How can you create bespoke leadership development initiatives that results in organisational transformation, whilst ensuring impact and measuring ROI?

The million-dollar question, as complex as it is, has one simple answer: data.

Data should be integral to all leadership development initiatives, from gauging initial need, early programme design, through to measuring impact and success.

Identifying the need for development

By taking advantage of industry-leading survey tools, you can accurately identify how your organisation’s talent performs in areas key for successful leadership.

Our preferred toolkit is Korn Ferry’s catalogue of assessments centred around leadership development. The research behind the toolkit is unparalleled, and users have their data compared to Korn Ferry’s database of professionals and high performers.

For example, if you’re looking to identify junior employees with high potential and fast-track their progress, the Korn Ferry Assessment of Leadership Potential can identify these key individuals, enabling you to deliberately develop future executives to ensure sustainable growth within your organisation.

Data and Design – The Same Coin

Data should be integral to design – otherwise it’s guesswork.

Start with gathering information about your participant’s current performance against the key facets of a successful leader. Incorporate their developmental needs uncovered from the surveys within the design process of the programme.

What results is a high-quality programme with modules centred around key areas for improvement.

This guarantees participant engagement. Not only are participants developed in areas key to improving their performance, they can understand and visualise the need for improvement within these areas thanks to the science behind the programme.

The Metrics of Success

Using data is the most valuable way of determining a programme’s ROI. There are several metrics that can be used to determine and measure impact, including:

• Average engagement and value creation felt by participants, determined by polls ran at the end of workshops and modules.
• Having participants repeat surveys or assessments that they took part in near the beginning of the course, to track improvement.
• Success should be defined from the start, allowing the metrics of the programme to be more easily tracked – such as career progression or promotion of participants.
• Other values that are key indicators of engagement, such as turnover rate compared to the wider organisation.

If you want to learn more about how to use data to drive leadership development initiatives, with practical examples drawn from our successful L&D venture Leadership Excellence – currently shortlisted in 2 categories in the 2022 Employee Experience Awards – join Vice President of L&D Simon Dick at Wood Plc and Management Dynamics directors Alison Grieve and Jenni Miller for our webinar People Excellence.

We hope to see you there!

By Rowan Page