The Legal Services Commission (LSC) is the public body responsible for legal aid and its work is fundamental to social and legal justice. It employs 1,700 staff across the UK and every year helps 2 million people – some of whom are the most vulnerable in society – get the help they need to deal with their legal problems. The performance of the LSC executive team and its senior managers is critical to the success of the organisation and its role in protecting the rights of the individuals it helps. So seriously does the LSC take the role of its leaders, that improving their effectiveness is a key target in the organisation's corporate plan.
The challenge
Staff surveys carried out by the LSC to gauge employees’ opinions on issues such as leadership had shown that confidence and trust in the organisation's senior leaders was comparatively low. It was also felt that the executive team did not have a clear vision and were out of touch with employees.
With a strong commitment to improve the effectiveness of their leaders, to ensure the leadership team could successfully fulfil its role and inspire the organisation, the LSC selected Roffey Park to create a tailored development programme to build the leadership skills of its top 160 managers, including the executive team.
The solution
In order to gain a thorough understanding of the issues facing the LSC, Roffey Park conducted an in-depth analysis of the LSC's organisational needs, and in response to these needs developed a bespoke programme to deliver the desired results.
Over a period of eighteen months, each of the 160 managers participated in a leadership programme, consisting of a 360-degree feedback exercise, a two-day development centre, and several workshops centred on peoples' ability to manage performance, including a 'Leaders for the Future' workshop.
The executive team led the way by being the first to join the leadership programme. All senior managers undertook a 360-degree appraisal in which colleagues' opinions were gathered to gauge the perception of their leadership strengths and areas for development. With this knowledge, participants were able to draft a personal development plan - the first stage of the programme.
The next phase, based on-site at Roffey Park's unique purpose-built centre set in inspirational grounds in the West Sussex countryside, marked the beginning of the residential stage of the programme. Every participant spent valuable time with a coach to help address the specific needs identified in their 360-degree feedback. Over the course of two days, they undertook a number of custom designed exercises to help improve visioning and strategic planning. Professional actors were employed to allow participants to practise leadership in scenarios such as communicating the organisation's vision or influencing an external stakeholder. Working in pairs the managers were encouraged to give each other frank, constructive feedback. This enabled them to review and build on their personal development plan.
“We wanted to incorporate development centres into our leadership programme to give people an opportunity to experiment as part of their development,” says Alan Littlefield, HR Consultant at the LSC. “Roffey Park designed the delivery specifically around our Leadership Profile – a competency framework for leadership. Their approach to development centres is different from the more rigid, timetabled format. It is very much focused on individuals, giving people the time and space to try new approaches.” The final stage involved participants attending a ‘Leaders for the Future’ workshop. Based on a psychometric instrument called the Communication Compass, this workshop provided a framework for understanding what motivates individuals. Participants used the framework to create strategies for improving relationships and getting the best out of people.
“Roffey Park is a wonderful learning environment with the space to run large training events effectively,” continues Alan.“For us, having external coaches gave the participants real freedom to experiment. The Roffey Park coaches have been outstanding. They provided a balance of challenge and support that helped the participants to draw out the learning.”
The result
“There is clear evidence that individuals’ leadership capability has developed,” concludes Alan Littlefield. “In a second 360-degree feedback exercise, 76% of leaders have been rated higher in their development areas.” One of the participants, Maryvonne Islip, says “Although I was initially nervous about the programme, I have found it to be invaluable in helping me to focus on specific areas for development.”
Most importantly the success of the Roffey Park programme is reflected in the LSC's staff survey – which asks employees to judge the strength of its leadership – showing a clear increase over the last two years. ‘Confidence’ and ‘trust’ in senior management had improved significantly and they were felt to be more ‘visible’ and ‘approachable’. But of greatest significance was the improvement in employees’ understanding of the vision set out by senior leaders for the future of the organisation: people throughout the organisation felt better engaged with the LSC's mission and purpose.