Leadership Training for Managers: What Actually Works
60% of managers receive no formal training before stepping into their role. After working with 1,200+ leaders, we've seen what separates training that sticks from training that's forgotten by Monday.
For new managers and experienced leaders who never got proper training.
Co-designed with Professor Anne Lytle (PhD, Kellogg School of Management; Director of Leadership, Monash Business School) and informed by 50,000+ leader reflections.
Recognise Any of These?
These are the patterns L&D leaders tell us about. If you're seeing them, the issue isn't your people - it's that managers were never given the skills to lead.
New managers struggling in their first 90 days. Promoted for technical skills, now overwhelmed by people challenges. Everything gets escalated to senior leaders.
Exit interviews citing "my manager". Turnover concentrated under specific managers. You're losing good people to poor leadership.
Feedback isn't happening. Performance issues left unaddressed until it's too late. Difficult conversations avoided.
Engagement varies wildly by team. Same company, same roles - but some teams thriving while others struggle. The difference is the manager.
Good individual contributors failing as managers. Your best engineer became a manager and now everyone's unhappy - including them.
Why Most Manager Training Fails
When organisations do invest in training, they typically choose 1-2 day workshops. The problem? Research shows 50-70% of workshop content is forgotten within 24 hours.
Skills aren't built through information transfer - they're built through practice over time.
If you've been burned by training before, you're not alone. That's exactly why we built something different.
The Skills That Make Managers Effective
Effective managers don't need more theory. They need practical skills they can use when real challenges arise - and support when they're facing them.
Emotional Intelligence
Understanding your own reactions and reading your team's needs. Drawing from Daniel Goleman's four-domain framework. Learn more about emotional intelligence training.
Difficult Conversations
Addressing performance issues, giving tough feedback, and navigating conflict - without damaging relationships. See our approach to difficult conversations.
Psychological Safety
Creating an environment where team members speak up, take risks, and learn from mistakes. Informed by Amy Edmondson's research from Harvard Business School. Explore psychological safety training.
Resilience Under Pressure
Staying calm, adapting to change, and helping your team through uncertainty. Building on Carol Dweck's growth mindset research. Learn about resilience training.
Manager Training for Every Career Stage
New Managers (0-2 years): Learning the fundamentals of leading people for the first time. Moving from individual contributor to team leader without the painful trial-and-error.
Experienced Managers (3-10+ years): Filling in the gaps. Many managers have been doing it for years but never received formal training. They've developed habits - some good, some not. It's never too late.
High-Performers Being Prepared: Building capability before the promotion, not after. When the role opens up, they're ready.
HR & L&D Teams: Investing in your people managers at scale. One program that works for new and experienced managers in the same cohort - learning from each other.
Built Different From Day One
6-9 month development program - not a 2-day workshop. Skills built through daily practice, not information dump.
Cohort-based peer learning - managers learn alongside other managers facing the same challenges.
Monthly 1:1 mentoring - when a real challenge arises, managers have someone to talk to. Not a chatbot. A real person.
Daily micro-learning (5-10 minutes) - fits into the workday. No blocked calendars, no travel.
Progress visibility for HR - see who's engaging, who's completing, and track behaviour change.
13 Learning Journeys for Managers
Each journey is delivered over weeks, not hours - giving managers time to practice, reflect, and embed new behaviours.
Understanding Self & Others
Emotional Intelligence • Resilience and Adaptability • Personal Branding
Leading People
Giving and Receiving Feedback • Difficult Conversations • Coaching Skills
Building Teams
Team Building and Collaboration • Psychological Safety • Influence Without Authority
Driving Results
Goal Setting • Time Management • Communication Skills • Strategic Thinking
See the full Emerging Leaders Program →
What Happens When Managers Get Proper Training
We'd run workshops before. Completion was always under 20%. With Leda, we hit 98% - and we're seeing the behaviour change in how managers lead their teams.
— MYOB Leadership Team
Built on Research. Proven in Practice.
Co-founded by Professor Anne Lytle - PhD in Organisational Behaviour from Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. Professor & Director of Leadership at Monash Business School. Past-President of the International Association for Conflict Management. Former UN consultant.
Informed by peer-reviewed research - Drawing from Daniel Goleman (Emotional Intelligence), Amy Edmondson (Psychological Safety - Harvard Business School), Carol Dweck (Growth Mindset), and Google's Project Aristotle (Team Effectiveness).
50,000+ leader reflections - Not theory from textbooks. Patterns from what actually works (and doesn't) for real managers.
Common Questions from L&D Leaders
6-9 months. Research shows skills built over months are more durable than those from intensive workshops. Daily micro-learning (5-10 minutes) fits into the workday without blocking calendars.
Both. New managers learn the fundamentals. Experienced managers fill gaps and unlearn habits that aren't serving them. They learn together in cohorts - often the best insights come from managers at different stages sharing their experiences.
Traditional courses deliver information over 1-2 days. Leda builds habits over 6-9 months through daily practice, facilitated sessions, and 1:1 mentoring. Our completion rates (88-98%) vs industry average (3-15%) reflect the difference.
Monthly 1:1 mentoring sessions with an experienced coach. Facilitated group sessions with their cohort. And access to support when real challenges arise - not just when sessions are scheduled.
Full progress tracking. You can see who's engaging, who's completing, and how participants are progressing through each journey.
5-10 minutes daily for micro-learning. Monthly mentoring sessions. Periodic cohort sessions. Designed to fit into the workday, not compete with it.