#leadership-development

#leadership-development

These questions were central to a recent roundtable discussion that we hosted together with Visma. There seems to be a growing awareness that diversity in teams is more than just a moral goal. It demonstrably leads to better performance and innovation. Companies with inclusive teams can leverage new perspectives and innovate more quickly. The key question, therefore, is how organizations can attract women and enable them to grow sustainably toward leadership positions.

A decade ago, fresh out of business school, I joined a tech company in my first business development role in Singapore. Within the first quarter, I had closed two quarters' worth of sales targets. But the environment was abusive. The CEO yelled regularly. Personal and sexist remarks were common, on body, appearance, even what women ate or wore. It was triggering. Having lived through a previous abusive situation, I found myself in constant flight-or-freeze mode.

That's according to recent research from LinkedIn. In a survey of over 10,000 LinkedIn users, nearly 7 in 10 said they would leave their job if they had a bad manager. But only 30% said they want to become a people manager within the next few years. So, why the change? Why doesn't anyone want to be the boss anymore? We could sum up the answer in seven words: Nobody showed them how to lead effectively.

At McKinsey, recruits rotate across industries and geographies, dissecting sprawling problems and creating and defending solutions before skeptical executives. General Electric built its reputation on world-class management programs that groomed future chiefs through exacting operating roles. PepsiCo and Procter & Gamble are legendary for giving young managers full P&L responsibility early and demanding sharp marketing instincts. JPMorgan Chase exposes rising leaders to complex global markets, risk management, and high-stakes client relationships.

In Washington, D.C., more than 100 young activists came together for Advocates for Youth's annual Youth Activist Institute (YAI) - a five-day gathering that has become a cornerstone of youth advocacy and leadership development. This year marked the 25th anniversary of the Institute, underscoring decades of commitment to equipping young people with the tools to fight for sexual health, reproductive justice, and LGBTQ+ rights.

The food and beverage industry has a problem. Despite women making up a significant portion of the workforce in restaurants, bars, and hospitality venues worldwide, fewer than 7% of the world's top restaurants are led by women. It's a staggering statistic that reveals just how much untapped leadership potential exists in our industry. But here's the good news: Rosewood Foundation is doing something about it.

Mentoring has long been a staple of leadership development, usually flowing top-down: senior leaders share wisdom with rising talent. But in today's era of rapid technological change and shifting cultural dynamics, a quieter but growing trend is taking shape: reverse mentoring. In reverse mentoring, junior employees mentor executives, offering insights into emerging technologies, generational expectations, workplace culture, and customer trends. What started as an HR experiment is fast becoming a strategic tool to keep leadership grounded, adaptive, and future-focused.

The specialty snack industry just witnessed a significant leadership transition as Truly Good Foods (TGF) announced the promotion of Eric Leonard to President, effective September 1, 2025.

What drew me to ELB was its vision for driving and supporting human capital transformation and a leadership team committed to driving real business impact. I'm looking forward to helping strengthen the financial infrastructure that will support ELB's next phase of growth.

"Thought leaders typically share their ideas in meetings, articles, books, journals, TED talks, blogs, and webinars. Two standout traits are original and innovative thinking, plus clarity in presentation."

Many leaders can fail to recognize the very traits that others deeply appreciate. Skills like critical thinking, problem solving, or strategic insight can feel so effortless that we don't notice them in ourselves.

At the core of Von Oben Solutions is a structured approach to training and mentorship that starts on day one. New team members receive hands-on guidance not just on sales techniques, but also on communication, leadership, and management skills.

"During a period of transition, organizations often struggle to maintain momentum when a vital leadership position is left vacant. This can lead to stagnation and lost results."

The biggest shift is mental: stop thinking like a training provider and start thinking like a capability consultant. Your job isn't to supply content. It's to solve problems.

In a rapidly evolving business landscape, change is a constant, necessitating a transition towards change readiness instead of traditional change management. This entails fostering a culture that prioritizes flexibility and adaptability among employees.

12min is a productivity tool that distills key insights from over 1,800 bestselling titles into bite-size, 12-minute reads or audio summaries, designed for busy professionals.

The most valuable outcome was discovering capabilities we didn't know existed. Our most technical co-founder, who rarely spoke in client meetings, turned out to be exceptionally skilled at understanding customer needs when he had to step into that role.

"Leadership is becoming a tougher job every day. While organizations can't control the deluge of external challenges they face this year, strategic HR executives can build resilience by using trusted people analytics to forecast needs, build their bench, and reinvigorate the next generation of leaders."

Like a garden, an online community program needs care at every lifecycle stage, ensuring alignment with business strategies, budget needs, and resource allocation.