Download The Business Value of Scouting V3

The Business Value of Scouting
Business Leadership
Requirements
Create and Execute a Business Plan
Business leaders must have the ability to create a
business plan and then execute that business plan.
Creating a business plan has several different
components. First, there must be a vision or
objectives for the business. When you have clear
business objectives, then you can create
intermediate and ultimate business goals that
support achieving your business vision.
After the objectives are created, then you can
create a plan to achieve your objectives. Goals that
are specified in business plans must be specific,
measurable, and attainable.
After the plan is created, business manage the
plan. Project management skills are key to
managing the goals. The ability to handle
unexpected contingencies or situations and keep
theplan on track (or recover) is very important.
Meeting the business objectives by attaining the
component or milestone business goals is never
easy. Leadership that can accomplish this is
valuable to business.
Inspire and Lead People
Everyone in business is a different person with
different motivations, different histories, different
talents, and different levels of engagement in their
work. Understanding people and how to bring
their individual strengths to business is important.
Working with people requires a variety of different
leadership styles. Learning and using those
leadership styles takes work and practice.
Motivating each person to produce their best work
makes a real difference in business. Creating
teams of motivated individuals can transform a
business.
A personal example in matters of integrity,
accountability, and respect encourages a positive
business climate.
Trust and Accountability
Integrity in all matters is a fundamental foundation
for business. No system of checks and balances
can compensate for a lack of integrity.
Accountability for results must be a part of the
business fabric if a business is to flourish. Each
person should understand their role and take action
in support of the team’s goals.
Scouts Are Prepared to be Business
Leaders
Developing Leadership Through
Scouting
Scout Leadership
Scouts spend years learning and practicing
leadership. The Boys Scouts of America teaches
specific leadership skills in a framework of respect,
integrity, and accountability. All Scouts receive
extensive, repetitive training and practice in these
skills over a period of years.
The Scout leadership model starts with a vision.
The vision describes the end state objective. Then,
intermediate milestone goals that lead to the
objective are created. Finally, plans are created
that accomplish the goals.
Scouts use SMART goals. SMART goals are
Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely
This method of setting goals keeps them tight and
focused, and thus ensures that the goals can be
accomplished.
Planning and Problem Solving Tool—What, Why,
How, When, Who
Scouts learn this easy-to-follow guide for setting
priorities, assigning tasks, and deciding how to
actually carry out a plan.
Assessment Tool—SSC—Start, Stop, Continue
Adaptability is very important to business. Start
Stop Continue provides a nonthreatening and
highly effective tool to assess progress of a team
and/or an individual. By looking for new things to
try, stopping actions that are not effective, and
ending on a “what are we doing well” note, this
tool keeps projects (and behavior) on track.
Inspire and Lead People
ROPE—Reach out, Organize, Practice,
Experience is a skill that Scouts use to learn the
individual value of each person. Scouts learn to
reach out and get to know the individuals in their
organizations. Scouts then learn to organize the
individuals into teams (more on that in a moment).
Scout practice the organization of teams again and
again. In that practice, Scouts are encouraged to
experience the world from the point of view of
different team members. By doing this, Scout
learn to appreciate the differences and leverage the
strengths of all of the team’s members.
Scouts learn and use EAR (Express, Address,
Resolve) as a conflict resolution tool. No one likes
conflict, and yet all of us face conflict at some
point in our lives. Learning to effectively resolve
conflict is a lifelong skill that is useful for a long
life. Scout leadership training teaches youths how
to listen to all sides, address each party’s concerns,
and then work to effectively resolve the conflict.
GUIDE when the group is in the NORMING
phase.
ENABLE when the group is in the PERFORMING
phase.
Scouts learn and use The Teaching EDGE™ tool
as a simple four-step process used for teaching any
skill.
Explain—The trainer explains how something is
done.
Demonstrate—The trainer demonstrates while
explaining again.
Guide—The learner tries the skill while the trainer
guides him through it.
Enable—The learner works on his own under the
eye of the trainer.
Scouts learn and practice this leadership skill or
technique with many different groups in varied
settings over a period of years.
Four Stages of Team Development
All teams (and individuals) go through
development stages when facing any new task or
project. They begin as highly enthusiastic but
relatively low-skilled team members. As they
begin to realize the task may be harder than they
thought, and that their skills may need some work,
their enthusiasm dips. Soon, however, they begin
to gain some expertise in the skill, and their
confidence begins to grow. Finally, they get it, and
are a highly capable and enthusiastic team.
Phase
Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing
Attitude
High Enthusiasm
Low Enthusiasm
Rising Enthusiasm
High Enthusiasm
Team Skills
Low Skills
Low Skills
Growing Skills
High Skills
Leadership behavior depends on the group:
EXPLAIN when the group is in the FORMING
phase.
DEMONSTRATE when the group is in the
STORMING phase.
Scouts arrive at your business with a complete
package of leadership skills that will help make
them successful. Their ability to lead in differing
situations with diverse teams can greatly improve
your business.
Instilling Lifelong Values:
Integrity, Trust, and Accountability
Cub Scout Promise
I promise to do my best to do my duty to God and
my country, to help other people, and to obey the
Law of the Pack.
Scout Oath
On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to
God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to
help other people at all times; to keep myself
physically strong, mentally awake, and morally
straight.
Venturing Oath
As a Venturer, I promise to do my duty to God and
help strengthen America, to help others, and to
seek truth, fairness, and adventure in our world.
Scouts grow up in an organization that values
Integrity, Trust, and Accountability. These virtues
become character traits for Scouts through
learning, knowledge, practice, and repetition.
From Cub Scouts through Boy Scouts to
Venturing, the focus is on doing your best,
honesty, truth, and service to others. Scouts
emerge from the Scouting programs with an
ingrained service-based leadership model that
serves them well for a lifetime in business.
All businesses depend on these values. No system
of safeguards can overcome a lack of these values
in its leaders.
Business Leadership That Works
Your business needs well-trained, capable, and
experience leaders. These leaders must be
trustworthy and accountable.
You can and do invest a lot of resources, time, and
money in developing effective business leaders.
Scouting helps your business by doing the
foundational work. Scouts already know how to
lead. When they apply that ability in your
business, you win big.
You can support scouting in several different ways.
Hiring a Scout puts the value of Scout training to
work in your business. Contributing to your local
Scout council helps to ensure that Scouting has the
funding it needs. And, becoming an adult Scout
leader will enrich your life as well as the life of the
kids you serve.
Keith Rutledge
Assistant Scoutmaster
Troop 245, Taylors, SC
The Teaching Edge is a trademark of the Boy Scouts of
America.