Leaders who understand their impact can create organisations that are driven by motivation, well-being and high performance. How it feels to work in a particular organisation or workgroup very often comes down to leadership.
Leadership Development
Koru International are pleased to partner Robertson Cooper, a leading business psychology company, founded by Professor Cary Cooper and Professor Ivan Robertson.
The ‘Leadership Impact’profiling tool, the ‘ASSET’ survey and ‘Vector Analysis’, are solutions that take account of Cary Cooper’s extensive work on stress and well-being at work, and recent research carried out by Ivan Robertson. This work was sponsored by the Cabinet Office and addressed the question of what constitutes “World Class Leadership Development”. Interestingly, this research considered leadership development programmes provided for top management in a range of world class public and private sector organisations, looking to define leadership ‘best practice’.
Research Findings
Results from the research identified key factors that influence the effectiveness of any leadership development initiative:
- Organisational readiness – there needs to be a relevant context and support for any behavioural change. Without it, change initiatives will fail.
- Individual readiness – individuals in leadership positions need to see the benefit of committing to a development programme
- Development activities – any theoretical input must be underpinned by practical activities
- Transfer of learning – learning must be applied to real workplace issues
- Embedding – systems, processes, values and any other barriers to change must be adjusted to allow positive behaviour changes to become embedded into the culture of the organisation.
The Leadership Impact Profiling Tool
‘Leadership Impact’ is a self-completion profile based on the Neo-PIR that helps leaders to identify the ‘impact’ that they are likely to have on those around them. It explores the positive aspects of their strengths but also how strengths can become risks if they are over used. What makes this profile stand out from other 'leadership profiles' is that the research from which it is formed provides the framework that links leadership style directly with motivation, well-being and performance.
Confidential feedback on their natural leadership style, with guidance on getting the right balance of challenge and support, concentrates on keeping pressure positive for themselves and their work group.
The ASSET well-being at work audit
The ASSET audit is a highly effective method of measuring staff engagement and perceived performance, and identifies sources of stress in the workplace. Its findings educate leaders in how staff are feeling, identifies for the leader what risks there are, and gives them an understanding of the impact their own style has on the team. It can provide a clear picture of performance and well-being levels in the workforce by highlighting ‘hot spots’ for targeted interventions to improve performance and well-being.
Vector Analysis
Vector analysis asks the question, “What connections are there between your style and the motivation and well-being of the people in your workgroup?” Vector Analysis compares ‘Leadership Impact’ findings with those from the ‘ASSET’ audit, allowing the leadership team to enhance their understanding and to plan how to manage:
- The cumulative impact of their individual styles on the organisation as a whole
- Other factors affecting the motivation, well-being and performance of the team
Programme Benefits
Leaders taking part in the programme receive a detailed individual report together with confidential one-to-one reviews to support their learning. This confidential feedback on their natural leadership style, with guidance on getting the challenge-support balance right, concentrates on keeping pressure positive for themselves and their work group.
These solutions promote the importance of achieving a balannce between performance improvement and well-being, which is key to our ethos. Client organisations who have benefited from these solutions include The National School for Government which, significantly, now incorporates ‘Leadership Impact’ in their leadership development courses.