A thoughtful and thought-provoking article in the Winter 2024 MIT Sloan Review (tiered paywall) echoes the themes I’ve outlined here on this blog about organizational failings when selecting a leadership development program. The article, Leadership Development is Failing Us—Here’s How to Fix It by Hannes Leroy, Moran Anisman-Razin, and Jim Detert, offers research-based findings and some great recommendations.

Highlights from the article include:

  • For many companies, leadership development activities fall short (way short) of truly developing organizational capabilities.
  • The selection and evaluation of leadership development programs are based more on whether people ‘like’ the program and not on whether it improves participants’ capabilities and leads to meaningful improvement in performance and strong career trajectories.
  • One of my favorite quotes: “As one executive noted, leadership development decisions seem to resemble the online dating industry, where swiping left or right is based more on appearance than substance.”

Ouch!

The authors suggest the cure for the all-too-common and less-than-effective approach to selecting leadership development initiatives is to focus on three issues: vision, method, and impact.

  • Vision: will participants grow their ability to lead others and be motivated to use what they learn?
  • Method: Is the program challenging, and will the participants learn even if they are uncomfortable with the complexity?
  • Impact: Will we see changes in behaviors?

Cue my cheering.

You Should be Sick and Tired of the Poor Results of Your Leadership Development Efforts

I’m guided in my thinking (and work) for leadership development by my 25+ years leading teams and organizations (15 years as an executive). It grew frustrating to send people to name-brand organizations and have them return with a “nice experience,” a big bill, and no visible or sustained changes. (Full disclosure: I support the development of leaders through sustained learning and coaching initiatives I deliver the leadership development efforts I wish I could have found as an executive.)

I love the article’s suggestions for making better leadership development program selections. This article should be read and referenced regularly when raising the L.D. topic. And executives, you should hold yourselves and your supporting functions (H.R., Learning and Development, and sponsoring managers) accountable for this thinking.

Pragmatic Additions to the Leadership Development Ideas in the Article:

1. Sustained Efforts with Coaching

Leadership development efforts must be sustained efforts. Stop one-and-done training for leadership development immediately. Don’t assume anyone will learn to lead from an e-course. Guidance, feedback, and time are essential. If the experience doesn’t offer this combination, it’s one-and-done.

2. The Sponsoring Manager Must Be More than the Person Who Approves the Bill

The sponsoring manager must be involved as a sponsor, not just someone who approves the bill for payment. The sponsoring manager must understand the Vision, Method, and (expected) Impact as the authors outline above. They must then be active participants by coaching, delivering timely behavioral feedback, and working collaboratively with the individual to identify new opportunities.

3. Look for a Holistic Growth Experience

Assess: does the program offer expert, research-backed instruction, ample time on the job to apply the ideas, gain feedback and coaching, and a group learning experience to share ideas and develop approaches for overcoming? If not, hit the stop button and look harder for the right offering. Or design the right offering yourself.

4. Measure Impact Over Time, Darn-It!

Develop and fine-tune efforts to measure impact. Focus on the performance, cultural, and growth-based metrics that matter. Here are some starters: KPI performance, goal completion, engagement, retention, ability to take on added responsibilities, critical thinking growth, leadership impact, evidence of leading at scale, and more. Don’t forget to create measures for the sponsoring managers as well. They are critical stakeholders in the success of these initiatives. Watch these measures. Tune them as needed. Make them part of the organization’s operating scheme.

The Bottom Line for Now

This topic raises my energy level. There’s nothing more sacred in our work than finding ways to build the skills that propel our organizations in pursuit of our vision and mission. And for decades, managers and executives have outsourced to other functions and one-and-done training organizations. Follow the guidance in the article identified above and add in my contributions for a dose of pragmatism. While there’s a saying in this era that we’re all technology organizations now, in reality, we’re all organizations that survive and thrive based on having the best people. Start acting like it when it comes to leadership development.

Art's Signature