Over 40 employees from East Anglian based organisations recently attended an Executive Leader course delivered by Cambridge University Officers’ Training Corps at the Army Reserve Centre in Cambridge.
Designed to develop their management, communication and problem solving skills, Executive Leader is a professional development course based on the British Army’s approach to leadership and management.
All of the participants are currently in either supervisory or management positions in their workplace and they were selected by their employer to attend the event in order to gain new perspectives, ideas and leadership skills relevant to their workplace. This free course is offered exclusively to local employers as part of the Ministry of Defence’s Employer Recognition Scheme.
The morning program centred on leadership theory with a number of stimulating and interactive sessions focussed on values, personal style and the key components of good people leadership. The afternoon saw the delegates in an outdoor setting getting to grips with a range of fun problem solving activities centred on command tasks.
Shaun Littlewood, Port of Felixstowe said: “What has resonated with me on this course? Always play to your team’s strengths. Listen to your team’s ideas and you will always find a solution to the problem.”
Lieutenant Colonel David Carter, Commanding Officer, Cambridge University Officers’ Training Corps, commented: “It was a pleasure to welcome to our barracks a group of over 40 leaders from across a range of public and private sector organisations to provide an insight into the Army approach to Leadership. We have a strong Leadership Code that has been successfully applied throughout our proud history and has recently been further codified to challenge all in the Army to improve leadership of teams and our people. It was great to share this with executive leaders from across East Anglia facing similar challenges and it is evident this collaborative approach has benefited me, my team and the delegates. I am extremely grateful to the team that supported us to make the day possible and to the executive leaders who participated with great spirit.”
In addition to Executive Leader, the Army also run Future Leader. Both courses are one day leadership development events for civilian organisations, big and small, across the full spectrum of business and industry and the public sector. There are four events each year, run by selected Army Reserve Units at different locations across the East Midlands & East Anglia. Each event is aimed at providing free Personal & Professional Development in the field of leadership. Executive Leader is aimed at established leaders and supervisors in junior to middle management positions, whilst Future Leader caters for civilian employees not yet in supervisory or management positions. Both courses are tailored accordingly and delivered in an engaging an interactive way by selected Army personnel, with plenty of opportunity for thought provoking discussion and reflection.
If you would like to find out more about 2018 courses please email our Regional Employer Engagement Director, Kristina Carrington on ea-empsp@rfca.mod.uk