Upskilling managers and future leaders in a fast-growing UK pensions business

Background

A UK pensions business experiencing rapid growth faced the challenge of developing a comprehensive programme to upskill their managers and future leaders. The primary objective was to enable these individuals to effectively contribute to the company’s growth, employee retention, and the achievement of strategic goals.

How we helped

To address this challenge, we designed and delivered a series of programmes, including Equip to Lead, Equip to Manage, and Future Leader. These programmes were attended by a quarter of the company’s employees and aimed to differentiate the roles of managers and leaders while enhancing their capabilities. As a result, participants became more agile through improved influencing, empowerment, delegation, accountability, and time management skills.

In addition, the programmes encouraged managers and leaders to be actively involved with their team members by providing support, motivation, encouragement, and managing mental health and well-being to boost overall performance. The training also developed skilled coaches who could attract, retain, and develop talent, offer constructive feedback regularly, and handle difficult conversations when necessary.

Results

The upskilling programme led to several positive outcomes for the company. These included the ability to promote an integrated development journey from team leader to future “C” suite positions, both internally and for new recruits. Management and leadership were recognised as essential capabilities requiring development, and the organisation demonstrated its commitment to providing support in these areas.

Furthermore, there was an increase in scores for engagement and contribution to leadership, strategy, and management performance, showcasing the effectiveness of the upskilling programme.