Effective pre-work for management development programs

Most of our clients agree that management development programs are an art – hard to get right, but sublimely beautiful when they hit the mark. So how do you ensure these programs, which consume your company’s most valuable resource – your top management’s time – are effective time after time?One oft-ignored ingredient is pre-work. We found that expert pre-work can help your managers’ prepare better for the intervention, acknowledge its seriousness, link its insight back to their business and diligently implement their learning.

Top management involvement is a vital part of an intervention’s success. A push from top management in the pre-work stage ensures:

1. The development program’s is designed with specific objectives in line with the company’s requirements
2. The scope of the program is clearly bounded – so participants can concentrate their efforts and track effectiveness
3. Send a clear signal on the urgency of the objectives, and therefore the seriousness of the program

Individual input, covering each participant is the second half of the pre-work equation. Typically, a good pre-work team takes inputs from:

1. The participants themselves – to understand individual strengths and approach angles. Participants also get to understand and appreciate top management’s expectations for them from the program
2. Their reporting managers – to zero in on gaps and link these gaps to the overall directive from top management.

A 2-level pre-work plan will help you better target your programs (and its participants). It will also ensure results (and satisfaction) at all levels – the C-suite decision makers driving the program, reporting managers hoping to address pressing concerns, and participants looking for a relevant, interesting intervention that helps them get better at their jobs.