Articles archive

Developing Management Capability at M&G Investments

Author: Gareth Jones, Head of Leadership Development & Training, M&G Investments
First published: 2002

Introduction

This paper seeks to challenge what are (many readers will probably already concur with this) outmoded assumptions:

• that executives can be developed
• that development is any large measure dependent on 'learning events'

We will discuss how managers can a) if they choose to and b) given the right infrastructure, support and direction, actively grow and develop, and how programmes can play a part in this.

It is also worthwhile acknowledging at the outset that some managers have a greater propensity and desire to learn than others. Therefore, irrespective of the programme, it is impossible to sheep-dip them until they all display anything like the same kinds of behaviour, or level of knowledge.

So what is the right infrastructure and environment - traditional thinking would have it that it is one that caters for all 4 of Honey & Mumford' learning styles (activist, pragmatist, theorist reflector) and takes them through all stages of Kolb's learning cycle.

We would add to this that not all 4 stages of learning happen sequentially and that significant pre-work and investment is required up front in helping participants achieve the optimum mindset for learning (learning to learn) and in recognising the value of and necessity of all learning preferences. We deliberately chose the word investment here, as without this upfront work, you stand a slim chance of getting the desired returns from a learning initiative.

Finally we would add that executive development needs to be ongoing and integrated - not a course but a constantly evolving blend of the following:

• Feedback - including self and peer assessment
• Coaching
• Mentoring
• Direction from others
• Direction from self
• Presentation of theory and concepts
• Practical examples
• Relevant areas to apply and integrate new capabilities
• Sharing of existing knowledge and a quest for new knowledge
• Classroom events (formal presentation and workshop discussions)
• Online resources and e-learning
• Action learning

This case study focuses on how some of the above are being applied, with tangible impact at M&G Investments.

Background

M&G is the asset management business of Prudential plc, employing some 2,000 people in London and Chelmsford, as well as Germany, Austria and Italy. M&G was acquired by Prudential in 1998, bringing together the former M&G plc, and Prudential's existing fund management business. The group also includes a South African fund management arm, a substantial Property Investment business and Venture Capital teams in Europe and Asia.

As such, M&G is a complex group focusing on both retail, intermediary and institutional markets, as well as servicing its internal client, the Prudential. Its activities range from the management of unit trusts to specialist property and fixed income fund management.

Leadership and strategic management within this environment is a significant challenge, given the complexity of the group, combined with the highly specialist nature of its activities. Leadership and management development have grown rapidly in visibility and impact. Significant work has been done to identify what are the leadership characteristics which will help predict future performance and success. This has been embodied in M&G's Leadership Framework, which is used to regularly review current people capability vs future needs. This process, which we call talent planning, also takes into account individual aspirations and career development.

Ultimately, our aim in all of the above is to give our people, especially those in key leadership roles, or who have the potential to fill them, the best chance of success.

Learning Infrastructure

M&G's learning environment is constantly evolving and combines both deliberate systems, programmes and learning tools with more experimental approaches where learning takes place through placing people in completely new situations and where learning outcomes are not pre-ordained.

At the core of this is a culture which encourages continuous professional development and places increasing emphasis on leadership development. We are still building that culture, but would argue that without visible senior management support and clear alignment with business goals, no management development programme will deliver sustainable business outputs.

This culture and support for organisation-wide learning is reflected in the fact that everyone in the organisation has access to M&G's on-line learning and knowledge sharing portal, the 'I'. This provides 1000s of individual learning opportunities, linked to business and personal development priorities. E-learning is also integrated with any programmes, courses or workshops that we run.

Strategic Leadership Programme

The programme we particularly wish to focus on here is one designed jointly with Ashridge Management College. The Strategic Leadership Programme (SLP) is now running for a wide range of business managers and emerging leaders. However it has its origins in a more targeted initiative started in 1999 for a particular team that wished (and needed) to transform itself from a transactional audit role to a more relationship-based, consulting model.

We selected Ashridge to work with on this initiative, because of their holistic approach. It was recognised from the outset that this would not be a traditional 'educational' programme. The business demanded, and the team recognised that they needed to acquire new knowledge, exhibit new kinds of behaviour, and apply that knowledge and behaviour appropriately within the workplace.

Therefore the programme design included significant time spent understanding individual motivators and expectations, and also getting individuals, and the cohort as a whole, to optimum readiness for learning.

