With professionals juggling competing priorities and attention spans shrinking, leadership development has never been more important—or more challenging.
But traditional approaches to developing leaders often fall short.
In a recent conversation with Rachel Cooke on the “Excellence at Work Podcast” by Brandon Hall, I discussed how our approach to leadership development has evolved to meet today's unique challenges.
What's becoming increasingly clear is that content alone—even excellent content—isn't enough.
The Leadership Development Paradox
One of the most interesting concepts we discussed is the leadership development paradox. This occurs when organizations invest heavily in developing individuals already designated as high performers or high potentials, while others receive less attention. The result? A widening gap that impacts both individuals and organizations.
This approach not only misses potential “diamonds in the rough,” but it can also hamper diversity efforts and weaken leadership pipelines.
With only 12% of companies reporting confidence in their leadership bench strength, according to DDI's Global Leadership Forecast, we simply can’t afford to be so selective about who receives development.
Want to learn more about how we help organizations build sustainable high performance? Contact us here or schedule a briefing.
The Three C’s of Effective Leadership Development
Through our work with Fortune 500 companies and the development of our New Lens® platform, we've identified three critical elements that must be present for leadership development to truly stick:
Content that's digestible and relevant. With professionals having only about 24 minutes per week for development (typically interrupted three times), traditional training models don't fit modern work patterns. Micro-learning—content delivered in two- to seven-minute segments—better matches today's realities.
Coaching from multiple sources. Effective coaching doesn't just come from external coaches or even managers. Peer coaching has emerged as a powerful tool that creates lasting impact. In fact, research shows that initiating peer-to-peer connections earlier in someone's career can eliminate disparities in promotion rates across different groups.
Connection that builds networks and support systems. Particularly in hybrid and remote environments, feeling connected to others is crucial. Creating cohort-based learning experiences helps participants build relationships that provide support well beyond any formal program.
Moving Beyond Events to Create a Learning Culture
Perhaps most importantly, we need to stop thinking about learning as an event and start embedding it into our organizational cultures. This means finding ways to make learning accessible, relevant and as easy as possible for both employees and HR implementers.
As we look to the future of work, the organizations that will thrive are those that create environments where learning happens naturally and continuously—not just during scheduled training sessions.
Want to hear more about creating effective leadership development in today's complex environment? Check the full podcast, where I dive deeper into these concepts and share specific strategies for implementing them in your organization.
Don’t wait for performance to drop before taking action. Discover how the New Lens® platform helps organizations support managers with bite-sized, actionable learning—built for today’s fast-paced, high-stress environments.