Leadership advisory in brief

• A leadership advisory program starts with gaining insight into an executive's skills.
• To gain this insight, Amrop uses an assessment.
• After the assessment, the manager can determine where he or she wants to focus his or her development.
• After this, targeted work can be done to develop his or her skills so that effective leadership emerges.

Leadership development in 3 steps

A process to achieve effective leadership starts with (1) gaining insight into one's own abilities. Then (2) focus and (3) skills can be further developed.

A leadership advisory program therefore starts with a leadership assessment. This analysis can focus on an individual and/or on team dynamics.

1. Gain insight using a leadership assessment

Using an assessment provides insight into the qualities of a director or a team. In preparing an assessment, Amrop analyzes how an organization is put together and what is needed for the further growth of the organization.

Amrop conducts assessments for:

• individuals
• teams
• scale ups
• family businesses

A leadership assessment can be done for an individual or for a larger team. The results of the assessment are clearly presented in a dashboard. When the assessment is done for a larger part of the management (team), the organization gains a good overview of the areas where leadership development is necessary.

A leadership assessment can also protect an organization from making the wrong choice

An assessment is not only useful at the start of a leadership development program. An assessment can also provide relevant insights when choosing to fill a top position. That's why Amrop also uses assessments in executive search.

After all, the wrong choice for a top executive can be expensive. It is therefore wise not to let a choice for one candidate or another depend solely on the experiences of the members of a selection committee. Have the candidates take an assessment and use this input to arrive at a better choice.

2. Apply focus with the insights from the assessment

Now that a good picture has emerged of the qualities and skills of a director or team, the next step can be taken. Which focus does a director or team choose? What is important for the further development of an individual or a team and what focus fits the objectives of the organization?

Once the focus is clear, a targeted effort can be made to further leadership development of a director or team.

From transactional to transformational leadership

An important question during this phase is also the question of what kind of leadership the organization is looking for. Transactional leadership is focused on keeping the system running. Transformational leadership focuses on giving direction to an organization. These two types of leadership require very different skills.

3. Starting leadership development based on the desired focus

Based on the results of the assessment and the chosen focus, Amrop draws up a leadership development trajectory. Such a trajectory follows a program of approximately one year.

The program is customized, but could include, for example, the following elements:

• A pairing of participants with senior managers from within the organization. This way theory and practice can directly reinforce each other.
• Starting peer review groups.
• The exchange of experiences of senior managers from within the organization with the company's future leaders.
• External speakers who offer depth on certain topics such as personal leadership.
• Deepening on various topics such as group dynamics and how to form successful teams. Other possible themes include effective leadership, creating support or how to deal with a rapidly growing company, both on a tactical and strategic level.

Successful leadership is not for everyone

The leadership development program is not for all employees. While everyone can develop to a greater or lesser extent, there are also limits to what is possible. Much can be developed but not everything can be changed. That is why, when starting a development program, we also look sharply at the potential that someone has. Some people, because of their personality, are more likely to develop successful leadership than others.

Both an organization and a manager benefit from knowing early on whether the outlined horizon is feasible.

Executive coaching provides external sounding board

Perhaps an executive does not need specific development for his or her role, but it is desirable to occasionally spar about problems he or she faces in the organization. Then executive coaching is a solution. In 1-on-1 conversations, an executive coach can help see things clearly. Executive coaching offers a customized solution in addition to leadership development.