Leadership Development

Leadership Development grounded in Essential Leadership Conversations

Many organisations promote strong technical or commercial performers into leadership roles without defining what effective leadership actually requires.

The shift from individual contributor to leader is significant and being good at the work does not automatically translate into being able to deliver through other people.

Leading well requires the ability to set direction, give feedback that strengthens performance, hold others to account fairly, and navigate conversations that shape culture and results.

Leadership development at this level is about more than learning techniques.

It involves understanding oneself as a leader, developing an authentic leadership approach, and making a deliberate shift from delivering personally to delivering through others.

It requires strengthening the mindset of a leader, building the practical skills to handle conversations and decisions well, and developing the confidence to apply those skills consistently in real situations.

“Developing effective leaders means developing how they think, not just what they do.”

Our approach to Leadership Development

We design leadership development programmes that strengthen the conversations managers and leaders need to handle well if performance is to be consistent.

Each programme begins with clarity about what leadership requires in your organisation. We define expectations explicitly, rather than assuming they are understood.

From there, we combine behavioural insight, structured workshops, and applied practice focused on the conversations that matter most: performance and accountability, feedback, development, challenge, direction-setting, and collaboration.

Psychometric assessment and 360 feedback can be integrated to provide individual insight and shared language around strengths, impact, and development priorities.

Participants work on real situations, not abstract theory, so learning translates directly into day-to-day leadership behaviour.

Where appropriate, coaching is woven through the programme to support individual integration and sustained change.

A 2023 Gallup analysis of 2.7 million employees found that teams with exceptional leaders achieved 23% higher profitability, 18% increased productivity, and 66% better employee wellbeing scores.

Who we work with

We work with both newly appointed and experienced managers.

For new managers, the focus is often on building early confidence in setting expectations, giving feedback, and stepping into authority without losing authenticity.

For more established leaders, the work may centre on strengthening consistency, developing others more deliberately, or refining how they handle complexity and pressure.

Programmes can be delivered as a structured leadership pathway over several months, or as focused workshops targeting specific areas such as performance conversations, feedback, coaching, or leading through change.

“When leaders talk differently, they think differently — and teams follow.”

Leaders drive organisational performance.

Effective leadership development programmes create the capability your organisation needs to perform at its best.

  • Organisations with effective leadership development programmes have 40% lower turnover among their high potential employees (Corporate Leadership Council)

  • Top performing leaders generate 5x more shareholder value over 5 years (McKinseys 2023)

  • Leadership development investments yielded returns of up to 200% when measured against productivity gains and reduced turnover costs (Avolio, Avery & Quinsberry, 2010)

  • Average ROI of 168% for organisations implementing structured leadership development programmes (Colllins & Holton, 2004)

  • Managers influence up to 70% of variance in employee engagement. Highly engaged employees had a 21% higher profitability and 17% higher productivity compared to those with lower engagement (Gallup, 2020)

Why invest in Leadership Development?

“Leadership development is most effective when it builds on who someone already is.”

Designed for Impact

Leadership development only works when it translates into day-to-day behaviour.

Our programmes are grounded in established adult learning theory and designed for application under pressure, not just understanding in the room.

Sessions are practical, experience-based and built around real leadership challenges rather than abstract models.

Participants work on live issues, practise difficult conversations, and learn from one another’s experience through structured discussion, rehearsal and peer feedback.

Individual focus areas are identified early, strengthening ownership and relevance.

We design for depth rather than volume. Each session concentrates on a small number of high-impact behaviours, enabling deliberate practice and reflection.

Psychological safety and inclusion are built into delivery, making it possible to explore challenge, disagreement and uncertainty constructively.

Follow-up reflection and consolidation ensure learning transfers into the day job and becomes embedded in everyday leadership practice.

We work with individual leaders to identify their strengths, drivers, preferences and personality patterns. This helps them communicate and act in ways that feel credible and authentic.

Our aim is not to turn people into a particular type of leader, but to increase their range, judgement and impact while remaining grounded in their own values and style.

This sense of authenticity strengthens confidence and helps overcome ‘imposter syndrome’.

Ready to explore how this could help your organisation?

Contact us

FAQs

  • Management training often focuses on processes and tools. Leadership development addresses the behavioural capability required to translate strategy into consistent performance through people. It strengthens judgement, communication, accountability, and the ability to lead in complex or pressured environments.

    Our programmes work at three levels: mindset, skillset and confidence. Leaders build practical capability, but also the judgement and identity required to lead consistently under pressure.

  • Developing future leaders begins with clarity about what leadership requires in your context, not just who appears promising. It involves identifying readiness gaps, pinpointing critical gaps in knowledge or experience, and building capability deliberately over time.

    We combine structured development input, behavioural insight and applied practice, while also strengthening the support around emerging leaders. That may include clearer expectations from senior sponsors, more deliberate stretch assignments, or better feedback structures. The aim is to build both competence and credibility in a way that is sustainable.

  • Improving leadership capability requires clarity about what good leadership looks like in your context, and consistency in how it is practised.

    That means being explicit about expectations, strengthening how direction is communicated, how feedback and accountability are handled, and how development conversations are conducted. It also means reducing variability between teams so that performance does not depend on which manager someone happens to report to.

    Sustained improvement comes from deliberate practice, shared language, and reinforcement over time, rather than one-off events.

  • Leadership transitions are high-risk moments. Whether someone is moving from technical specialist to manager, stepping into senior leadership, or expanding their scope, the shift requires more than new responsibilities.

    We help leaders clarify expectations, adjust their leadership identity, and strengthen the conversations that define their new role. This reduces early missteps and increases confidence during critical transition periods.

  • Focused interventions can improve specific conversations immediately, particularly around feedback and accountability. Broader leadership development programmes typically run over several months to embed sustained behavioural change and identity-level shift.

    The depth of change required determines the timeframe.

  • Impact is measured at behavioural and organisational level.

    At behavioural level, we look for observable shifts in how leaders communicate expectations, handle challenge, develop others, and make decisions. This may be assessed through 360 feedback, structured review, or direct observation.

    At organisational level, we examine indicators such as attrition patterns, escalation trends, delivery reliability, and leadership bench strength. The purpose is not to prove attendance, but to see whether leadership behaviour is strengthening execution capacity.