If you don't take vacations or start new projects because you're afraid of what might go wrong when you're not around, it's a symptom of a serious business dysfunction. You have ineffective-manageritis. If your direct reports cannot sit in your chair and do your job, you haven't trained them properly.

Think about it. If you have had to do damage control after taking some time away from the business, then some training of your key staff is in order. In the process, you can also ready your entire team to cope with a disaster, and these days that kind of planning is a necessity. You may have weathered this hurricane, but as we all know, the next crisis is right around the corner. Making sure that you have back-up personnel is as important as having back-up systems for your computers.

Yes, it will take some time, effort and expense on your part to create an effective leadership program of this type. It is also helpful to understand that training is not a one-day, off-site process, it is something that needs to be ongoing and always available. This is why continuing education through a professional who is accessible to your team members and who will customize what they deliver is so important.

In order to cover all the bases, I suggest that you work with a consultant or current team leader who has the integrity to understand that they can't be and do everything you’ll need, and will help you create your own network of experts.

As a leader, you need to be accountable for the continuous improvement of your company. The concept of accountability really needs to be ingrained within your entire management structure.

Here are some tips to help you get the ball rolling:

1. To get started, just start.
2. Give your team members an article or a book and make a date to discuss it.
3. Make an appointment with a consultant or trainer to brainstorm ideas.
4. Have essential players join a mastermind group.
5. Ask powerful questions of your team.
6. Create a shadow program, where new team members spend a day working with more seasoned staffers and learning what they do. This should take place at least once a month.
7. Do a company wide evaluation.*
8. Have teams set their own goals.
9. Let team members have input as to the type of training they want and need.
10. Follow-up. Follow-up. Follow-up.

Here's an example of why this process is so important. It is a well known fact that most people leave their jobs because they don't get along with their bosses. What this means is that you have to train leaders, managers and supervisors to get along better with their team members. This is an interpersonal skill that requires brainstorming, consultation and creativity.

Unfortunately, sending management leaders to a workplace psychology seminar is as effective as sending them to an Aerosmith concert. There needs to be consistency in the form of easily accessible and ongoing information in order to make any kind of training effective. It's like going to a tennis clinic for a weekend and then not playing the game for a month afterward - you'll lose everything that you learned.

Long-lasting professional development requires a Kaizen mindset: Small, seemingly insignificant, continuous bits of improvement. Finding ways to educate your team to become more effective leaders will not only give you a break when you need it, it will also show up in your bottom line. This is the ultimate win-win scenario.

* For free information on Company and Self Evaluations, send an e-mail to Wendy@BartonGoldsmith.com with the words Company Evaluation or Self Evaluation in the subject box.