Method

Method

In order to meet the challenges of tomorrow (and today), it is important to have a flexible mindset and way of life. We also need to plan for a future which is not right in front of our noses. We need leaders who are not scared of such questions. Therefore, In Future Leaders, we use methods to fit such a mindset and to give the participants a worldview which spans over longer time periods. How you choose to act today will determine what impact you will have on the future.

We also have a highly pragmatic view of leadership. The program is therefore designed to close the gap between knowing and doing, through an emphasis on practical and contextual learning. Our focus lies on developing personal strategies through testing, challenging, learning and iterating, aligned with where you are in your life, the people you work with, and the context in which you operate.

GATHERINGS

The program is delivered, depending on your program, through a variety of physical and digital gatherings. Each gathering contains different topics and will go through several tasks, presentations, exercises and challenges. New theories, perspectives and topics are introduced in each of the gatherings. Key content is processed through reflection both on an individual level and in groups. It is also further broken down into practical goals and commitments, taken on by the individual, which results in participants developing their own coping strategies to meet challenges in their professional and personal life.

COLLABORATIVE LEARNING

Through cooperation in groups, we create safe deep-learning environments with trust, vulnerability and understanding, facilitating the challenging of assumptions, biases and change. Such peer-to-peer environments create an important platform for interpersonal learning. It is shown that people learn more effectively through relations with others, using the possibility to discuss, receive feedback and reflect openly. Groups also help the participants to translate their learning into actionable practice that fits their life outside the program.

"KNOWING-DOING GAP" Ann Cunliffe, professor of organization studies in Leeds is highly critical of the concept of leadership as something that can be taught, as we are in Future Leaders. Cunliffe has studied MBA programs worldwide and how they develop leaders. The results show that, far too often, programs and studies focus on theory with little room for participants to implement. Jeffrey Pfeffer, a professor in organizational behaviour at Stanford, explains how this has been shown to have a negative effect on leadership development: people learn the ideal way to lead but rather seldomly manage to apply this when they graduate. This is shown to increase what Jeffrey calls a knowing-doing gap and apathy. The Future Leaders program is designed to close the knowing-doing gap, emphasising practical and contextual learning.

TRAINING AND PRACTICE

The program serves the outside context and framework. Learning new things and creating new structures in the brain takes time. Hence, the most important work participants do is after the gathering, when it is time to turn new knowledge into practice. All participants commit to specific training points between each gathering and are supported to follow through on their commitments.

THE FACILITATORS

The hosts and challengers are facilitators of the program. They are responsible for a group of participants and are important role models and mentors. The facilitators have participated in the program at least once before and are following their own learning program during the year. In this way, they get to use their previous knowledge and continue building the tools in their backpack.

Our job is to host personal learning processes, not to give the "right answer" on any subject.

The program is not aimed at handing out simplified objective truths, but at giving each participant the tools in order to find their own truth. We will all have a unique and exciting journey.

LIFELONG LEARNING

As sad as it is, participation in the Future Leaders program can only last for so long. Therefore one important principle is that our program should function as a stepping stone rather than a final destination or individual goal. Through the program, the talents learn techniques, gain self-confidence, learn how to learn, how to develop themselves and how to develop others. The structure, support system, relations, and content are all designed to aid you in developing this process.

Making the Future Leaders program a starting arena for lifelong learning.