Case Studies

Each year Cox Enterprises runs an intensive Executive Leadership Development Program, which targets high-potential managers who are being groomed to run one of Cox’s varied businesses, such as a television station or automobile auction company.

The objective of the program is to enable Cox leaders to operate successfully in unique, decentralized, entrepreneurial organizations during periods of rapid change.

The program includes individual assessments, a four-day Outward Bound Professional expedition, a yearlong relationship with an executive coach, development planning, on-the-job action learning , and simulation-based classroom challenges.

Outward Bound is one of the first experiences these executives encounter as part of the Executive Leadership Program. Outward Bound encourages participants to push past their comfort zones, take risks, and utilize teamwork to reach achievement and success.

Gordon French, director of executive development at Cox Enterprises, has worked with Outward Bound to develop an intense four-day immersion into the wilderness of the Southern Appalachian Mountains. The group navigates through the forest using maps and compasses, and tackles activities like the high-challenge ropes course, rock climbing and rappelling, and backcountry camping - including a "solo" night. Participants also explore leadership styles, learning methods and team building techniques with professional Outward Bound facilitators.

"Outward Bound sets a standard for the intensity, risk taking and commitment we expect from these managers during the Executive Leadership Program," French said. "The Outward Bound experience challenges these leaders and opens them to the potential for further growth. This is vital since most of them have a natural resistance to changing the working styles that have been the basis for their success thus far."

Outward Bound enables Cox employees to recognize their true capabilities while at the same time realizing the support available to them from their peers. "This self-reliance gives them the confidence to push themselves – to stretch and choose serious individual development plans that they will pursue with the guidance of a coach throughout the rest of the program," French said.

In addition to individual development, Outward Bound is also successful in developing a strong sense of team. "Outward Bound pushes our people hard and provides them with the kind of shared challenge that research shows is central to leadership development," French said. "The combination of physical activity, critical decision-making with immediate consequences, and daily triumphs of will and spirit enables the team to form a powerful group bond that is unmatched by any developmental activity we know -- short of real business crises."

At the end of the Outward Bound course, the group convenes to discuss their experiences. They review moments of success and achievement before switching focus to discuss the leadership behaviors and the environment that that enabled them to produce such remarkable results. They explore ideas such as the Pygmalion Principle of motivation, the need to provide safety systems as a prerequisite for business risk-taking, and how a coach-manager who delegates and empowers employees to make decisions also enables them to grow through the ownership of their own work.

If you are interested in learning how our programs can Increase your team’s potential, call us toll-free 1-888-84-NCOBS, or complete our “Request For Information” online form.