Introduction

For achieving business excellence in an era of rapid change, those in leadership roles need to understand, “The challenges of the changing scenario and the skills needed to emerge as a leader”.

The present era is that of the Knowledge. It is highly dynamic, competitive and ever changing. “The only thing constant today is change”. The difference from change that happened yesterday vis-à-vis the change happening today is the speed and the velocity with which it is happening. Leaders need to understand the nature of this change in order to foresee, plan and act accordingly. Those who take the opportunity to learn and cope with the emerging trends and situations will be set apart as the leaders. Another emerging truth is- “As the level of business consciousness enhances it will no longer be the survival of the fittest but the survival of the wisest.”

Success will come to those who are wise and are capable of foreseeing patterns that emerge, predict the future and be there before anybody else can be. This would call for leaders who have a high alignment of their vision and values, both at their personal and institutional level. Any training intervention is of no value unless there is scope to integrate the learning into the business. Potential capability needs to be unleashed through practical projects for long lasting effects.

The Business Leadership Unleashing Excellence (BLUE) program aims at developing “High-vision High –Value” leadership, which will constantly be on the path of learning and nurturing excellence at the organization.

BLUE VISION

Accelerating Change with Value Adding Project Ideas Using Leadership Behaviour

Why Business Leadership Unleashing Excellence (BLUE):

The focus of the BLUE program is to:

• Build fundamental leadership orientation that will align vision and values
• Create learning environment to facilitate innovation
• Allow potential to grow so as to get the best out of people

This would result in “Developing a New Generation Leadership” that would take the organization into the next league

Objectives:

• To facilitate and develop leadership within the organization
• To make organization and the individuals change sensitive
• To develop strategic thinking and business acumen
• To facilitate and develop a learning individual and organization
• To stretch individuals to experience what it means to establish goals and accomplish them
• Understand one's own leadership profile and its influence in accomplishing the set goal
• To bring synergy into personal and institutional vision and value.

Process:

• An active participation process -Learning through understanding, doing and integrating
• Developing strategic thinking to emerge with business strategy
• Developing an awareness on bringing about stake holders value addition through – Value Adding Project Ideas (VAP)
• Developing high level of ownership
• Developing coaching and nurturing skills
• Developing rich 360 degree feed back process on one's way of leading and delivering results using the Value Profile Instrument (VPI):
  • Leadership Style
  • Collaborative style
  • Followership style
• Developing vertical support systems by connecting leadership levels

VALUE ADDED PROJECT IDEA (VAP):

Research has proved that people develop and grow from the inputs that they receive from variety of sources. These include:

How people Develop - Source: Center for Creative Leadership, L.A., U.S.A

The VALUE ADD PROJECT (VAP) - a key element in the BLUE design, is founded on a concept that proposes to leverage 81% of the above by involving the elements of - Work associates; Projects in place; New jobs and Training.

What is VAP?

VAP is a process in which every BLUE participant is expected to come up with a business idea, which will add value to the stakeholders of the organization.

Generating ideas:

Keeping the Organizational Vision, its Values and his/her area of work in mind, the participant explores a number of business ideas, which will enhance the leadership of the organization in one or several of the following areas:

• Cost
• Quality
• Innovation
• New product development and introduction
• Demand management
• Flexibility – higher output
• Responsiveness
• Customer service

The participants are free to stretch their minds in emerging VAP ideas that could go beyond the above-mentioned areas, provided, they then convince those involved on the merits of the ideas and its contribution to the stakeholders of the organization. The main criterion is that the ideas should be in line with the organization vision and the execution methodology suggested should be aligned to organization values.

The business idea would be discussed and vetted with the Sponsor and Mentor chosen for the participants and a buy-in taken before it is developed into a business proposal.

“VAPs are to business transformational ideas”

During the 100-Day cycle of BLUE, the participants are expected to move from conception of a VAP idea to developing the same into a viable business proposal.

Phases of BLUE Program:

The BLUE program has multiple phases:

• Pre- Intervention phases
• Intervening phases
• Intervention phases

What’s unique about BLUE?

• Is an advanced Leadership Development Program, which exceeds or equals such initiatives in best of the best “Fortune 50 Companies” in the world
• It aims at developing Business Leaders who can take the organization further in a competitive environment
• A program with very high ROI (Case study of a company that Invested US$350,000 in its leaders and earned US$2.2 Million (in 24 months assessment)
• An Action Oriented program where in the participants put into practice what they learn in to action through their Value Add Projects. (Designed to enhance business results in areas such as cost, quality, flexibility management, customer care etc)
• Well researched and document process to ensure high rate of success
• A program that transforms an individual from being sheer manager to Business Leader
• A program that builds a Culture of Excellence
• Designed and developed by best of the minds in the world
• Integrates the best practices in leadership development across the world in leadership development: e.g. Executive coaching, generating Business Ideas and implementing the multi-rater feedback process for personal development
• Similar leadership Initiatives have been implemented in large fortune 100 companies over the last decade
• Implemented by the consultants in the largest public listed company in Sri Lanka with phenomenal results
• The consultants were partly involved in the design of a similar programmed in one of the largest Automotive Company in USA

Outcomes

• Build leadership capacity to take the organization in to the next league
• Build abilities to deal with competitive environment
• Increase profitability by generating new ideas and executing the same
• Build a learning Culture that promotes new innovation, efficiency
• Build the Business Acumen needed to excel

Duration of the programme: It is a 100 day intervention with four phases

Participant profile

• Second line in the organization being identified for getting into Top management
• Star performers groomed for future leadership roles
• Functional Head/ Sector Heads
• Supervisors/ Team leaders