A novel approach to Leadership Development which integrates learning with teaching

From time immemorial, leadership has been associated with learning. Put simply, leaders are always learning. 

The caliber of any leader is revealed in the way they deal with uncertainty and/or novel situations. Especially during these moments, leaders must learn as much as possible about the environment which they are encountering. Their capacity to learn and adapt is closely correlated to the quality of their ability to lead.

"Leadership and Learning are indispensable to each other."

                                                                      John F. Kennedy

Truly great leaders not only learn, they teach others. They transmit their accrued technical skills, business principles, life lessons to colleagues. Such personalized instruction fosters competence and compliance as well as a mastery of skills, thought independence and action.

In our VUCA world, Apple has understood the importance of learning and teaching for leadership. A recent Harvard Business Review article describes how general managers at Apple spend approximately 30% of their time learning and 15% of their time teaching. This dedication to learning and teaching has been central to their on-going success.

If learning and teaching are such essential leadership ingredients, why are they so absent in formal leadership development programs? 

Traditional leadership development workshops provide participants with information and insights for learning, but they seldom provide a looking glass into the phenomenon of learning itself and its intrinsic connection to leadership.

Ensemble Enabler has pioneered a novel leadership development program which places learning and teaching at its core. This program builds upon our acclaimed Peer-to-Peer learning process which brings colleagues together to learn with and from each other. 

This Peer-to-Peer learning process is led by certified Learning Enablers whose role is to skillfully facilitate the 90 minute learning sessions and foster deep meaning-making on the  module topics together with their colleagues. This Peer-to-Peer learning is designed to create a learning culture by spreading learning throughout an organization. It also provides a unique learning laboratory for the development of both future and existing leaders.

How is Peer-to-Peer learning fully integrated into a leadership development initiative?

PHASE 1 - Design of a Learning Enabler Work Session for Leaders 

The leadership development process begins with a work session designed to generate internal Learning Enablers within an organization. During this leadership development work session, participants take a deep dive into the leadership issues of personality, relationships, influence, motivation and communication. State-of-the-Art diagnosis instruments (Workplace Big 5 ProfileTM, Strengthscope®, FIRO Business® and others) are used by Ensemble Enabler to assist participants to identify their leadership strengths and create a personal leadership development plan.

PHASE 2 - Leaders master the art of moderating Peer-to-Peer Sessions

Unlike traditional leadership workshops, the Learning Enabler process coaches participants to lead Peer-to-Peer learning sessions with their colleagues. During this process, the participants master the fine arts of facilitation (both analogue and virtual) combined with the  effective use of stories and metaphors as enablers for impactful communication.

PHASE 3 - Leaders roll out a Peer-to-Peer learning initiative about leadership in their own organization

The leadership development process has only just begun after the formal end of the Learning Enabler work session. Learning Enablers continue their learning journey by hosting 90 minute learning sessions with their colleagues at least once a month. There is a library of over 100 topics on written by leading professors and worldwide business experts which is available on a broad spectrum of business issues. 

By selecting the topics key to your business and leaders, a Peer-to-Peer learning initiative is custom-designed to meet your organization's requirements.  These topics range from from practical management know-how to championing leadership capacity in the form of  emotional intelligence, trust, accountability, collaboration, decision making, etc. These newly certified Learning Enablers  reap great learning benefits from facilitating learning sessions about leadership with other leaders throughout the organization.

PHASE 4 - Leaders strengthen their networks throughout their organization

The final feature of this leadership development program is the advancement of an unparalleled networking opportunity. Through the invitation strategy of a Peer-to-Peer-Learning initiative, Learning Enablers are teamed up with a different set of leaders from throughout the organization. By teaching other leaders in the organization, the Learning Enablers extend their personal network and strengthen their connections throughout the rest of company as well.

Our Enablers serve as a continual coach and mentor to your leaders 

Throughout this leadership development process, Learning Enablers are coached and mentored by senior members of Ensemble Enabler's experienced team. Monthly calls are scheduled to review the next learning topic. These discussions provide the opportunity to debrief the learning sessions which your leaders have facilitated as well as to review each Learning Enabler’s personal leadership development progress.

Learning how to learn may be the most important skill in today’s rapidly changing business world. Fostering the ability of leaders to develop the capacity for continuous learning and sharing their insights through teaching is key for sustainable leadership development in any organization.

Through processes such as Peer-to-Peer Learning, Learning Journeys, Team Coaching, Leadership Sprints, Learning-Centered Leadership Development, Network Leadership Mentoring, Thematic Large Scale Events, and Pinboards - a cloud-based digital communications platform, Ensemble Enabler supports organizations to gather insights and act upon ideas along their learning journey.

To discover more about the potential of the use of Peer-to-Peer Learning for your organization click here