The Penn State Online Leadership Development Institute is a virtual platform providing full-cycle support to help participants evaluate their leadership qualities and competencies, plan for change and sustain change. Participants engage in a series of activities, interviews, simulations, and exercises designed to predict how well they will perform in a leadership role and custom-build an individualized development plan. Following the assessment, evidence-based coaching can be used to put the plan into action resulting in an immediate application, lasting behavior change, and sustained growth.

Download a PDF about the institute here. 

Leadership Matters

Our collective experience in 2020 made clear that the world of work has been changed forever. The new context is one of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. The impact of this new context is especially evident in the way leaders must now lead if they want the best from their people. Leadership priorities and qualities have been reprioritized. 

Teams who are thriving during the pandemic are those that are being led by leaders who prioritize their people. While empathy, flexibility, rapport building, and collaboration are qualities that have always been important, they have become non-negotiable.

The Science Behind What We Do

We examine leadership using the Great Eight Competency model developed by Dave Bartram and associates (2005). This model is rooted in scientific methodology and demonstrates a strong relationship between leadership skills that can be learned and developed with planning, effort, and guidance. 

Assessment centers are unique in their ability to determine readiness for advancement. Participants engage in a series of activities, interviews, and simulations designed to predict how well they will perform in a leadership role as well as relative success in current and future leadership activities.

Following the assessment, an individual development plan is custom-built. Evidence-based coaching is used to put the development plan into action resulting in an immediate application, lasting behavior change, and sustained growth.

This end-to-end support, featuring accurate assessments, individualized development plans, and ongoing coaching, can result in impressive returns on investment.

Value

Having a clear picture of strengths, areas for improvement and environments in which you excel can help you:

• Define your personal brand
• Establish a competitive advantage as a job candidate
• Accelerate your trajectory to a higher-level role
• Guide your decisions when forming a new team
  

Your Investment 

Effective leadership is never an accident – It's the result of accurate self-awareness, intelligent planning, focused effort, and a commitment to excellence.

The key is not spending time, but investing it. What you invest your time in defines you as a leader

Ask yourself: do you have what it takes to be a successful leader in our “new normal”?

“The best experience was probably taking a hard look at myself and digesting what I do well and what needed to improve. After it was all over, I literally sat on my couch for several evenings and read over the summary report and then read the comments and gave it all a lot of thought. And it's a lot of information and I've used it to change in some ways.”

–Tana McGhee-Wegner, PSOLDI participant

For more information, contact Dr. Kim Trahan (kzt74@psu.edu) or Dr. Jason Willams (jrw43@psu.edu).