When the founders at Upside approached me to develop a business-wide coaching programme, they were clear they wanted to do something different. It felt appropriate that a scaling company that puts talent and the development of talent at the heart of its organisation should embrace a new approach to developing its people. Fascinated by how we can build organisations and develop individuals for the future, and already drawing on Robert Kegan and colleagues’ work on adult development in my coaching practice, I introduced them to the concept of the Deliberately Developmental Organization (DDO).
This article unpacks how we developed a deliberately developmental coaching programme for Upside, and what we’ve learnt so far along the way. If you’re a leader in a high-growth startup who wants to know how to embed a deliberately developmental culture in your business, or if you’re interested in DDOs generally and would like to learn more about them through a real life example, then join us on this journey of discovery.
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