Leadership development: programmes that work

Managers shape how people work, whether they stay and whether they grow. At the same time, many are promoted because they were excellent specialists — not because they already knew how to lead. The move brings new tasks: agreeing goals, holding conversations, resolving conflicts, standing behind decisions, delegating. Anyone who has not learned this falls back on what they know: doing the specialist work themselves.

Leadership development starts here. It differs from technical training mainly in that behaviour, attitude and relationships are at its centre. That cannot be ticked off in a course.

Requirements change with each leadership level. A programme should distinguish them.

Good programmes combine several learning formats over a period of a few months. Knowledge alone does not change leadership behaviour; practice without reflection entrenches old patterns.

No transition is as delicate as the first leadership role, especially within one's own team. The new manager has to build distance without seeming arrogant and make decisions that former colleagues will not like. At the same time, their own manager expects results quickly.

A dedicated learning path for this transition pays off. Ideally it starts before the first day in the new role and includes an early role-clarification conversation with their own manager, the key knowledge units in the first weeks, a buddy from among experienced managers, and fixed reflection points after 30, 60 and 90 days. Universe's People Development area includes the templates “Onboarding for new managers” and “From colleague to manager”; conversation practice can be done with the course player's role play, in which an AI character plays the other side.

The most meaningful feedback comes from the team. Regular, anonymous pulse surveys on clarity, support and the quality of conversations show whether anything is changing. Metrics can add to that: team turnover, sickness rate, outcomes of employee reviews. Timing matters — leadership behaviour changes over months, not weeks.

Make sure surveys stay anonymous. For small teams, results should only be shown above a minimum number of responses, so that individuals cannot be identified.

Many programmes fail not because of content but because of format. A common mistake is the one-size-fits-all approach: every manager attends the same seminar regardless of experience and remit. Experienced team leads are bored, new managers overwhelmed. Programmes per leadership level with shared elements for exchange work better.

A second mistake is missing transfer. Someone who spends three days in a seminar and returns to the same routines on day four rarely changes anything. Practical tasks, reflection points and the involvement of their own manager help apply what was learned. A third mistake is dishonesty about the conditions: teaching managers to hold development conversations without giving them time to do so breeds cynicism. Leadership development therefore also has to ask which tasks managers can hand off so that they can lead.