The Participant's Journey to Professional Transformation of Leadership Development

Abstract

The purpose of this capstone is to understand how a highly-selective leadership development program that selects international participants for a one-year residence in the US adequately captures the individual participants’ experience and development. In response to this challenge, the study investigated participants' perceptions of their participation in the program. The findings from this investigation provide program leaders recommendations to enhance participants’ experience and improve the impact of the program. Using Ibarra, Snook & Ramo's (2010) developmental framework, the study employs 3 critical questions to understand the participant's professional identity development: 1) What changes? 2) How does it change? 3) What conditions make a difference? A case study approach allowed for an explicit focus of the participants' perceptions inclusive of the relationships and developmental experiences that occurred within the context of their program and home. The critical message that emerged from the paper was the importance of a shared understanding among key stakeholders of the participants' identity development throughout the program and return to their home country.