Ascom's leadership development program participants go through all the traditional elements of such programs, including leadership tools and assessments, self-awareness programs, individual coaching and strategic conversations with business leaders. They then become accountable for achieving measurable results on a real business challenge shaped by Ascom’s business leaders Each participant is accountable for one challenge. These are real challenges with significant consequences for the company.

In this article, you'll learn how to design leadership development programs with a fundamentally different premise in mind – the pursuit of short-term business performance improvements. When companies do this, they gain two benefits: better business performance and leaders who can execute more effectively.

Learn how Ascom, a global Swiss-based communications company, took steps to transform leadership development from a cost to a profit center in the annual budget.

Chief Learning Officer, May 2012