Leadership development systems
Organisations influence leadership behaviour every day.
Organisations don't develop leaders through programs alone.
They develop leaders through the system that surrounds them.
Through the expectations leaders are held to. The conversations they have. The opportunities they are given to practise. The feedback they receive. The behaviours that are recognised, rewarded and reinforced.
Together, these conditions influence an organisation's leadership development system (LDS).
Overlooking or ignoring this system risks undermining your investment in leadership programs.
Leadership programs matter. They just can't carry the whole load.
Organisations that consistently develop capable leaders don't rely on programs alone.
They create an environment that continually supports leadership growth and use each investment as an opportunity to strengthen it further.
Not simply developing better leaders today, but strengthening the organisation's capacity to develop leaders tomorrow.
That's when leadership development becomes something an organisation does, not simply something it buys.
The LDS Wheel™
An organising principle for understanding, designing and strengthening leadership development systems.
The LDS Wheel™ provides seven lenses for understanding how well your organisation supports leadership development over time.
Because sometimes the most valuable leadership development decision isn't what program to run next.
It's understanding whether the system around those programs helps or hinders leadership development in the first place.
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How leadership development adapts to the environment and changing organisational needs.
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How leadership development aligns with organisational purpose, strategy and values.
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How leadership development extends to leaders at all levels and beyond formal programs.
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How leadership development becomes embedded into everyday work and people practices.
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How leadership development maintains a throughline over time rather than being delivered as once-off initiatives.
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How senior leaders actively shape, champion and reinforce leadership development.
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How the organisation measures leadership development outcomes to continually improve its approach.
Understand your system to guide future investment.
The LDS Snapshot provides a structured way to understand how leadership development currently operates across your organisation and where strengthening the system will have the greatest impact.
Rather than evaluating individual programs in isolation, it examines the conditions that shape leadership development across the organisation.
Using the LDS Wheel™ as an organising principle, we'll identify where your system already supports leadership development, where friction exists and where targeted changes could improve the effectiveness of future investment.
The result isn't simply a diagnosis.
It's a practical picture of your leadership development system today, with clear priorities for strengthening it tomorrow.
Forming your snapshot
Every LDS Snapshot is tailored to your organisation and developed collaboratively.
Together, we'll build a shared understanding of how leadership development works today, identify the conditions that most influence it, and determine where change is likely to create the greatest value.
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Key question
How does leadership development currently work across the organisation?
Together we:
Review your current leadership development approach, people practices and existing initiatives, and work with key stakeholders to understand how leadership development is experienced across the organisation.
Outcome
A shared understanding of your current leadership development system and the organisational context in which it operates.
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Key question
Where is the system already supporting leadership development, and where is it creating friction?
Together we:
Use the LDS Wheel™ to explore the conditions influencing leadership development and identify opportunities to strengthen them.
Outcome
A clear picture of how your leadership development system is performing across the seven dimensions of the LDS Wheel™.
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Key question
Where will strengthening the system have the greatest impact?
Together we:
Review the findings, identify priorities and determine which opportunities are likely to create the greatest value.
Outcome
A shared view of where future leadership development investment should be focused.
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Key question
What should happen next?
Together we:
Translate the findings into practical recommendations for strengthening your leadership development system.
Outcome
A snapshot of your leadership development system today, with a clear direction for strengthening your organisation's capacity to develop leaders tomorrow.
Your LDS Snapshot includes:
01 Visual summary
A picture of your current leadership development system highlighting its strengths, opportunities for improvement, and how the seven dimensions of the LDS Wheel™ interact.
02 Key insights
A synthesis of the themes, opportunities and sources of friction most influencing leadership development across your organisation.
03 Recommendations
Practical recommendations for strengthening your leadership development system and increasing the impact of future investment.
04 Next steps
Clear priorities for where to invest next, whether that means strengthening specific parts of your leadership development system, improving an existing program or designing a new approach.
05 Sponsor playback session
A facilitated discussion with sponsors and key stakeholders to review the findings, build shared understanding and agree on the way forward.
Understanding your leadership development system is only useful if it helps you strengthen it.
Strengthen your organisation’s capacity to develop leaders.
The LDS Snapshot identifies where change is likely to have the greatest impact. What happens next depends on what we find.
For some organisations, the priority is to clarify what good leadership looks like. For others, it's strengthening sponsorship, equipping line managers to support development on the job, improving evaluation or addressing an existing program that isn't creating the change it should.
I can work with you to turn those priorities into practical changes, designing, building, and implementing the parts of your leadership development system that will make the biggest difference.
An LDS Snapshot can provide the starting point, but it doesn't have to. Where the priority is already clear, we can begin with the part of the system that needs strengthening most.
Depending on what your organisation needs, that might mean:
Leadership frameworks and expectations
Clarify what effective leadership looks like in your organisation and translate it into practical expectations that guide development, performance and everyday leadership decisions
Sponsorship education and enablement
Help senior leaders understand their role in leadership development and equip them to actively champion, model, and reinforce the leadership behaviours the organisation is trying to build.
Line manager capability
Build line managers' confidence and capability to support development through everyday conversations, feedback, coaching, opportunities to practise, and on-the-job reinforcement.
Leadership development integration
Connect leadership expectations, programs and people practices so they reinforce one another and create a more coherent approach to developing leaders over time.
Build the system. Compound value.
Every improvement to your leadership development system can make future development more effective.
Clearer leadership expectations give development greater focus. Better-equipped line managers strengthen on-the-job application. More active sponsors reinforce what matters. Stronger evaluation improves future decisions. Better connections between programs and people practices help development become part of how the organisation works.
Each improvement strengthens the environment in which leaders develop.
Over time, those improvements add up.
The organisation becomes more deliberate, more consistent and more capable of developing leaders.
That's how leadership development becomes an organisational capability, not simply a series of initiatives.
Let's work out what will create the greatest impact.
Whether you're reviewing your leadership development system, strengthening a specific part of it, or deciding where to invest next, I'd love to hear what you're trying to achieve.
Together, we'll identify what will create the greatest impact for your leaders and organisation.