Executive Development for Middle Managers: Preparing Tomorrow’s Top Leaders

About the Program

Category: Personnel Management, Employment and Training (Best in Category)

Year: 2013

An examination of Henrico County’s workforce in 2011 revealed an astonishing number of top leaders planning to retire in the coming year or two. Preparing middle managers to take over higher levels of responsibility was clearly a critical need for our organization – and we needed to meet this need quickly! We responded with a creative initiative focused on the developmental needs of an important, yet often overlooked, group of employees – those middle managers aspiring to move into an executive role. Using a blend of traditional classroom techniques, facilitated dialog, group projects, and informal learning through conversations, we created a targeted initiative aimed at providing learning opportunities for middle managers and also at engaging upper and middle managers in several knowledge-sharing experiences. This innovative approach resulted in an astonishing 35% of participants experiencing promotions or being assigned increased levels of responsibility since the inception of this initiative. Over 300 middle managers participated, and surveys revealed that 88% improved their leadership abilities as a result of their involvement. Most importantly, these initiatives have ensured smooth transitions at our highest leadership levels so that our new leaders can continue Henrico County’s record of past successes while effectively steering the county into the future.