The building of the kitchen table: In search of an alternative model for in‐company leadership development programs

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide an alternative model of a leadership‐development program.

Design/methodology/approach

A leadership‐development program based on a “closure‐type description” instead of an “input‐type description” (Varela) was designed and executed for an organization. The results were later evaluated.

Findings

The study finds that application of the closure‐type description enhanced the possibility of supporting real change and innovation within an organization.

Originality/value

The “kitchen table” approach can serve as a model for leadership‐development programs; for such a program to function optimally it must have sufficient authority and should not focus on a top‐down transmission of knowledge but on creating a setting in which all levels of management are in conversation with one another. In describing the kitchen table program in detail the paper gives clear guidelines for creating closure‐type programs in general.

Citation

Sigaloff, C., Nabben, I. and Bergsma, E. (2007), "The building of the kitchen table: In search of an alternative model for in‐company leadership development programs", Management Decision, Vol. 45 No. 10, pp. 1677-1684. https://doi.org/10.1108/00251740710838031