Leadership Boot Camp
Program length: 90 hours (six-months)
The one thing almost everyone agrees on is that we have never needed leaders and leadership more. What seems less clear is what leaders should be doing to effectively lead in challenging times.
In their excellent book, First, Break All The Rules, based on 25 years of Gallup research, authors Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman talk about what great leaders do that others do not. Two questions were explored.
The first question: What do the most talented/productive employees need from their workplace?
The answer: Great leaders. While people join organizations for a variety of reasons, they stay for one - their relationship with their leader. The bottom line: people don't leave companies, they leave leaders.
The second question: How do leaders find, focus and keep talented employees?
Interviews with 80,000 leaders at all levels found that great leaders did that which wasn't easy. The successful leaders that Gallop talked to knew that there were no easy formulas. Their success was their willingness to individualize their leadership style.
These insights along with thousands of hours of independent research led Tero International naturally to a third question. What is required to develop great leaders?
The answer? A systemic, intensive development program that introduces practical applications of proven leadership skills from the cognitive and neuro-sciences. One that combines dynamic skill-building learning with support from mentors and coaches and opportunities to practice the skills developed in the real world for maximum retention, comprehension and application.
First, to equip leaders with the skills to communicate effectively, confidently, competently and persuasively. Further, to build leadership skills to help lead change and growth from within the business.
Second, to build a strong team and network of talent among the participants to further the organization's mission and goals.
Outlined below is the curriculum for a six-month leadership development program that involves more than 90 hours of training. For clients interested in shorter sessions concentrating on a few specific leadership skills, segments of the training can be offered in one- or two-day workshops.
Winning Communication Strategies: Effective communication skills rank high on the lists of the qualities we value in leaders. In a business climate where individuals are over-loaded with information, it is no longer enough to simply communicate data. Success depends on the ability to deliver a message with maximum impact. In this portion of the training, leaders will develop proficiency in the following areas:
Selecting and Leading Top Performers: The ultimate threat to organizational success is not markets, technology, products or competition. It is the ability to attract, lead, develop and retain the best people. Through helping participants know themselves, the training focuses on understanding what leadership is, what it takes to develop leadership abilities and what skills are necessary to exercise leadership in organizations. In this portion of the training, leaders will develop competency in these key areas:
A 360 degree leadership inventory assessment is part of this segment of the training.
Outstanding Personal Achievement: Almost every organization claims that its people are its greatest asset. In truth, an organization's people are its greatest asset only when they can bring out the best in one another. Too often we impede our success because we unconsciously impose limitations on ourselves and others. During the training, leaders learn to bridge the gap between knowing what to do and actually doing it. In this portion of the training, leaders will develop proficiency in the following areas:
To ensure that the workshop participants are equipped not only with the skills necessary for leadership success but also with a comprehensive understanding and knowledge of all aspects of their business, the training is supplemented by several customized half-day organization-specific sessions. These sessions involve tours and presentations from various areas within the company.
High-performing employees serve as mentors for the participants throughout their training experience. Mentor training workshops will help these individuals develop the skills necessary to successfully guide, mentor, coach and provide support. Additionally, they will discover that their role as a mentor is not only a critical one for the participants they work with but is one that is both personally and professionally rewarding.
Each of the participants, as part of their training experience, is required to select a leadership project that will test their emerging leadership skills and further at least one of the strategic goals of the organization.