You should always START before you LEAP.
When employee-owners begin their careers with us, their professional development doesn’t end; in fact, we look to accelerate our leaders at all levels through our internship, START and Leadership Excellence Accelerates Performance (LEAP) programs.
We have an intentional process to continue developing leaders, which starts as early as our internships. START is for our early career professionals who are preparing to lead teams, while management-level employee-owners who are preparing to step into senior-level roles participate in LEAP. All development programs focus on individual awareness and development but also have a large element of team collaboration, networking and peer accountability.
“Think of it like a farm system in baseball,” said Director of Administrative Workforce Development Trevor Gelder. “We begin with people in our intern program (rookie ball), who we then hire and work to develop through our START program (minor leagues). As these individuals and others progress into manager-level positions, we put them through an extensive LEAP program (major leagues) as their career progresses. It’s our concept of having leaders at all levels of the organization.”
Our START program begins with individual assessments, so participants gain a deep understanding of their strengths and development opportunities. Those in the program build their development through individual plans and business challenge projects, and create extended relationships with peers through powerful networking opportunities. There’s a robust four-day learning session along with ongoing webinars that focus on development and skill-building. Participants choose a real business challenge and see it through completion, using what they learned in the program.
“It was a really great opportunity to network with people from other areas of the company,” said Marketing Proposal Manager Dustin Hicks. “The cross-divisional collaboration resulted in some intriguing thought processes. I saw the group generating ideas by having other perspectives in the room.”
LEAP participants start by focusing on learning about each other and getting introduced to their Action Learning Projects, which focus on enterprise-wide initiatives.
“These projects are very important and have the potential to make a big difference for Sundt,” Trevor said.
LEAP sessions involve individual feedback, development planning, manager alignment and ongoing developmental coaching sessions. Five three-day development sessions over the 12-month program provide focus and sustainability as participants reinforce their skills. The class also participates in team-building activities, including a ropes course that challenges them and brings out leadership qualities.
“Our goal with START and LEAP is to accelerate and develop leaders so we are ready to move employees through the organization and into key leadership positions as we grow and diversify our work and opportunities,” Trevor said.
Senior Project Manager Jason Hughes is a LEAP participant who has been with us since 2008. He has almost 20 years of experience in the construction industry and is thankful the company allows employee-owners to determine their career paths.
“The experience has been meaningful on a personal level as well as a professional front, and is a reminder that the future is in the hands of all employee-owners and not simply high-level leadership,” Jason said.
For more information on careers with Sundt, please visit our website.
