CCL Launches Live Online Version of Flagship Leadership Development Program

The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL)®, a top-ranked, global provider of leadership development, has launched a live, online version of its flagship Leadership Development Program (LDP)®. LDP Live Online is built around the top challenges mid-level leaders face, and delivers the same human-centered, transformational program in a convenient modality accessible from anywhere.

The online program is a live 5-day, instructor-led format that maintains the same average class size (24) and ratio of participants to facilitators (1:12) as the classic face-to-face program. The original face-to-face LDP program launched in 1974, and is the longest-running leadership development program of its kind in the world, with over 100,000 alumni around the globe.

“The past year and COVID-19 pandemic have demonstrated the importance of developing leaders of all levels that can rise to meet the unprecedented challenges and opportunities of our time, and inspired a more adaptable, flexible approach to work,” said CCL President and CEO John R. Ryan. “At CCL, it’s our mission to provide world-class leadership development to individuals and organizations around the world. LDP is anchored in CCL’s pioneering work in the field of human-centered leadership development. Offering our flagship program online, as well as in person, broadens access to this transformative experience to meet more mid-level and senior leaders where they are with the tools to grow and lead with curiosity, compassion, and courage.”

The program launched as a pilot in April and open enrollment began in June. Specifically designed with a virtual setting in mind, program survey data indicate that CCL’s virtual programs deliver the same impact as their face-to-face programs. 98 percent of participants rated CCL live online solutions as equally or more engaging compared to other online programs they’ve experienced.

The live and asynchronous learning experience combines a hosted online experience before and after the 5-day Live Online intensive. Following the intensive, the online experience includes live peer sessions, executive coaching, and micro challenges to deepen understanding and application.

“Leaders today find themselves in a powerful moment of global reset, continuous change, increasing complexity, and deep interconnectedness between business, societal, and economic realities,” said Karissa McKenna, Product Manager for LDP. “For Live Online LDP, we leveraged CCL’s global database of over 100,000 real-world leadership challenges to craft a development experience that addresses this unique moment and prepares leaders to accelerate personal, team, and organizational achievement.”

The curriculum is designed to personalize each leader’s learning experience and includes 3 hours of 1:1 executive coaching during the session, and 2 45-minute follow-on coaching phone calls after the program to support application and reinforce learning. Participants complete a suite of assessments and receive 360-degree feedback, as well as post-program support from their small-group peers. Throughout the course, participants apply their learning to a current leadership challenge and work with their coach to build a development plan. The plan identifies measurable and actionable steps to take post-program to continue developing their skills and effectiveness as a leader. Facilitators also work with participants to create post-program goals and determine accountability partners within the group, and an LDP Live Online host provides an additional layer of support by coordinating online discussions and peer groups as leaders apply their learning back at work.

“CCL’s Leadership Development Program pioneered and redefined the field of human-centered leadership development over the last 50+ years,” McKenna continued. “We have the privilege of standing on the shoulders of giants as we incorporate our latest research and reimagine the Leadership Development Program as a digital-native experience. The convenience of LDP Live Online, coupled with its award-winning mix of assessment, challenge and support, will reach and inspire a new generation of leaders to learn from the challenges they are facing and become stronger in the process.”