One of many ways that Drax invests in people development is through ‘Future Creators’, a yearly high-potential programme introduced in 2019. Leading Edge were invited to create bespoke sessions for the 2021 cohort of this programme, which supports the development, retention and growth of Drax’s future leadership pipeline.
The first stage of the brief was to work with delegates at the Future Creators Development Centres, building their leadership skills under pressure and focusing on thriving in challenging environments. The second aspect was to provide additional support for this cohort through sessions that would explore the themes of trust and delegation and empower the leaders to facilitate high performance within their teams.
Olympian and Leading Edge Team Coach Lizzie Simmonds designed and facilitated a series of virtual workshops for the Future Creators Development Centres in May 2021. Through role-modelling scenarios, she brought to life the mindset needed to perform in a challenging environment, looking closely at the psychology behind thriving under pressure. Lizzie shared mechanisms from elite sport, helping delegates understand the brain’s natural response to stress and acquire processes to stay calm in testing situations.
With a focus on values-based leadership, the cohort was encouraged to use the feedback received elsewhere during the programme – both positive and negative – as valuable data to help shape and drive their development.
In January 2022, to facilitate additional support for this cohort, Drax split the delegates into two groups for a second touchpoint with Lizzie. Through discovery with the programme organisers and previous Future Creators delegates, it was agreed that a session on trust, delegation and empowerment would have the most impact for these future leaders.
This session was based around holistic leadership skills and focused on supporting the cohort’s transition from being high-performing individuals themselves, to empowering their teams to become the stars of the show.
The delegates unpicked real and imagined roadblocks around delegation and, through peer-to-peer coaching, explored practical methods for increasing their capacity to trust and empower their teams.
“Future Creators really made me think about how I approach my day-to-day work and consider the ‘how’ and ‘why’ we were doing things, not just ‘what’ needs doing. It helped me to appreciate different perspectives and adjust my leadership style in different situations.”
- Drax Future Creators Delegate, 2021
