As organisations seek to grow and compete in the global marketplace the supply of people for senior leadership roles quickly becomes a strategic issue. There is often insufficient time to identify and develop enough people and there are fewer opportunities for natural on-the-job development in organizations due to high performance expectations and flatter structures. Retirement of senior leaders from the baby boomer generation adds to the magnitude of the problem.

The Accelerated Learning Laboratory (ALL) was established to address this talent shortage through assessment and accelerated development programs to prepare people for senior leadership roles in our Industry Partner organisations. ALL is a collaborative development program between the Australian School of Business at UNSW and several industry partners including IAG, ANZ, Amcor, Qantas, ABC, Macquarie Bank, Booz & Company and Egon Zehnder. ALL is funded by a Linkage grant from the Australian Research Council and contributions from our industry partners.

ALL research and development activities are founded on a knowledge based model of leadership in which the execution skills and personal perspectives of leadership roles are based on the knowledge stored in long term memory. In this model, the capacity for cognitive flexibility is fundamental to success for leaders. ALL programs are customised to the challenges of particular organisations, and address developmental needs at different stages of career trajectories. There are three research and development programs within ALL:

· Dynamic Assessment. Our assessment programs use simulations and dynamic measures of cognitive abilities, flexibility, and personality factors that are more sensitive to the critical processes necessary for problem solving in the face of changing complex demands and environments than traditional measures of these factors. Our focus is upon potential rather than status.

· Emerging Leadership Development Programs. The assessment and accelerated development of emerging leaders is a long term research and development activity that lasts up to 5 years. The program consists of annual online assessments, intense biannual residential sessions involving simulations, team exercises with video playbacks, and coaching, and ongoing personal projects. Participants work through a program of planned managerial challenges to develop the knowledge, execution skills, and self-perspectives needed for senior leadership roles.

· Management simulation microworlds. Management microworlds provide highly detailed and realistic simulations that are developed in collaboration with partner companies. The simulations run for one half to two days and include a range of decision challenges and experiences that are designed to develop participants’ mental models and execution skills for managing specific scenarios. The simulation activities are supported by research to asses the impacts on knowledge and skills following the simulations.

The ALL Leadership Development program is based on the latest research knowledge in learning and development and brings together a range of different learning methods in the classroom and back on the job. The program has a practical business focus and develops leadership skills for specific management challenges that participants will encounter in their organisations. The innovative approach adopted in the ALL Leadership Development program is, we believe, a world first. The program will be evaluated and, we anticipate, adapted over the next few years.

Our partner companies are making a long term investment in their staff by nominating them for the ALL Leadership Development program. Through the program, these participants can expect to develop knowledge, skills and self-insights that will better prepare them for the complexities and demands of senior leadership roles. The company’s and participants' return on that investment will flow from their commitment and engagement in the program.