The Skills for Progress

The Skills for Progress are the personal abilities to lead effectively in complex, fast-moving, and imperfect environments. They form the foundation of all Practices for Progress and are the most accessible entry point into Positive Progress Leadership.

These skills do not depend on role or seniority. They are available to anyone, at any level, and they become especially powerful when developed in combination. The Skills for Progress are designed to unlock human potential and are equally relevant for leadership and non-leadership roles within the organization. 

These skills are not abstract traits or vague aspirations. They are trainable, observable, and practical. They shape how people within the organization think, decide, engage, and adapt. And because they can be strengthened by intention and practice, they offer a clear place to begin with even when conditions are difficult or organizational change feels out of reach.

Unlike the Practices for Progress, which describe intentional actions, the Skills for Progress influence how well those actions can be performed. 

Every skill is a potential lever for progress. Some sharpen focus, others unlock energy. Some strengthen communication, others improve decision-making. What matters is not the skill itself, but the skills fit to the moment and the potential it unlocks. There are hundreds of individual skills that can support each Practice for Progress, and which ones matter depends on context, people, and timing.

Rather than prescribing a fixed set of skills, the Positive Progress Leadership model identifies two layers of skills:

• Practice-specific Skills, which support the unique application of each Practice for Progress
• A Set of 9 Core Skills, relevant across all Practices for Progress and applicable under nearly any condition
  

Practice-specific skill gaps should be identified via a four step analytical approach:

Identify the skill gap
Look for friction points: What’s stuck? Where are decisions slowing down, energy fading, or execution breaking down? Determine what abilities are missing. 

Decide how to close the gap
Not every gap requires training. Is this something we should train someone to do? Or is this an ability we need to cover with another profile, role, or design decision? Sometimes it’s more effective to reassign responsibility, hire complementary talent, or adjust team structures. The goal is not to upskill everyone in everything, but to activate progress through the right mix of skills.

Train or reinforce, if the skill is appropriate for development
Train it if it’s new or underdeveloped. Reinforce it if it exists but is inconsistent. Ensure development is tied to application and not only theory. Create space for the  use of the skill, not only learning. No skill sticks without use.
Design follow-up structures through coaching, peer feedback, reflection points, and role modeling. Skills become effective and efficient through repetition, visibility, and time.

Anticipate future needs
Skill development requires more than just catching up, it means staying ready. Scan the horizon for evolving work, changing roles, or new demands. Use targeted upskilling and reskilling to stay adaptive without overloading people. Work with trends and data to understand changing demands.

Next to the practice-specific skills, Positive Progress Leadership has identified nine universal core skills which positively shape the Practices of Progress and should be trained and reinforced organization-wide. These skills are: