Emerging Leader Program
You Don’t Have to Be a Leader to Lead
Leadership is more than a title. But your talented employees still wonder how they can lead without one. How can they show that they’re ready for the next step? What does staying with your company mean for their career growth?
Attracting, developing, and retaining the next generation of leaders is a top concern of CEOs. But it’s up to HR to help employees lead informally, often without the influence of a formal leadership role.
While you might not be able to promote them immediately, employees should know you’re investing in their growth. That’s why emerging leader programs are critical in improving employee performance and building a strong, capable bench of your future frontline leaders.
By The Numbers
Emerging Leader Programs Deliver Results
See how our clients see significant impact from their emerging leader programs.
85 of informal leaders
say their DDI leadership development program increased their interest in growing in their company.
DDI Impact Evaluations, 2023
76 Increase
On average, DDI emerging leader programs led to a 76% increase in team productivity.
DDI Impact Evaluations, 2023
11 of program participants
Only 11% of emerging leader program participants intend to leave their company in the next 12 months, compared to 70% of employees overall who intend to leave.
DDI Impact Evaluations, 2023; LinkedIn Report, July 2023
How We Can Help Your Emerging Leaders
The secret to developing emerging leaders is helping them gain skills they can apply right away—and without a title. But here’s the tricky part: Everything they learn must be part of a common leadership language that puts emerging and frontline leaders on the same page. That way, if they make the jump to a formal leadership role, they can hit the ground running.
DDI’s emerging leader programs are designed to blend with our frontline leader content. We use the same leadership models, concepts, and tools, but have designed them specifically for individual contributors.
With the right development under their belts, these leaders will learn to show leadership across a range of situations. And before you know it, they’ll be ready to take on direct reports.
What Skills Do Emerging Leaders Need?
Emerging leaders need to practice core interpersonal skills to become more effective in their current roles and prepare for future roles. Here are a few examples of valuable skills that emerging leaders should develop:
- Communicating with impact
- Giving and receiving feedback
- Leading meetings effectively
- Networking to improve collaboration
- Embracing change
- Contributing to an inclusive environment
- Influencing others
Sample Learning Journey
Imagine What Your Program Could Accomplish
How do you create an emerging leader program that develops people for success now and as future managers? Explore our sample learning journey of core leadership skills that employees can use right away to lead meetings, teams, or projects.
This example shows our blended learning approach that leverages both formal courses and self-paced online learning. We can align with your organization’s strategy, whether you’re looking to build connection through group learning or scale faster with self-paced options.
Your Emerging Leader Program Is Within Reach
At DDI, we believe leadership development should be a way of work, something leaders do regularly, on their own and in group settings. And this is especially true for rising leaders.
These employees need to have access to learning that meets their needs in the moment. They also need development that helps them progress from informal to formal leadership roles. But that can require a lot of time and effort from HR.
We make it easy. With a DDI Leadership Development Subscription, you can support individual contributors now and as they grow, all with one solution. No additional contracts. No additional administration. Just continuous growth for your emerging leaders.
Have a Question?
Frequently Asked Questions About Emerging Leader Programs
-
What is an emerging leadership development program?
An emerging leader program is designed for high-performing individual contributors who don’t yet have formal leadership titles. It helps them build foundational leadership skills, such as influencing others, leading meetings, and contributing to change, so they’re ready to take on leadership responsibilities in the future.
-
How do emerging leadership development programs differ from traditional programs?
Emerging leader programs focus on informal leadership: developing skills you can use now even before managing people, rather than waiting for someone’s promotion. They use the same frameworks, models, and tools as frontline or formal leadership programs, but tailored for those not yet in formal leadership roles. Emerging leader programs can also be used to prepare people for future leader roles.
-
What benefits do participants gain from an emerging leadership development program?
Participants typically experience higher engagement, increased productivity, and a stronger sense that their organization values their growth. DDI emerging leader development program participants show large productivity gains and much lower intent to leave compared to overall employees.
-
How can organizations implement an emerging leadership development program?
Organizations can start by aligning learning content to their strategy and using a blended or multi-modal learning journey (live sessions, online learning, and peer discussions) so emerging leaders can apply learning immediately. DDI’s Leadership Development Subscription provides award-winning content in multiple formats for emerging leaders. Organizations also need to support the program that connects informal leadership skills to formal ones, making transitions smoother when roles change.