The challenge of leadership development

47% of leaders fail according to Adrian Furnham, Department of Psychology, UCL.  Given this statistic, there is reason to be concerned about how leaders are selected and subsequently developed.

In terms of leadership development, the challenge is to develop attributes that are less about skills and more about knowledge, attitude, values, and judgement.  In tribal communities, leaders tend to be the wise elders, appointed because of their maturity and experience. Do we value wisdom and experience as much, in the West?  And if we do how do we develop it?  Leaders today have to deal with challenges and situations that cannot be predicted – rapidly changing technology, developing global markets, political pressures, media attention to name just a few.

Developing resilience, creativity and the ability to inspire during hard times involves exposing leaders to a wide range of experiences and helping them learn from them.  360° feedback enables them to see the impact they have on others whilst giving them practical challenges that allow them to receive feedback from followers will develop their ability to respond as true leaders.  Making critical decisions where ambiguity and complexity are paramount requires courage, judgement and intelligence; all attributes that develop over time and through involvement and exposure to a broad spectrum of experiences, role models, honest feedback, and rich debate and discussion.

Our leadership programmes are based on the premise that great leaders develop over time and cannot be developed through a few modules.  Get in touch if you want to learn more.