Intensive Leadership Journeys

Building on our success with multi-modular programmes, our intensive journeys were designed to support businesses that need to bring together participants from multiple geographies when it is not logistically practical to arrange multiple trips for a multi-module programme. Instead, we bring people together physically for one intensive week and then follow this with carefully managed activities delivered through ‘virtual’ one-to-one sessions, meetings and workshops over a six month period. Participant activities undertaken over the six months of the programme are carefully supported and verified for completion by OPDC.

Like all our programmes and events, content is tailored to reflect the values, learning goals and competency needs of the client.  The example below shows a programme developed for one client.

An example intensive leadership development journey: “Maximising Leadership Impact” (MLI)

MLI is aimed at participants who are already members of a senior management team, or are likely to join a senior team in the coming year. As it is designed for multi-site, multi-business unit organisations for which a key objective is to increase cross-functional awareness and capability.  To support this goal, each cohort has 12 participants with diverse roles and from diverse business units and functions.

MLI is a six month programme and versions are run each year in Oxford, UK and Boston, USA.  Each year the programme design is reviewed and modified with the CEO and Group HR Director. Attendees are nominated by the head of their business, or by their Divisional Director.

In line with our general approach of using delegates ‘real and live’ business challenges to help embed learning, some iterations of the programme include work by small groups of participants on business projects sponsored by the CEO that extends beyond the six month core programme.

Programme Outline:

Kick off meeting

• Introduction by executive board member (CEO, President or MD)
• Briefing pre-programme activities
• Overview of the programme
• Question and answer session
• Project group briefings by the project sponsor (if applicable)

MLI intensive residential week

(A typical programme is shown in the diagram above)

• Active learning of leadership behaviours and models applied to everyday business issues
• Dinner and Q&A with senior business leader
• Team work on projects applying models learned (if applicable)
• Participants make commitments for a series of follow-up activities to support their learning and its transfer into their workplace
• Feedback solicited from participants and OPDC consultants

Post residential week activities

• First week:
  • Participants produce a personal action plan which is shared with their MD/President
  • Participants exchange action plans from their coaching sessions with their coach

• Month two:
  • Virtual meeting held within coaching groups to review progress and difficulties regarding the action plans from their coaching session
  • Project review (if applicable)

• Month three:
  • Webinar to review leadership models, answer questions and discuss problems
  • Project review (if applicable)

• Month four:
  • Virtual meeting held within coaching groups to review successes and difficulties in working on leadership learning goals and identify next steps
  • Project review (if applicable)

• Month five:
  • 1:1 coaching session with OPDC Consultant regarding applying leadership learning goals

• Month six:
  • Participants produce a progress report on their personal action plan and share with their MD/President
  • Project review (if applicable)

Programme close

• Certificates of participation, signed by the CEO, are presented to participants by business unit heads
• Delegates give further feedback on the efficacy of the whole leadership development journey at this six month point
• Final project presentations (if applicable)
• Feedback from delegates is analysed by OPDC, the CEO and Group HR Director to inform future MLI programme design