Leadership for All

Leadership for All

A new survey finds that many organizations are opening their leadership-development programs to all workers, with the hope of retaining the future leaders who were identified through participation.

For most working folks, an invitation to participate in their organization's leadership-development program is just like an underclassman being asked to the senior prom, in that it's usually reserved for a select few and is an enviable badge of an ascendant status within the hierarchy.

So it may come as a surprise that nearly one in 10 employers that have leadership-development programs open them to all workers, according to a survey of senior-level business, human resource and management professionals by the New York-based American Management Association, in partnership with the Seattle-based Institute for Corporate Productivity.

When asked "What level of employee in your organization participates in your most high-profile leadership-development programs?" about two-thirds (65 percent) of the 939 respondents listed director.

Vice president, at 63 percent, was next, closely followed by "targeted high potential," at 62 percent.

Nearly 10 percent of the organizations responded by saying their programs are open to anyone in the organization.

"To be sure, the great majority of organizations focus their development resources on high-potential managers presumed to be headed for positions of responsibility," says Sandi Edwards, senior vice president for AMA's Corporate Learning Solutions.

"But we found that an unexpected percentage of employers offer leadership development across the board," she says. "They may feel the policy addresses the growing demand by individuals for opportunities to learn and grow, and that it thereby boosts their commitment while also bolstering their overall organizational performance."

But, Edwards says, most organizations believe selectivity is the key to running a practical and effective leadership-development program.

"Not only does it leverage limited development dollars, but it may also serve as an incentive for mid-level people who want to be included on the fast-track to more expanded roles," she says.

She adds that smaller organizations are more likely to open their leadership-development programs to all employees.

"Likewise, the largest organizations would find it impossible to open up programs to everyone," she says.

While allowing all employees to opt in to such programs may not be feasible, organizations may be able to offer other development opportunities, she says -- such as functional-skill training that enhances job performance in areas