Leadership is a complex and messy terrain. Accolades can be seductive and attack brutally swift. The opportunities leadership roles provide us with—to make change, to really have an impact, to see progress and know that we have played a part in it—these are the reasons many of us step up to take authority roles. But we rarely talk about the inevitable loneliness of leadership and how to not only be effective in leadership but also how to stay alive and thrive.

It is not surprising, then, that the role of developing leadership in organisations can be fraught with the same complexities that leaders face. The heralding of new leadership initiatives produces the inevitable pushback. Our ability to deeply understand the environment of leading and change, and to act with purpose and awareness can often be the reasons leadership initiatives succeed ... or fail.

After 12 years designing, developing and delivering leadership development programs for individuals and organisations, The Benevolent Society's specialist leadership development consultancy, Social Leadership Australia (SLA), has this year created a new program for the leaders of leaders. Called Leading Learning: The Purpose, Role & Practice of Leadership Development, the program is the result of our growing awareness that there are very few opportunities for senior professionals in OD, Leadership Development, Talent Development, Culture Change, HR, Capability Development and Succession Planning to take time out and learn about the context they are operating in, to reflect on the main challenges, and investigate their role in it.

Our research and work— with business, government and not-for-profit organisations—revealed a lack of existing programs or forums specifically for people working in this area, either as consultants or within organisations. So in addition to introducing people to a cutting-edge approach to leadership development, this program will provide an opportunity to meet and work with other professionals working in the same field, from diverse backgrounds and organisations. One of its aims is to establish a new professional network for people working in this specialised field.

The work of leadership isn't a solo task. We need networks, partners, allies to support us and challenge us along the way. Having a network of peers who understand the nature of the leadership challenges you face, who have a shared language around leadership and who are also willing to have frank and fearless conversations with you about your role in, say, stopping progress, are crucial requirements in leadership.

But the most important aspect of Leading Learning is that, unlike any other available in Australia today, it looks at the role of the leadership development and change practitioner as, in itself, a leadership challenge—offering six days to explore, in depth, the personal, professional and political dimensions of the role of the leadership development and change practitioner.

To be successful in the role of leading leadership, there are a number of key skills and capacities required. We would summarise these as:

  1. Recognising the systemic challenges an organisation faces as it relates to leadership development and knowing how to get leadership development where it belongs on an organisation's strategic agenda
  2. Understanding the barriers created by entrenched perceptions of leadership development and change practitioners in organisations (and understanding how the practitioner perceives themselves in that role, within that 'system') and
  3. Working politically to defeat internal scepticism and gain authority and influence in what is often and under-valued and isolated position.

We often hear about how the hardest people to teach are teachers themselves, yet finding opportunities to truly be a learner are crucial in leadership. The pressure on teachers and leadership development professionals to be experts, to have all the answers, is immense ... as it is in leadership. At SLA we venture into the heart of these pressures. We explore the mythology around leadership and how that gets in the way of us doing the hard work of progressing change.

At SLA we know that developing this capacity in others is an immensely rewarding venture. Our communities and organisations are crying out for leadership which brings about change and enables progress to be made. But the challenges people face in this area can immobilise them and their work. Leading Learning is an opportunity to deeply explore both the challenge and the opportunities present in leadership development.

Leading Learning: The Purpose, Role & Practice of Leadership Development
A Six-Day Masterclass
6-11 June, Sydney

There are also three skills development modules on offer later in the year on roles and role theory; Deep Democracy and Adaptive Leadership which will provide an opportunity to go into further depth on some of the key elements of the leadership model covered in this program.