Executives Unlock Leadership Potential at Eckerd Leadership Development Institute

What do AT&T, Carolina Power & Light, Citicorp, Frito-Lay, and Staples all have in common? They are just a few of the companies whose leaders have unlocked their leadership potential through the Leadership Development Institute (LDI) at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. Fortune 500 companies and organizations from around the globe send senior, midlevel, and new leaders to Eckerd’s idyllic waterside campus for rich, research-based content in an interactive format that prepares participants to take action back at work.

LDI offers a range of programs focused on leadership, mastering conflict, customer experience, and human resources. The Institute is a network associate of the Center for Creative Leadership, which The Financial Times ranks as one of the world’s top providers of executive education. LDI’s signature program is the flagship 5-day Leadership Development Program for mid- to senior-level leaders. More than 8,500 leaders have participated in the top-ranked program that helps managers drive results by strengthening their self-awareness, learning agility, communication skills, and influence.

Participants report that while classes draw people from many different industries, countries, and states, they find that their peers share many of the same issues, so they can learn from each other’s experiences and differing perspectives as well as the structured curriculum.

“We are so fortunate to have this first-class resource right in our backyard,” said J.P. DuBuque, President & CEO of the St. Petersburg Economic Development Corporation. “Eckerd’s Executive and Continuing Ed programs draw executives from companies all over the world to St. Petersburg to learn best practices in leadership. While the majority of EDI participants are from out of the area, I’ve had the privilege of taking advantage of this local resource, and found that the top-notch coaching has made me a better leader.”

Demonstrated Improvement in Leadership Skills

A Center for Creative Leadership analysis of more than 1,000 LDP alumni found that 99% reported enhanced individual leadership skills, while 97% of the colleagues who rated their leadership effectiveness after the program (including bosses, peers, and direct reports) reported strong positive impact on the overall organization.

Chris Schwarz, former Site Vice President of the Palisades Plant of Entergy, a Fortune 500 company with three million power customers, said:

Following our participation in LDP, we made significant improvements in our communications working through difficult issues during [an] outage and emerged stronger as a team. Additionally, LDP significantly improved our leadership skills. The feedback tools and the high caliber of facilitated teaming that takes place during LDP were instrumental in making positive change in our leadership team’s behaviors. Following LDP, the team received an Industry Strength [award] for management effectiveness.

Other companies that have participated in LDI’s programs include Anheuser Busch, Astra Zeneca, Colgate-Palmolive, Delta Airlines, General Motors, Ocean Spray, Toyota Manufacturing, the U.S. Secret Service, and Verizon, among others.

LDI also offers:

—Maximizing Your Leadership Potential for first level and newly promoted managers

—Lead 4 Success to propel leaders from average to high performance

—Mastering Conflict Dynamics to increase awareness of the root causes of conflict and new skills to assess and resolve conflict

—Customer Experience Training to prepare leaders to enhance efficiency, improve customer satisfaction, and drive growth

The LDI team also offers executive and conflict coaching, SHRM-certified HR training, and custom programming tailored to organizations and individuals’ needs.

LDI participants receive extensive training and feedback in assessment-based programs while enjoying sunshine and the sound of the waves gently lapping at the shore of Eckerd’s waterfront campus, but the real impact occurs when they return and implement what they’ve learned. Trish Creagh, Chief of Workforce Development for the U.S. Army’s TACOM, said:

The training Eckerd College provided this year has been nothing short of wonderful. We have heard from our employees that this is the best training they have ever had. We are absolutely THRILLED with the impact this training has had!

For more information about Eckerd’s programs, contact the Leadership Development Institute.

Photos courtesy of Eckerd College. Top photo: Spencer Yaffe, Eckerd ’17; center photo: Nicole Velez, Eckerd ’18.