Going beyond using off-shelf leadership programs to raise world-class leaders

When you’re like me and have been in the learning industry for so long, you come across various leadership programs. Some are good while others are not so good. And some in between…

Yes, I’ve been exposed to world-class leadership programs. I benefited from such programs myself. However, these are a few exceptions, not the norm.

If you ask me to be honest, though painful to reveal this publicly and against the industry I’m part of, I can tell you that many leadership programs are garbage.

No wonder many decision makers are frustrated and skeptical about leadership development programs. Who blames them? They invest billions every year and they’re getting mediocre results.

From the top of my mind, below are some of the problems you’ll find in many leadership programs:

1. Outdated. To see this, just go to the references side of the leadership materials. You will be surprised to find out that most of the reference materials used to develop the corresponding program are 10 years or more old. Very few programs use the latest leadership books and share recent stories and case studies.

• Off-shelf. Just google and see the overview and learning objectives of the leadership programs that are available on the Internet. You will see that they are almost the same with minor wording differences. Most training companies outsource their materials to the same companies that have been designing these mediocre programs over the years. Few have their own outline. Very few tailor their programs according to the needs, priorities, preferences, and cultures of their clients.

• Incomplete. This is unfortunate. There are leadership program designers who believe that leadership is all about competencies. As a result, they focus on skillsets, neglecting other important aspects of leadership development.

• Generic. Leadership is a protracted journey. Leaders advance on the spectrum of leadership, from emerging to middle, and senior leadership. At each stage of leadership, they face different challenges and are exposed to totally different opportunities as they grow and advance. Rather than getting programs that consider their level of leadership, leaders are given generic programs that fail to meet their specific needs at the stage where they are.  

• Neutral. The world has changed. In the same team, organization, and community, we have now diverse team members and leaders, some work together in close proximity while others join virtually far from the headquarters. Sadly, many leadership programs don’t account for the diversity of participants either or both at the design and/or delivery stages. Worse is when these leadership programs are biased and have affinity to one side. Worst case scenario? When they have discriminatory elements in their programs that offend and disempower certain sections of the audience.

At PRO Leadership, we attempt to solve the above problems as we aim to bridge the leadership gap globally, one community at a time.

Here are some of the things we consider as we design and deliver our programs:

1. We incorporate the latest leadership insights, models, tools, and approaches.
2. We tailor each program for each audience.
3. We go beyond developing skillsets; we don’t neglect other important aspects of leadership growth.
4. We develop stage-by-stage leadership development programs.
5. We’re mindful of the uniqueness of each audience.

If you would like to grow your leaders holistically by partnering with us, let’s help you design and deliver leadership development programs that grow your leaders holistically.

Don’t forget. Unless your leaders at varies stages of leadership experience all-around growth, they won’t be able to fulfill their individual and corporate mandates. Your leaders become handicapped and may not be able to solve the problems they are facing now and in the future.

Without holistic leadership development, you and your leaders may not tap into the opportunities the century offers.

Even if you don’t have your own team, if you care about raising world-class leaders in your organization and/or community, you should partner with us.

If you have any questions or would like to learn more about PRO Leadership and:

• How we may help you raise world-class leaders,
• How you can become part of the team, and/or
• How you may become a strategic partner or a sponsor, reach out via [email protected]

Hoping to hear from you soon…