DEVELOPING THE LEADERSHIP CAPABILITY AND PERFORMANCE
OF MIDDLE MANAGERS
When Graeme Hodge was appointed library services manager at North East Surrey College
of Technology six years ago, he was not offered any management training.
Like the majority of middle managers in FE colleges, he gained promotion for other reasons
and based most of his decisions on natural instinct.
Graham had still not received any formal management training when, last October, he joined
the Centre for Excellence in Leadership’s modular management programme (MMP), along
with 20 other middle managers at Nescot.
The MMP uses a combination of theory and practical assignments to develop leadership skills
that can be applied in specific colleges. According to Graham, it taught him to be more
reflective when dealing with people in his team. “In the past, I tended to react to situations,” he
says. “This has given me confidence to think about things more.”
The programme’s four modules are delivered in seven two-day blocks, before it concludes
with a one-day project presentation. Interspersed between the modules are practical exercises
to apply the knowledge gained back in the participants’ workplace. Candidates produce a
3,000-word assignment based on each of these practical assignments.
Although Graeme was initially alarmed at the thought of writing assignment reports for the first
time since leaving university, he acknowledges that they helped him to remember what he
learnt. “It’s become more embedded inside my head,” he says.
The MMP is aimed at section heads and heads of department. Most colleges nominate up to
24 staff to take the programme together over 12 to 18 months, although smaller groups may
team up to produce a cohort drawn from more than one institution.
Graeme, who expects to complete the programme this autumn, welcomed the rare opportunity
to spend time with colleagues, some of whom he only meets occasionally while at work. “It’s
extremely healthy for the success of an organisation to bring teaching and support staff
together,” he says. “We are seeing one another more as peers.”
A total of 22 cohorts have joined the MMP since it began in 2004. About 80 candidates have
completed it and gained a Postgraduate Certificate in Management (Education), along with 60
credit points that can be used towards further qualifications.
Although the programme mainly attracts candidates from further education, it is also open to
staff in work-based learning, who are expected to fill some places in an ‘open’ programme that
is running in October.
Tim O’Connor, one of eight tutors that deliver the MMP, believes that, while the qualification is
an attraction to candidates and may help with career progression, they are mainly concerned
with improving management in their current college.
By the third module, candidates look at strategic issues such as leading an organisation. “We
manage to change the relationship between middle and senior management,” he says. “It
becomes less of a parent-child relationship.”
Colleges can opt to have the modules delivered on-site or at an alternative venue, such as a
hotel. Tim believes it helps staff to get away from the workplace and is impressed by the way
candidates have been willing to “open-up” and talk about their jobs, even when they are
mixing with people from other colleges.
Twenty-four middle managers from the College of North East London began the MMP in June
2004 and should complete it by late summer. It was timed so that candidates could write their
assignments during holiday periods.
For their final projects, staff tackled issues such as appraisal, business planning and the
culture between senior and middle managers. “We are starting to work in similar ways and
use a common language based on theory rather than gut reaction,” says Martin Lowther, head
of staff development, who was part of the cohort.
One result has been that middle managers wish to work in a slightly different way to senior
managers, who have received coaching through CEL but have not taken the MMP. “We are
starting to question our processes,” says Martin.
Susan Neal, the college’s head of trade union education, says middle managers developed as
a team as well as gaining new skills. In particular, she believes that she allocates tasks more
effectively by looking at the characteristics of her team members. “I can’t recommend the
programme highly enough,” she says. “Everyone says that it has benefited them.”
Dave Coleman, curriculum leader for sport, travel and equine studies at Cheadle and Marple
Sixth Form College, near Manchester, is one of 20 middle managers who completed the MMP
in May. He also believes that it changed his management style by demonstrating to him how
he can empower others.
The qualification was important, he says, in encouraging him to complete the work, while his
self-esteem was raised when he received good marks for his assignments. But it was more
important in helping to improve his personal effectiveness as a manager.
“It’s about getting the most out of you as a leader so that you use your energies to the benefit
of the college,” says David, who has been a middle manager for 10 years. “You start to think
about your personal qualities and the wider opportunities that may be open to you. I feel more
confident in taking on things that are quite difficult.
The price of the MMP is £45,000 per cohort of 24 people delivered on site and over
a period of 12-15 months. In addition the programme also attracts 60 CATS points.
Since its launch, the MMP has been adopted across a wide range of
organisations including:
Boston College
Burnley College
Cheadle & Marple 6th Form College
College of North East London
Guildford College
HM Prisons (various locations)
North East Surrey College of Technology
Preston College
Runshaw College
Salford College
South Cheshire College
The Association of National Specialist Colleges
Waltham Forest College
West London College (Ealing, Hammersmith & West London College, Acton & West
London College)
Wirral Metropolitan College
Wolverhampton College