For clients who are not quite ready to adopt The Leadership Challenge® Workshop, but who want to introduce the LPI into their organization, I have found that an LPI Workshop is an excellent way to meet their needs.
What follows is the design I use, which has been successful solution for many of my clients.
Prior to the Workshop and before the LPI is administered, I meet with the key contact and a sampling of executives in order to understand their business issues and their anticipated outcomes for the application of the LPI. I use The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership summary article to provide a foundation of understanding for the participants, and I advise the participants about selecting observers who can provide meaningful feedback. For the administration of the LPI, I work with Fine Points Professionals clientcare@finepointsprofessionals.com. After the LPI is administered, I give the participants a pre-work assignment that includes reading selected pages of The Leadership Challenge.
The Workshop is a 6-8 hour design (depending on the number of participants) and is very similar to the one outlined in the LPI Facilitators Guide. For past clients I have used the LPI Participant Workbook, but I plan to use the LPI Leadership Development Planner in the future. I also use the book, The Leadership Challenge as a resource during the Workshop for reflection questions that create a dialogue within the group.
Welcome
- Senior leaders opening comments regarding his/her LPI experience
Three Pivotal Lessons of Leadership from the Research
- Leadership is a Relationship
- Leadership Is Everyone's Business
- Leadership is Self-Development
Orientation to the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI)
- Jim Kouzes and Barry Posners research
- The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership®
Explanation of the LPI Feedback Report
- Explain data and layout of the Feedback Report
- Analyze LPI data for a hypothetical leader
- Introduce and share initial interpretations of the groups Cumulative Percentile Ranking
Guide Participants Through Their Own Feedback Reports
- How to get the most from the feedback process
- Distribute LPI Reports and acclimate to the data
Analyze and Interpret the LPI Feedback
- Self-analysis of the data using a set of guided workbook questions
- Coach participants during analysis
- Share impressions with 1 to 2 partners
How Leaders Learn
- The Three fundamentals of how people learn to lead
Individual Leadership Development Action Plans
- Leadership Development Worksheet for self-development
- Coach participants during planning
- Share plans with 1 to 2 partners
Share Feedback Results and Action Plans for Development
- Value of sharing feedback
- Guidelines for sharing feedback with manager, co-workers, direct reports and others
- Share one action each leader will take towards leadership development
Next Steps
- The Best Learning Practices
- Follow-up coaching
Immediately following the Workshop, I work as a coach to the individual participants to help them personally interpret the LPI results, to learn to use The Leadership Challenge book as a resource and to make plans for follow-up with those who gave them feedback. The initial coaching time is one hour, followed by two coaching sessions after they have conversations with their observers. The two follow-up coaching sessions include a Values Clarification Exercise as well as crafting a Commitment Memo to their constituents. I have found that this process has been successful for individuals as they create a map for their self-development. I have also found that this experience has led most participants to literally use The Leadership Challenge book as a field guide for their self-development, just as Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner refer to it in their preface.