Part Five: How to design an award worthy leadership programme

We hope you've enjoyed the content from this blog series and it's been helpful in giving you a few pointers when thinking about how you invest in your leader's development. If leadership development is a priority for you right now and you have a burning question or you just fancy a bit of a sounding board, we'd love to chat it through with you.

Drop us a message via our contact form

We thought we'd finish this series with ten of the questions we get asked the most by our clients.

01: What's the number one mistake people make when investing in a leadership programme?

Not getting buy-in from stakeholders and agreeing expectations up front. Contract with the executive team about their sponsorship of the programme, with learners about what you expect from them and with learner's managers about the role they play.

Remove ambiguity and ensure everyone's on the same page.

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02: Should we partner with an external provider?

It depends. If you have a talented L&D team who can support the design and delivery of your award-worthy programme there may be no or little need to engage an external provider.

If you don't have the luxury of an in-house team or value the breadth of experience someone like Coachable brings partnering with an external provider is likely a great choice for you.

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03: Do I have to have a huge budget? Award-worthy sounds expensive.

Aligning your leadership programme to your strategic objectives is key for maximising it's impact. You'll often find the behaviours you need to develop are covered in a tried and tested product, such as Further (our flagship programme).

Of course, if you want a fully bespoke experience you'll need to stretch the budget and lean on internal design resource!

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04: How can I choose the right partner?

As executive coaches, we believe the single most important indicator of a successful coaching relationship is the chemistry we have.

Budget, someone who gets your brand and culture should all influence your buying decisions but ultimately if you think you can have a giggle with them, feel safe to be challenged and enjoy their style you're onto something good. Relationships for the win!

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05: How can I support the team in implementing what they've learnt?

Time, commitment and support. Your leadership programme is just the start - you've got to keep the fire going!

Build in regular touch points to see how your learners are implementing what they've learnt, coach them through challenges, celebrate their wins and continue the momentum way beyond the final session.

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06: What should I do if someone doesn't want to join the programme?

Our friendly advice is don't make them and invest in talent that's engaged in their development. However, this may be indicative that not all your leadership team are aligned on what's expected of them.

Focus on building excitement pre-launch and invite people to apply. Where your programme is mandatory, invite them to be part of decision making.

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07: How do I measure success?

Oooh - this is a biggie! You can measure the success of your programme at three levels:

01. We used to call these 'happy sheets' but this is getting people's immediate reaction and feedback to each session.

02. Test the learning application - invite people to report on how frequently they apply their learnings and increase in confidence.

03. Alongside the above, consider doing a pre and post programme 360.

04. Go back to the start of the project where you defined the measures of success for the programme. How are you working towards these 6, 9 or 12 months down the line?

Remember, leadership development is one intervention of many. It often has ripple effects that impact the whole business - from engagement to retention and your EVP.

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08: What's the best cadence between live sessions?

We actively discourage from 'quick and dirty' training. You won't find us advertising a transformational programme covered in a day - we'd be telling porkies! The cadence should reflect your culture but as a guide little and often works best for behaviour change. Between 2 and 3 weeks works wonders for our happy clients.

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09: Should the live sessions be in person or online?

There's no right or wrong answer to this, other than it should reflect your culture. With most organisations adopting hybrid working a digital-first experience is most popular with clients, allowing global teams to come together and collaborate. But if in person is your thing, we've got you!

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10: How do I get in touch?

We thought you'd never ask 😉

Couldn't be easier - drop us a message via our contact form and we'll be delighted to chat through your award-worthy programme and how we can help you realise your ambition!

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