Building a Customized Leadership Program for a Global Private Equity Firm

The Challenge

The client, a fast-growing private equity firm with a distinctive culture, had already begun offering general development opportunities but lacked a cohesive, relevant, and effective approach for developing leaders from the VP level through the C-suite. Key challenges included:

• Lack of leadership-specific development: Existing training programs did not address the unique needs of leaders, nor did they support a shared leadership philosophy.
• Disjointed learning experiences: Prior external training felt too generic and disconnected from the organization’s real challenges, values, and culture.
• Inconsistent language and expectations: Leaders used different frameworks, making collaboration and alignment difficult.
• Complex logistics: A global footprint and high-velocity work environment made scheduling and participation difficult.
• Desire for customization: The client wanted a program that reflected their personality, industry context, and internal culture.

Our Approach

Thrivence designed and delivered a tailored, multi-session leadership workshop series grounded in deep discovery and co-design with the client.

• Robust discovery process:
  • Review of organizational artifacts, assessments, and leadership materials
  • Interviews and focus groups to understand culture, goals, and perceived leadership gaps
• Collaborative alignment: Regular working sessions with HR and executive sponsors to refine expectations and ensure relevance.
• Customized workshop design:
  • Integration of existing frameworks (e.g., Servant Leadership, 7 Habits, Hoshin planning)
  • Added missing interpersonal and practical leadership skills
  • High-energy, experiential learning formats for diverse learning styles
• Unique faculty mix: Internal facilitator, industry executive guest speakers, and former professional athletes who now lead businesses, offering real-world leadership parallels
• Flexible delivery: Three workshop offerings to accommodate global schedules, hosted off-site in an inspiring environment.
• End-to-end execution: Materials, tools, participant resources, logistics, and post-session surveys.

Value Delivered

The engagement produced strong early outcomes and positioned the client for long-term cultural alignment in leadership.

• Overwhelmingly positive feedback across all three workshop deliveries, with minimal change requests.
• High engagement and attendance, despite scheduling constraints across locations and time zones.
• Immediate application of skills, especially in delivering constructive feedback during performance reviews — a major need for many leaders.
• Common leadership language that improved alignment and clarity across leader levels.
• Increased confidence among leaders in articulating their leadership philosophy and applying organizational values.
• Decision to expand the program, with additional cohorts planned for the following year — a key indicator of satisfaction and cultural fit.