These are, of course, the same themes expressed by leaders
with whom I spoke. Therefore, the organization must offer its
employees the kinds of experiences that will enable them to
learn and, finally, to lead.
Leaders are not made by corporate courses, any more than
they are made by their college courses, but by experience.
Therefore, it is not devices, such as “career path planning,” or
training courses, that are needed, but an organization’s com-
mitment to providing its potential leaders with opportunities
to learn through experience in an environment that permits
growth and change. Organizations tend to pay lip service to
leadership development, but a study done by Lyman Porter
and Lawrence McKibbon showed that only 10 percent of the
companies surveyed devoted any time to it. A few companies
have found creative ways to ensure future leaders. One of the
best is General Electric’s “People Factory”—a veritable leader-
ship university that then CEO Jack Welch established at Cro-
tonville, New York. Intel is another pioneer in leadership
development, investing more than $5,000 a year for each em-
ployee. But these organizations are the exception, and that
must change. Here, then, are the ways in which organizations
can encourage and stimulate learning.
OPPORTUNITY = EMPOWERMENT
Leadership opportunities should be offered to all would-be
leaders early in their careers, because they build drive, trigger
a can-do spirit, and inspire self-confidence. Such opportuni-
ties include line-to-staff transfers to utilize, test, and develop
Organizations Can Help—or Hinder