A leadership programme grew emerging leaders at scale — equipping a new cohort to lead with emotional intelligence from day one.
A technology company approaching 400 employees recognised a structural problem: it was promoting technically excellent people into leadership roles without preparing them for the human dimensions of management. The result was predictable.
New managers were struggling. Some were overly directive, replicating the only management style they had experienced. Others were conflict-averse, avoiding difficult conversations until small issues had become significant problems. Engagement surveys showed lower scores in recently transitioned teams than in those with experienced managers.
The People function identified 28 individuals across engineering, product, and commercial who were either in their first leadership role or were being prepared for one within twelve months. The question was how to develop them at scale, without the cost or disruption of external programmes.
SEN-Session designed a ten-month cohort programme for 28 emerging leaders — blending foundational emotional intelligence development with the practical skills of people management.
The programme was structured around three capability pillars: self-leadership (understanding one's own patterns, triggers, and defaults); leading others (listening, feedback, difficult conversations, motivation); and leading teams (building trust, psychological safety, and shared accountability).
Crucially, the programme was not about adding knowledge. It was about developing the person — building the inner capacities that allow new leaders to show up in the moments their roles require, rather than defaulting to instinct or imitation.
By the end of the ten months, self-rated readiness to lead scores had increased by 46% across the cohort. Manager effectiveness ratings from direct reports were 34% higher for programme participants than for a matched comparison group of new managers who had not participated.
Voluntary attrition within the cohort was zero over the programme period — a notable result in a sector and period of significant talent mobility. Several participants described the programme as the most meaningful professional development they had experienced.
The Head of People noted a qualitative shift in the company's leadership culture — a shared vocabulary around emotional intelligence, a greater willingness to discuss the human aspects of management, and a cohort of new leaders who had arrived in their roles with genuine foundations rather than good intentions alone.
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