EA Technology has launched its first ever Future Leaders Programme. The scheme, the brainchild of CEO Robert Davis, saw 35 applications from across the business with 11 being selected to take part.

The programme forms part of a wider company initiative to ensure that all staff have the opportunity to continually develop their skills and have access to the best training opportunities.

The successful 11 have been chosen from different parts of the EA Technology business. Robert Davis provides mentoring to each of the participants with more intensive training coming from a number of other senior people across the company.

Each month the 11 come together for a half-day leadership session. A number of business theories are covered within the programme, including:

  • Six Thinking Hats – Edward de Bono’s tool for group discussion and individual thinking involving six coloured hats;
  • Cognitive Bias – A systematic pattern of deviation from the norm or rationality in judgment;
  • Johari Window – A system created by Joseph Luft and Harrington Ingham in the 1950s as a model for mapping personality awareness.

Each participant is given a piece of homework to complete after each session with the aim of enabling them to implement what they have learnt in their day-to-day roles in the business.

Robert Davis said: “We were delighted with the response we received for applications to the first ever Future Leaders Programme.

“While we were only able to select 11 candidates on this occasion, there will be future programmes and also a range of other training and development opportunities within the business. I am passionate about getting the best out of people at all levels and for our people to have the support to self-develop as much as they want to.

“I was very careful to ensure that the programme was not driven by managers, but by individuals within the company applying under their own steam. We were particularly looking for passion, commitment and the enthusiasm to be part of something we believe can have a huge impact on the way we run our company in the coming years.”