Leadership development programs, while valuable, are not the end all, be all solution to cultivating great leaders. The most sophisticated organizations support their leaders with a healthy culture that encourages knowledge sharing, risk taking, and growth.
In short, organizations that are most effective in developing leaders continuously clear their waters of polluting objects—or practices—that may hinder their fishes’ growth and, instead, cultivate an ecosystem that enables and fosters continuous performance and development. Once the waters are clear, these organizations create an ecosystem that introduces different pressures that reinforce the development of desired leadership capabilities.