Identifying and developing future leaders
One of our most important responsibilities as a business is to ensure that our talent can meet our current and future business needs; and is ready at the right time and in the right place. That's why talent management is so important, as it plays a crucial role in identifying, developing and deploying our workforce strategically.
The Future Leaders Programme, now in its fifth cohort since its inception in 2022, continues to develop future leaders across both the US and UK. The aim of Future Leaders is to identify and develop colleagues who are our high-potential talent in the early stages of their leadership career and to accelerate their development, aligned to our Manager Essentials and Values.
To date, 408 colleagues have taken part in the programme and early signs suggest that the programme, coupled with other talent processes, is yielding positive outcomes. For instance, 26% of the first cohort have received promotions within 12 months of completing the programme, ensuring that we strengthen our leadership talent pipeline.
In early 2023 we launched First Line Leader, a training programme for new people leaders. Participants leave the programme with knowledge and practical understanding of our Manager Essentials and have a clear understanding of our commitment to being one of the most diverse, equitable and inclusive companies and their role in this.
Participants will also feel comfortable carrying out the activities expected from our managers and supervisors, including a deep understanding of key processes, policies and technologies.
To date, 463 colleagues have either completed or are participating in the 3-month training. From our most recent cohort, 65% of participants reported an increased understanding of being self-aware as a leader.
Enterprise Leadership Advantage
Cohort one of the Enterprise Leadership Advantage Programme launched in December 2023 and consisted of 31 experienced leaders from across all our business units and functions. The programme takes place over a period of three months and is a blend of virtual and self-led learning either side of a three day in-person residential. It’s a group-level talent development programme aimed at high-potential colleagues globally.
The programme was designed for National Grid’s experienced leaders, aiming to enhance leadership capabilities in three key areas: Enterprise-wide Leadership, Dynamic Leadership and Personal Leadership Signature. The programme helps to develop a critical mass of excellent leaders who have the capabilities to lead National Grid through significant change and ensure we can achieve our future strategic ambitions. Cohort two will launch in May 2024 and Cohort three will launch in September 2024.
Next Generation
We launched our new Executive Potential Programme ‘Next Generation’ in March 2024. This programme is designed to ensure our most senior leaders, at our third development peak in Performance and Development, are equipped to deliver the future state of National Grid and to support the acceleration of their development into our Group Executive roles.
The Programme focuses on them deepening their understanding of themselves as leaders and how they elevate their leadership style from ‘Leading Managers’ to ‘Leading Leaders’. It dives deep into the development of core enterprise leadership capabilities and enables our senior leaders to develop in how to lead with impact and to empower and inspire others by communicating authentically to be a visible leader of change.
‘Next Generation’ is a twelve-month programme that will be run twice a year with cohorts of eight. It’s an internally run programme built around a community of external and internal thought leaders and experts who are deeply aligned with the changes facing National Grid. We are developing masterclasses from some of our core programme content to support with the development of all our Strategic Leadership Group.