A bespoke leadership development programme: Unlocking the Inner Leader
Developed to future-proof senior leaders in the business, ensuring the organisation’s resilience long-term.
Our client
Our bespoke programme was designed for LSI Architects, an award-winning architectural practise based in London and Norwich working with clients in a variety of sectors. Their philosophy is ‘Life Touching Design’, delivering sustainable, innovative, valuable and positive architecture that ‘improves lives, builds communities and enhances society’.
“Our Directors and Senior Leadership Group worked with Karyn and Ella at Maier as two separate cohorts and then we brought the two groups together. Maier has helped us create a stronger, more cohesive group of individuals with enhanced skills in the areas of leadership and communication and we all have a better understanding of what it means to be a leader.
On a personal note, I have felt a definite shift in my confidence and have found myself giving much braver feedback and firmer, more confident, guidance than I would previously have done. I can’t pinpoint what specific element of the work we did with Karyn and Ella made the change but it is there!”
Katrina ParsonsAssociate HR Manager
Their challenge
As an organisation which prides itself on ‘growing its talent from within and investing in people’, LSI was looking for a programme for both their directors and managers to further build leadership capability and create an even higher performing leadership group. We worked closely with the CEO and HR Manager in designing a bespoke leadership programme which aimed to explore the role leadership and management play in LSI’s success.
More specifically, we focused on:
1
Setting a baseline expectation for what ‘good’ leadership looks like at LSI Architects.
2
Understanding personality preferences, strengths, and potential blind spots, allowing them to develop self-awareness and improve their leadership effectiveness.
3
Building a team of managers who think and operate at the ‘right levels’, focusing on ‘what it is only they can do’ and how they empower their own teams.
4
Learning and enhancing leadership and management skills; understanding more about what is needed now and in the future to continue delivering success.
5
Increasing honesty, openness, and trust and providing the tools to create conditions where employees feel that they belong, can challenge the status quo, have courageous conversations and deliver constructive feedback.
Our programme
The key programme elements included a series of bespoke face-to-face workshops, inter-workshop reflective practice, and one-to-one coaching sessions with a Maier coach. These coaching sessions provided ample opportunities for reflection, dialogue, and action planning, while our workshops offered leadership theory, frameworks, and tools to enhance the team’s skills and enable them to apply key learnings in their daily operations.
We integrated psychometrics throughout the programme, fostering stronger bonds between team members and cultivating an appreciation for the diverse range of experiences within the group. This led to improved communication and ultimately resulted in a more cohesive and productive work environment. The sessions further encouraged idea sharing, relationship building, and honest dialogue, leading to increased collaboration as the group clarified their collective purpose and priorities.
Our impact
The programme led to increased comfort levels in both giving and receiving feedback, fostering a culture of honesty. This culture helped address challenges and explore new approaches to ways of working, equipping LSI for more robust and direct business-based conversations.
Additionally, the Maier programme encouraged individuals to engage in self-reflection, identifying necessary behavioural shifts and gaining clarity on personal and collective objectives. Ultimately, participants reported heightened confidence, greater levels of empowerment, and an increase in collaborative working.
