Podcasts

Using over 1.5 million assessments from leaders worldwide, renowned psychometrician Dr. Joseph Folkman and leadership legend Dr. Jack Zenger are here to settle the debates and let the data speak for itself. Each week they analyze different leadership traits, trends, and what it really takes to get to the 90th percentile. These short episodes feature compelling stories, research, and actions that leaders can take to improve.

Episode 109: Transforming Leadership Development—Are We Missing The Main Thing?

The 90th Percentile: An Unconventional Leadership Podcast

Published: November, 2025

Details

What’s the main thing for leadership development? Is it excelling at selecting the right people? Is it a well-funded corporate learning center with renowned faculty? Is it using the most powerful learning technologies? Worse yet, what if we’ve been missing the main thing? In this episode, we are looking at the development industry and some of the puzzle pieces that we believe are missing to make more progress happen.

Key Points

The main thing driving success in leadership development is the commitment and involvement of the senior leadership team, because there are some important elements in developing leaders that only they can make happen. It can’t be delegated to HR.
Rather than an increase in leadership effectiveness happening as leaders age, the results show a steady decline.
Bottom line: there has simply not been a concerted, deliberate effort to ensure people learn from their on-the-job experience. Worse yet, the term learning may have become the ultimate rabbit hole. Effective leadership is defined by our behavior, not the information residing in our brains.
Make “after-action reviews” a way of life. Take time to analyze the original intentions of a project and compare it to what actually happened. Agree on what should be repeated and avoided in the future.
Discover each direct report’s career aspirations. What do they need or want to learn? What experiences would they benefit from having?
Self-awareness is vital for long-term success. Everyone can benefit from an external, objective assessment from the people they work with. Participate eagerly in a 360-degree feedback process.

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Zenger Folkman hosts an exclusive live webinar monthly, where you can meet Jack Zenger and Joe Folkman and talk about their latest leadership development research. Find out more information and register here.