Asking for Your Boss' Support to Participate

Communication is Key

Did you know many organizations have a budget for training and professional development? It's worth asking about!

If that sounds scary, no worries. Inside Camp Culture we provide a huge set of resources and in our first Stage - Scout The Path - we get into the importance of communication with both leadership and your team. You can consider this your first taste of what we have to offer.

Let's cover some critical steps and talking points to cover with your boss when asking for approval to join the program and requesting to have the professional development budget cover the investment.

6 Steps to Budget Approval

Get 20-minutes of Your Boss’s Attention

Ask your boss if they are available for 20-minutes to touch base in the next couple of days regarding a time-sensitive leadership development opportunity you’ve found. Share that you would like to take advantage of the opportunity but first want to run it by them to get their input and support. Also, you’d like to see if it can be covered by the professional development budget.
Express Your Desire to Develop Yourself as a Leader

In those 20 minutes, get to the point. Share how you would like to continue to develop yourself as a leader and deepen your knowledge on how to create a workplace culture for your team that is positive, inclusive, and high-performing. Share any specific characteristics or competencies that you’re wanting to develop yourself in through the program (ie. new ways to motivate and inspire your team, how to effectively hold your team accountable, how to navigate tough “people” challenges, how to increase camaraderie, and commitment amongst your team.)
Share about Camp Culture as a Comprehensive Opportunity

Share that you came across Camp Culture, which is a comprehensive culture development online academy that provides a step by step journey to support you in creating an empowering culture for your team. Share that at each step you will receive tangible tools and actionable resources. Also, share that Camp Culture provides timely support and guidance to participants navigating tough culture challenges. Share that you’ll also have the opportunity to network with other like-minded leaders focused on developing their team’s culture.
Describe the Value and Vision of What You See out of Your Participation - for You, for Your Team, and for Your Boss

Let your boss know how and why you believe this program will provide value not only to you but also to your team. Also, speak to how you see this work supporting your boss’s commitment to the success of the entire department or organization. You could speak to a reduction in gossip, silos, apathy, and entitlement. You could speak to an increase in retention, productivity, and team cohesion. And you can always share how there is more ease and velocity in getting the work done when there’s a great culture - and this of course saves both time and money. Here’s a document that outlines both the calculation as well as the research behind the ROI of Happy Employees.
Be Clear About the Time and Financial Commitment

Share that from a time perspective it will take you about 2 hours/week to participate and that you can go at your own pace. It takes 15 months to complete the 5 stages of the program. Tell them the cost options. Tell them when registration closes - clarifying that registration is only open to the public twice/year and you would like to join now.
Ask for Their Support

Then ask them, “As someone who is committed to my ongoing development, do you have any objections to using the professional development budget to cover this?”

Still not sure?

We want to encourage you that if these steps don't quite feel like they'll cut it - reach out to us here and we'll be happy to chat with you about your unique situation. We'd love to chat with you and, at your request, could include your boss in the conversation.

Also feel free to point your boss in our direction if they'd like to learn more for themselves!