Moreover, the programme would not be about overnight transformation, but about evolution. People would develop at different paces and in different ways, sometimes taking two steps forward and one step back. The end goal, however, was that over time and certainly by the conclusion of the year-long programme, we would see a transformation in the capability and confidence of the team, and the impact of this would be tangible to their clients and the business as a whole.

Looking back now, that impact has been visible and sustained, and the new approaches learned and applied by that team have impacted not only the perceived value added in their work, but furthermore the team are being asked to undertake projects they would never previously have been capable of undertaking. As I mentioned at the start, each individual has applied the learning in different ways, at different pace and with different degrees of effectiveness. We have not tried to create clones ! However there has been synergistic learning for the team which has a wider organisational impact than individual learning alone.

Examples of the capabilities exhibited include

• group facilitation, consultative interviewing, questioning and solution development;
• understanding and awareness of individual types and preferences and how this knowledge can be used to build constructive working relationships;
• a far greater understanding of strategy and organisational behaviour and the ability to work with this.

It is also noteworthy that where people from that team have moved onto other roles they have taken these skills and knowledge and applied them there, and started to create a ripple effect.

As mentioned at the outset, one of the key success criteria of the programme was that it was ongoing and integrated and not a one-off event. It has been supported by e-learning, action-learning sets, mentoring and continuous effort to relate the content and new capabilities back into the kinds of projects that people were working on. Sometimes it was necessary to identify new projects that would provide sufficient scope to apply these capabilities.

Programme Design

Based on the success of this early model an internal design team worked with Ashridge to build a broader business management and leadership programme, which had wider applicability across the M&G group. One of the drivers for this was that many managers had grown internally within the group, had strong specialist knowledge, but needed a much broader perspective on models of strategy, change and business leadership, and how these are applied within a range of industries. The key focus of the programme was to help provide both the 'hardwiring' (knowledge and structures) and 'softwiring' (skills and behaviours), that would enable the management teams to deliver our existing strategy, and drive new strategic initiatives.

Importantly, participants had to want to take part, and all had a role in shaping the scope of the programme.

A key element of the design was to provide the right balance between supporting managers in their current roles, and preparing them for future roles, particularly those with strong potential to progress.

It also encouraged participants to be fully engaged with their business by integrating their learning progress with tasks and projects they needed to accomplish.

The detailed programme design is represented in figure 1.

The design is based around a number of modules, each running for 2 days and a final day to consolidate the learning and look forward to the future. Ahead of these formal modules some short workshops are run internally by M&G's leadership development team, focused on learning to learn, understanding individual learning preferences, and how to make optimum use of the learning experience.

Between each block participants have 6 weeks to work on a specific learning project, each of which focuses on applying the learning from the module to their own roles and current business needs. Participants and facilitators help to shape each others' projects and support their learning as a whole team, and helps develop the entire management team.

Furthermore where there were two or more cohorts, running in parallel, they would get together to share their combined learning.

The period between modules is also punctuated with Action Learning Groups where participants get together in a small group environment for the day. They then work through specific issues with the help of their colleagues and supported by a facilitator. This process helps embed the learning by developing individual thinking and interaction skills.

In addition to the formal modules, project work and action-learning, a business simulation provides a risk-free platform for them to practice new skills, apply new knowledge and get feedback on what works and where they need further development or reflection on how to approach things differently.

Integrated E-learning

Each participant has a structured e-learning path to follow, beginning with pre-work, self assessment, and exposure to a number of models, theories and examples which start to broaden participants' thinking ahead of the programme. E-learning is then used between modules to refresh and further build on people's knowledge and to provide learning in 'bite-sized chunks' - a more manageable and effective alternative to providing people with hefty text books to read. (This approach is also highly cost-effective and helps cement the learning culture referred to earlier on).

Each participant will also follow a regular e-learning path after the programme, which is designed to ensure that learning continues way beyond the programme, to revitalise and embed earlier learning, without demanding too much time from the busy manager.

This will also be directed by the learner themselves, based on their priorities and aspirations. E-learning also provides a platform for reviewing what has been retained, and for ongoing discussion around how best to continue to apply the learning.

Conclusion

This article focuses on leadership development and learning culture at M&G when we are only part way on our journey. This particular programme will be revisited in the publication once nearing completion. What is clear already however is that this integrated (and cost-effective) approach has started to deliver some early business benefits and is helping us grow our capability to match future business need in an ever-more demanding environment.