Young Leaders Program
Managers assigned to their first significant leadership role are thrust into an authoritative position and tasked with creating an environment that promotes team growth and business success while mitigating conflict. They need to demonstrate leadership skills to their superiors, peers, and subordinates. But it takes time to fully master the challenges and fulfill the high expectations faced by today’s young leaders.
The Young Leaders Program (YLP) is an introduction to the reality, the context, and the personal aspects of leading. Participants will first reflect on the contextual aspect of their roles, relating them to corporate and departmental strategies, teams they lead, and co-operations and coalitions within and outside organizational boundaries. In the second part of the program, the young leaders will work on their personal approach to leadership. They will become familiar and experiment with various styles of leadership, explore their personal leadership ambitions, and reflect on the responsibility they have taken on by accepting a leadership role.
Target Audience
Managers recently appointed to a leadership position or high potentials before their first significant leadership role.
Companies represented in the 2009-2012 programs included Aareal Bank AG, Allianz SE, Bayer Schering Pharma AG, CNN, Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank AG, E.ON AG, GNS Systems GmbH, MAN SE, Nord Stream AG, RWE AG, Sanofi-aventis Russia, SAP AG, ThyssenKrupp AG, Steltemeier und Rawe GmbH, GAZPROM, DYWIDAG-Systems International GmbH, Pfizer Pharma AG, and Solaris Bus & Coach S.A.
Past Participants' Level of Responsibility
 |
Countries represented included Austria, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, and UK. More than a third of the participants were female.
Key Topics
- General leadership skills
- Leadership coupled with corporate strategy
- Leading teams
- Exploring behavioral styles for successful cooperation
- Authorizing leadership
- Understanding and influencing decision makers
Personal leadership skills
- Discovering different leadership styles
- Managing change
- Facing adversity
- Acting and communicating as a leader
- Motivation to lead
- Responsible leadership
Take-Home Value
Participants will leave this program equipped with tools, models, and hands-on experience directly applicable to their new leadership tasks. More importantly, they will gain a valuable sense of self-awareness and insight into the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral make-up of others. They will also develop a broad understanding of leadership that goes beyond the concept of managing others.
In German
Suchen Sie ein deutschsprachiges Programm für junge Führungskräfte?
Meet the Faculty
Nora Grasselli (Program Director)Full biography
Nora Grasselli studied management, with a focus on organisation. She completed her PhD on group dynamics at HEC School of Management and during her doctoral cursus she was visiting fellow at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and at RMIT (Melbourne).
Jamie Anderson
Full biography
Jamie Anderson is a visiting faculty member, senior lecturer and independent consultant. Previously, he was also a program director at ESMT, a lecturer and program director with the Centre for Management Development at London Business School where he directed and coordinated customized executive programs and case study writing. Jamie Anderson has published cases on more than 25 companies; his articles have appeared in Business Strategy Review, International Journal of Customer Relationship Management, International Journal of Innovation & Technology Management and the Financial Times Handbook of Management.
Laura Guillén
Full biography
Laura Guillén joined ESMT as an assistant professor in September 2010. She received her PhD in Organizational Studies with a specialization in organizational behavior from ESADE in 2007. Laura also holds a MSc in Management Research from ESADE, since 2004, and a combined undergraduate and MA in Business Administration from ESADE, 1998. From 2008 to 2010 she worked as a post-doctoral research fellow at INSEAD.
Ulf Schäfer
Full biography
Ulf Schäfer studied Philosophy, Mathematics, Logic and Theory of Science in Bonn, Knoxville, and Berkeley as well as Business Administration in Rotterdam and London (Canada). He was a lecturer of Philosophy at Bonn University, a strategy consultant with A.T. Kearney, he co-founded the Launch Group, and held managerial positions with Sapient and DaimlerChrysler. Ulf joined ESMT as a Program Director in 2005. His teaching and research focus on leadership, change, and creativity.
ESMT European School of
