From One-on-One to Many-at-Once: Scaling Leadership Growth Across Teams

Traditional leadership development often focuses on individuals—sending high-potential employees to workshops or pairing them with executive coaches. But when these leaders return, they face a familiar challenge: applying new insights in a team that hasn’t grown with them. This disconnect limits impact.

Erin Swartout, an organizational psychologist and expert in talent strategy, believes it’s time to shift this outdated model. Her approach? Scale leadership development so that entire teams evolve together.

?? Why Scaling Leadership Matters

Pulling leaders out of their daily work for isolated training often leads to frustration. They gain insights but return to unchanged environments. Swartout argues that leadership growth must be embedded into the organization’s everyday rhythms. Shared experiences create trust, alignment, and lasting change.

?? Action Over Theory

Swartout prioritizes action. Instead of theory-heavy workshops, leaders take small, meaningful steps. When she was at Masco Corporation, senior leaders publicly shared their personal growth areas—or “backhand.” This simple act of vulnerability sparked deeper trust across the organization.

?? Meet Leaders Where They Are

Leadership development doesn’t need to be separate from work. Swartout integrates growth into existing forums—team meetings, summits, off-sites—so leaders practice new behaviors in real-time.

?? Leadership at Scale Is a System Shift

Scaling leadership isn’t about more programs; it’s about weaving growth into everyday workflows. This systemic change fosters a culture of continuous learning—crucial for organizations needing agility and adaptability.

It’s time to move from one-on-one growth to many-at-once leadership.

Listen to my interview with Erin on Great Mondays Radio to learn more about scaling leadership growth. Listen on your favorite podcast app or watch the episode on YouTube. ??

TGIM! Josh

???? Merger, Acquisition, or IPO in the cards? ????

I'd love to share what I've learned from over 10 years of prepping cultures for mergers, acquisitions, and IPOs. DM me, and I'll send you my list of top watch-outs for companies on the precipice of change. https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/akajoshlevine/