Introduction
With the help of its Leadership Development Program (LDP), CA Technologies has shown excellent results when it comes to nurturing effective leaders across multiple areas of the company. The one-year journey facilitated by LDP takes employees on a quest to develop new opportunities for learning and enables them to be proactive in the decision-making process regarding KPIs and strategic steps.
Besides, the program has set the objective to improve workers’ resilience, accountability, and coaching, all of which represent crucial components of successful leaders within different environments in which CA Technologies operate. Importantly, 95% of program participants indicated that the LDP exceeded their expectations, and 93% said that it was worth the investment in the development of their careers. Therefore, LDP is a unique approach toward leadership development of which CA Technologies can boast, serving as an example for other companies invested in promoting the leadership qualities of their workers.
Positive Features of the LDP
As to the positive features of the LDP, it should be noted that the program encourages an abundance of learning facets, enables staff to demonstrate their skills to the best ability, as well as has pre-and post-program evaluations to track success. Another advantage of the LDP is that the learning occurs through experiences, social interactions, as well as one-on-one instruction, all of which have been shown to boost employees’ leadership skills. Besides, the diverse learning methods have challenged trainees to be more proactive in business decisions based on available KPIs and to engage in the process without fear of collaboration and risk-taking (Noe, 2020).
It is notable that LDP does not leave employees alone in their efforts to become more effective leaders. The majority of the participants meet with their managers prior to the program to set expectations as to what skills are needed to meet their job requirements. After the program, the meeting is repeated to discuss new skills, track progress, and determine how they can be applied to the job.
Other Metrics for CA Technologies to Collect
When it comes to other metrics that CA Technologies collect to increase the understanding of the effectiveness of leadership development programs, it is important to stay on track with relevant participant data and track their accomplishment. Specifically, it may be a beneficial idea to measure the cost and benefits of LDP implementation to identify improvement opportunities, show whether the value given resonates with participants, as well as inform decisions that may influence investment in future programs.
In addition, multiple and regular self-assessments can provide managers with metrics on the program’s success and the involvement of workers in the process of learning. Although, self-assessments are reflective of trainees’ self-awareness, which is why it could be beneficial to administer knowledge tests to determine whether new skills have been learned. Therefore, a more comprehensive evaluation can show whether employees have actually learned how they can apply leadership skills acquired from LDP in their jobs. Their success will be indicative of the program’s return on investment (ROI) as well as the overall role of LDP in strengthening the position of the company in its competitive industry. While it is important not to stifle workers’ progress with ongoing assessments, it is necessary to introduce more measurements to keep the process more controlled and in line with its objectives.
Strengthening the Evaluation Design
Improving the evaluation design to increase confidence in positive outcomes is an objective that is directly concerned with increased collaboration between program participants and their supervisors (Metwally et al., 2019). For example, one-time meetings before the program implementation and at the end of the program may not be enough, which is why CA Technologies should consider introducing two to three meetings to help employees identify areas where they can improve their leadership efforts. It is imperative that managers are highly knowledgeable of the program and could ask revealing questions and know what is expected from their subordinates.
Supervisors should also be supported in their responsibilities to boost the performance of their teams, which is why it could be beneficial to measure the data on the interactions between managers and employees within the context of LDP implementation (Bak, 2020). When employees have shown to work toward new leadership skills and use them in business settings, their accomplishments should be celebrated.
Concluding Remarks
To conclude, CA Technologies’ program for leadership development is an innovative approach that allows all workers to feel that they are valued and encouraged to grow as professionals and individuals. The LDP has been shown to boost employees’ and new managers’ confidence in decision-making by challenging themselves to assume different roles in a business context. Even though the program can often be challenging because it puts the skills of workers to the test in real-life situations, it is highly beneficial for showing that leaders should never hold themselves back from taking responsibility. It is recommended for CA Technologies to consider introducing additional metrics such as program cost-effectiveness and workers’ knowledge tests to improve the effectiveness of evaluation measures.
References
Bak H. (2020). Supervisor feedback and innovative work behavior: The mediating roles of trust in supervisor and affective commitment. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 559160. Web.
Metwally, D., Ruiz-Palomino, P., Metwally, M., & Gartzia, L. (2019). How ethical leadership shapes employees’ readiness to change: The mediating role of an organizational culture of effectiveness. Frontiers in Psychology, 10. Web.
Noe, R. (2020). Employee training & development (8th ed.). McGraw Hill.