The first question I ask in a cultural consultation is: Is courage building a priority in this organisation?

• If the answer to that question is NO then it’s possible that your organisation is not yet ready to commit to a cultural change programme delivered in partnership with Withinsight. That is fine and dandy. If later on down the line you wish to get back in touch you know where to find us.

• If the answer is, I don’t know. What actually is courage building ? Then I can spend some time with you and your senior leaders to explain what is meant by courage building and how this one skill, when prioritised and committed to, can indeed shift an entire organisation.

• If the answer is YES then we can proceed, using our diagnostic tools, to identify where you are performing well and where the real problems lie. Withinsight uses a data based approach to identify what is working and what needs attending to. We continue to gauge progress using this same tool. At the end of our time together we will evaluate what’s been learned, changed, embedded, shifted and what do we need to keep working on to ensure this progress continues. We also offer further activities to keep the work alive in the organisation and keep spreading those courage skills. Courage is contagious after all.

I believe you need to put the education where the power lies and that is in the senior leadership team of every organisation. Undoubtedly, the most effective and economical way to shift an entire culture is to run a leadership diagnostic of the C-suite and Senior leadership team, take them through a transformational leadership programme together and then cascade this learning down through their teams. However, I also understand that this is a big commitment. If it feels like too big of a commitment then you can run a pilot programme with a group of willing leaders and use them to see what they learn and what they identify as needing to change in the organisation as a result of what they have learned in the Dare to Lead Programme.

If your leadership training programme is providing the necessary learning and your senior leaders are modelling an elite, high performing team aligned with your cultural values then all power to your Idris elbow. If however you feel there is something missing or you recognise unhealthy behaviours in yourself or your leaders then maybe getting an external perspective and exploring a new to learning a new approach may shake things up. Withinsight often works in partnership with HR and Learning and Development Teams to ensure that what you offer your senior leaders is complimentary with other training programmes and aligned with the over arching strategic leadership development goals.

This is something I hear a lot and this tells me that your current culture falls into fire fighting and as a result , your leaders are vulnerable to burn out. Investing in leadership training builds loyalty by showing your leaders you are interested in them not just for their performative value but in them as a whole person. Giving leaders the time to work on perpetual business issues with some allocated space and with some support of an external facilitator resolves issues more quickly and more effectively. Giving your leaders the opportunity to learn for themselves and from each other increases team cohesion and trust. High trust teams perform better and make better business decisions. I could on but you get the idea.