Leadership Learning Circle: Executive Director’s Academy
Leaders whose jobs in the best of times can be challenging, are especially stretched in these tough times. There is growing demand by executive leaders for opportunities to develop stronger ties with other leaders at similar points in their career, in order to establish a network of peers to confide in, depend on, support, and grow with
The North STAR Center offers several Leadership Learning Circles to support the diverse needs of leaders through cohort learning offered throughout the year.
What are Leadership Learning Circles?
Each program provides facilitated discussions, peer coaching, mentoring, support, resources, and relationships. The program gives executive leaders the extra support they need to address the broad challenges and issues they face on a regular basis, as well as support their commitment to ongoing learning and growth professionally.
Leadership Learning Circles are composed of 5-6 leaders committed to supporting one another. Discussions in the circles are confidential, supportive, and focused on learning and action. A trained and experienced facilitator helps participants use the circle to identify goals and resolve individual challenges. Participants meet once a week for 6 weeks to:
• share insights and reflections on session materials
• support and challenge each other
• further develop specific skills with a focus on growing as an executive leader
Who should attend?
The Executive Director’s Academy at the North STAR Center is intended for individuals who are in the leadership role of Executive Director or CEO within their organization. The cohort will include 5-6 individuals, who have been identified by their Board of Directors as candidates for this professional development opportunity or who have self-selected to continue their professional development.
When is the next program?
The program includes six sessions over five weeks. The sessions will be weekly for an hour and a half in length (8:30 am -10:00 am EST) on Zoom Meeting. In addition to the 9 total hours of time together in the Learning Circle, cohort members will have pre and post homework that should take approximately 1-2 hours to complete each week.
Session 1 – Introductions & Leading Holistically
Session 2 – Refining Fundamental Practices
Session 3 – Leader & Organizational Identity
Session 4 – Systemic and Critical Thinking
Session 5 – Leading for Impact
Session 6 – Succession Capacity Building & Wrap-up
Please note, attendance at all sessions is required, given the small size of the group and the weekly discussions that will be a foundational piece of the Learning Circle.
How are each session structured?
Each session will follow a general outline, although there will be flexibility and the sessions will adjust based on the flow of the discussions. As a group, we will walk through the following each week:
- Opening reflection by cohort members
- Introduction to the current session’s topic
- Questions and comments about the current week’s content and pre-work
- Discussion/exercise about how to apply the current session’s topic
- Identify 1-2 takeaways from the current week’s session that can be put into practice immediately
- Brief introduction of next week’s session topic and pre-reading materials
- Final reflections by cohort members
What is the content based on?
This program will introduce frameworks and principles that will allow participants to explore who they are as executive leaders, moving from self, through systems, to exploring an approach to long-term succession capacity building. Content will be based on readings, videos, and exercises drawn from various sources curated by the facilitator and will ground our learning and development.
Register here! – January Session
Register here! – April Session