Making a Paradigm Shift in Leadership Development

MAKING A PARADIGM SHIFT IN LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

The new leadership capabilities we identify in this research are not necessarily a radical shift from one thing to another. They are largely accelerating and amplifying trends that were already underway. Leadership development also has to keep up with the changing business context and evolving demands of leaders. During the pandemic, lockdowns, travel bans and budget constraints pushed some organisations to severely curtail or suspend leadership development. Others experimented and innovated, finding ways of delivering virtual and blended leadership development, adopting new technologies, and turning strategic business challenges into vehicles for learning. Leadership teams who were missing in-person connection took time to work together virtually on team dynamics and leadership challenges. A key challenge for leadership development functions, as they consider strategies for leadership development post-pandemic, is to build on the successes and lessons learned. While the business environment is changing rapidly, it’s important to recognise that humans don’t change so fast. Although technology is playing an ever greater role in learning delivery, that will only take us so far. The principles of adult learning that should underpin any well-designed leadership development strategy have not changed. Development needs to both equip leaders with key leadership skills and take them on an internal journey of understanding their purpose and impact as a leader. Learning needs to be integrated as much as possible in the flow of work. And the learning environment needs to provide opportunities for leaders to address strategic business challenges while deepening their leadership skills.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Consider what opportunities the pandemic has presented to think differently about the expectations of leaders and the practice of leadership development in your organisation. How will you capture what you learned through the pandemic and use it to update your strategy for leadership development? Is it time to review your leadership frameworks and models? How might the trends outlined in this report help you challenge your thinking? How is the context of your business changing and what does that mean for leadership? Does your organisation’s process for developing business strategy include discussions about the implications for leadership? Are your models and criteria for leadership updated along with the business strategy? Consider how you might initiate these conversations in your organisation, perhaps using our framework to stimulate discussions. Are you clear about what mindsets you expect leaders to have, the skills they need to develop and the behaviours they need to demonstrate? How big is the gap between where you are today and where you need to be? Consider reviewing the allocation of your budget for leadership development to make sure it reflects the leadership needs and priorities for your business. Where are the biggest leadership gaps? Does the amount of spend being allocated to those issues reflect their level of priority for your business? How much budget is spent on top team development vs. first and front line leaders? Does this reflect your desire or intention in terms of developing a strong pipeline of future leaders? Make sure you get the balance right between developing individual leaders one at a time and supporting the development of leadership teams. Are you doing enough to help intact leadership teams develop together? Does your leadership development function have the skills necessary to work on top team effectiveness, team dynamics and group coaching?

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