motivate, and nurture the skills of the people around me?
What role has the NextGen Community played in your leadership experience?
There were a few people from my organization who attended the same leadership session. Other members of the group were from different industries. I appreciated the chance to talk to people, interact with them on Slack, and engage in breakouts with individuals from different levels of management with varied backgrounds and experiences.
That diversity of thought and experience informed me about what it means to be a leader and how to engage and interact with others. A good chunk of what I learned, wasn’t necessarily just from the models covered but came through the exercises I did with others and talking about real-world experiences. These discussions helped us problem solve and next step things we were stuck on. I really enjoyed that aspect of the NextGen Community.
Who should consider enrolling in NextGen Center’s Foundations for Effective Leadership Program?
I think the appeal is very broad. People who are in higher leadership roles would gain value from this program because it solidifies the fundamentals of leadership, and everyone could do with a refresher. People in my position, a manager of a group of eight to ten people, and also for those whose career aspirations include taking on leadership roles.
Having the skills early on will allow you to change up your own approaches, putting the models and practices you’ve learned into your daily routine. It will set you up for success when you do get an opportunity to lead others or manage a group of people.
I really think this program hits every level of management. And it offers a great foundation for people hoping to step into leadership positions in their careers.
What was the most valuable content covered in the leadership course?
It's tough to say just one. I think there are two:
Identifying your strengths. The StrengthsFinder Assessment informed me about what I did well. But by leaning too hard into what you do well, you risk overshadowing what you may not do so well. I learned that I should keep myself open to embracing my weaknesses.
Establishing your values. Taking time to think about, and talk through, the values that are important to me was vital. Insights such as:
What I’m about
How I want to lead
How I want to live
So the StrengthsFinder assessment was really helpful—creating self-identified values as a compass to follow.
What is the last thing you want people to know about the NextGen Center Leadership Training?
Number one is the way Brian Alvo leads the discussions and puts everybody in a very comfortable space. It's a judgment-free zone. Everyone is open and free to discuss, and we’re all here for a singular purpose: to help ourselves grow.
For those who are on the fence but interested in personal and professional development, this course hits those notes. But it goes beyond that because it impacts how you work. It really does tap into higher-level thinking and team wellbeing which are much larger than just self-growth.
WANT MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE NEXTGEN CENTER FOUNDATION FOR EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP PROGRAM?
Get in touch. We’re happy to answer your questions.