Emerson, the Fortune 500 global technology company, has 65 divisions and 142,000 employees. Because a large number of upper-management positions must be filled with quality leaders, Emerson maintains a highly-developed system of talent management and succession planning that has helped the company achieve unprecedented success.
       It isn’t enough that its future leaders gain experience working in a variety of positions among Emerson’s divisions. To enrich their understanding of Emerson’s management and leadership processes, Paul McKnight, Senior Vice President Organization Planning, developed an idea: gather together 40 or so high-potential future executives for “an Emerson 101 course to really accelerate the development process.” That idea became the Emerson Leadership Program.
       Because McKnight believes that “leaders teaching leaders works the best,” much of the week-long seminar was designed for participants to meet with and learn from Emerson’s top executives. However, McKnight also asked Psychological Associates to work with his task force to help make the program a more personally insightful and practical learning experience.
       Before the first class of 35 came together in St. Louis in January 2001, Psychological Associates had administered its 360^º feedback executive assessment for each participant. At the conference, Dr. Ann Beatty, now President of Psychological Associates, delivered a presentation on getting the most from behavioral feedback and using our leadership model, the Dimensional^® Model of Behavior^™, for being a more effective leader.
       This paved the way for feedback and coaching sessions. On the last day, participants met individually with Psychological Associates’ Ph.D. psychologists. They reviewed and interpreted feedback data to assist these future leaders in preparing action plans for improving their leadership effectiveness. The psychologists also helped them to plan meetings: 1.) With their own bosses to discuss their individual development plans going forward, and 2.) With their direct reports as well.
       Applying concepts to the real world of business is a hallmark of the learning design of Psychological Associates. These managers went back to their jobs with a plan for utilizing leadership concepts in their own managing environments. After a feedback meeting with direct reports, one manager said, “It quickly became clear that not everyone viewed me the same way. As a result, I have worked at tailoring my management techniques to the needs of the individuals.” Another participant observed, “By my delegating more, I feel my direct reports have had many more challenging and rewarding assignments.”
       McKnight said that the first session was so well received that a follow-up workshop was scheduled for 18 months later. At that time, Dr. Beatty made a presentation on coaching for results and gave feedback on the class’s experiences with applying what they had learned.
       Because of the success of the Emerson Leadership Program, sessions have been held twice a year ever since for new groups of future leaders, and Psychological Associates has participated in each one. The program has also been expanded to Asia, Europe, and Latin America, where McKnight says, “It was an absolute home run!” Worldwide, over 2,700 future leaders have experienced the Emerson Leadership Program.
       Besides enjoying many benefits of immersing candidates in the “Emerson Way,” the company has experienced an impressive 90% retention rate among those who have participated in the program. “Leadership development reduces our need for outside recruiting,” McKnight said.
       Psychological Associates is proud to be a partner in the kind of leadership development that helps produce better business results for Emerson.