What do you do if your leadership development program is not improving your team's performance?

While not the only goal, I’m always looking at retention within the company. So many other things that are difficult to measure can be summed up in retention data from people you want to stay.

I'd ask whether our leadership development program teaches our leaders how to build high-performing teams. Most programs don't. It's well-documented that the leadership development industry has an "individual bias." They help leaders build their individual & interpersonal skills (e.g., self-awareness, conflict management) and how to coach individuals. LD Programs rarely provide the tools or knowledge needed to build and coach teams (e.g., how to build an effective team culture). My colleague Steve Wolff and I use our Team Emotional Intelligence Framework (see our HBR article) to teach leaders how to build and lead a high-performing, collaborative, team culture. Leaders need to start asking for programs that teach team culture development.

Collect feedback from participants, their direct reports, and other stakeholders involved in the program. Analyze quantitative data such as performance metrics, productivity measures, and other relevant KPIs before and after the program. Identify gaps between the program's objectives and the actual outcomes.

I suggest a double-loop approach: Avoid immediately adopting a new strategy (what and how); instead, examine your underlying assumptions (why). Questioning assumptions is crucial as it will help uncover hidden biases and outdated practices, leading to more effective leadership development strategies. Ask questions like, "What assumptions are behind our current leadership training methods, and are they still valid in the emerging environment?" You also need to seek diverse perspectives on your program's effectiveness. Move your thinking beyond 'happy sheets'; this is about your leaders' and managers' practical demands, so you'll need data that provides insights into the gaps between your program's intentions and actual impact and results.

There are two aspects to employee training. The first is about developing individual skills and capabilities that will assist in helping employees perform their jobs better, gain new knowledge, and advance their careers. The second is about developing employees to collectively and effectively contribute towards improving the company’s business performance. Many organisations put a lot more focus on the former with the hope that employees can deliver on what the latter sets out to achieve – improved business performance. That seldom works. Even on the rare occasion that it does, it is either due to a few exceptional individuals pulling their weight or because the company is piggy-backing on an upward trending economic wave.

Look at the behaviors and priorities of the senior management. If they are not role-modeling the behaviors no leadership program will make a difference. If they dont ask for feedback, recognize others, or show humility no leadership program will make a difference.

As a leader, it's important to ask ourselves, "What's the rest of the story?" One opportunity to gather great insight is to host small (8-10 staff members) lunches, coffees, or meetings. Work hard to prepare open-ended questions (through group work to begin) and really listen. We need to create safe spaces that allow the employees with the least opportunity to provide insight to talk! Cultures are changed by doing so.

As Deming once said, "Every system is perfectly designed to get the result that it does." When you're expending a lot of effort, expertise and resources in leadership development and the change isn't showing up in the team's outcomes, there are often unchecked assumptions that are keeping the old ways in place. Many leaders say they have a bias for action. In my experience, this translates to asking the wrong questions, which leads to incomplete feedback and inaccurate data. If you want to surface and transform the assumptions and limiting narratives that impede change and limit greatness, you have to be willing to ask uncomfortable questions, listen to and assess the data with a systems lens rather than a linear one, and act accordingly.

Identify performance gaps: analyze the current performance of the participants and look for patterns or common challenges that may be hindering performance. This will help to see if your Programm addresses the right issues. Also consider additional or alternative interventions, because sometimes a development program alone is not sufficient or the right measure.

Consider incorporating different learning modalities, such as coaching, mentoring, and job shadowing, to reinforce development efforts.

Based on your analysis, make necessary adjustments to the program's content, delivery methods, or overall approach. Consider involving subject matter experts, external consultants, or industry best practices to enhance the program's effectiveness. Implement the revised program and closely monitor its impact on team performance using the identified metrics. Be prepared to make further adjustments based on ongoing feedback and results.

Once a structured approach to Leadership development is taken up, one would find that all stakeholders get well involved and there is a Business is specific driver for training with defined Outcomes. This structured approach should include: 1. Training / Intervention should be delivered in planned manner, feedback taken and shared. 2. Review of development plan progress with specific leader by the Manager. 3. Review of overall Leadership development programme with Outcome metrics

When implementing the program, start with a pilot program. This is to test the effectiveness and achieve the goal intended. It can start with a small pool of leaders. Throughout the pilot, monitor and get feedback on the program. The feedback will provide insights in what needs to be adjusted. When the program is successful, implement it organisation wide.

If the program was failing, I would consider a couple of things: 1- Are we solving the right problem? Leadership is a very broad topic, and you may be solving the wrong concerns. 2. Do you have the right buy-in? Leadership can sometimes be seen as an "extra" thing to do and as such you need the right people to influence and motivate the teams to participate. 3- Are you incentivizing enough? Do leaders see the value of the program? Is there a want and desire to complete it and practice what they learn?

Another thing to consider is the alignment of the program to the business goals of the organization. Ensure the program focuses on performance outcomes that support key business priorities.

If my leadership development program is not improving my team's performance, I would reassess the program's content and delivery methods to identify potential shortcomings. Then, I would solicit feedback from team members to understand their perspectives and challenges. Based on this feedback, I would adjust the program accordingly, incorporating new strategies or focusing on specific areas that are most relevant to my team's needs. Additionally, I would monitor progress closely and provide ongoing support and guidance to ensure that the leadership development efforts translate into tangible improvements in team performance.