The Developing Leaders Program (DLP) is a leadership development program for new and early-career managers, aimed at building their capacity to lead with greater confidence and effectiveness.
The program is designed to equip newer leaders with the knowledge, skills, and practices necessary to lead, succeed, and grow in their leadership roles at UBC. Over a five-month period, leaders from across the university come together in the program to share experiences and learn best practices on topics related to leading self, others, and within UBC.
Aligned with UBC’s leadership framework and competencies, this program is designed for people-leaders who are currently in management roles and have been leading staff for three years or less (either in or outside of UBC).
APPLICATIONS FOR THE WINTER 2025 PROGRAM ARE NOW CLOSED.
DLP Cohort Interest Form
Are you interested in joining the next cohort? Fill out the form below to express your interest, and we will notify you when applications are open.
Express your interest in the next cohort
Who's eligible
The Developing Leaders Program is open to the following staff:
- Management & Professional (M&P) employees only
- Currently in a management role, with direct staff report(s). (Note: Staff who manage work learn/student appointments are not eligible)
- Has been in a management role for three years or less (in or outside of UBC)
- Demonstrates willingness and commitment to their own learning and development
- Has support from their manager for full participation in the program
What's in it for you?
Driven by insights about leadership, especially leadership at UBC, the Developing Leaders Program strives to make learning more relevant, agile, and meaningful to leaders.
DLP supports Catalyst 2: I can grow my career and Catalyst 4: I am inspired by diverse leaders who live UBC’s values of the Focus on People 2025 framework through fostering professional and personal growth. The program also contributes to furthering authentic conversations for colleagues to hold each other accountable for inclusive and impactful leadership across the university.
"The program exposed me to other UBC staff managing in other departments, which was a great opportunity to network, but also gave me exposure to the breadth of UBC’s vast organization.”
Through the program, you will be able to:
What to expect in the Winter 2025 program
The program will take place from January to June 2025, with sessions held virtually and attended jointly by participants from both the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses. Each campus will host its own in-person event to conclude the program.
What you'll be required to do
To earn a certificate of completion, participants are expected to:
- Attend all five workshops, two Immersion Labs, and one-in-person event (with the exception of time booked for vacation, or illness)
- Participate in two Leadership Triad sessions (March and May)
- Complete all Canvas learning modules
- Complete End-of-Program Evaluation Survey
Schedule
Workshops will take place virtually on Thursdays from 9:30 am – 12:30 pm (3 hours), except for the Immersion Labs, which are scheduled for 90 minutes each. The in-person event concluding the program will be 2.5 hours in duration.
The session dates are as follows:
- January 23, 2025
- February 13, 2025
- March 6, 2025
- March 13, 2025 (Immersion Lab)
- April 10, 2025
- May 8, 2025
- May 22, 2025 (Immersion Lab)
- June 4, 2025 (In-person event)
Total commitment of approximately 30 hours over five months, including Canvas pre-work and post-work, as well as Leadership Triad sessions (self-managed).
What you will explore
The themes you will meaningfully engage, learn and experiment with cover topics across Leading Self, Leading Others, and Leading within UBC. Topics include:
- Introduction to UBC’s leadership philosophy and competencies
- A coach-approach to leading others
- Strength-based leadership
- Navigating conflict
- Developing others
- Leading difficult conversations
- Performance enablement
Program fees
The program is fully funded by Human Resources.
How program participants are selected
To ensure that all qualified applicants are fairly considered, a pool system may be implemented as part of the selection process. Priority may be given to managers in their third year, or those who have applied but were waitlisted in previous years. Applicants will be notified of their program status by email in December. We thank all applicants for their interest in the program.
Questions?
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the program team at leadership@hr.ubc.ca.