The survey process can prove problematic and expensive for programs to operate, often complicated by GDPR data privacy issues, she says. “But our new approach reduced student completion time by 50 percent and program costs by 25 percent.”

Flexible partnership helps enhance student experience
London Business School benefits from its collaboration with TalentSage, says Elizabeth Newton, head of professional development at the LBS Career Centre.

“TalentSage has been a valued partner in helping us enhance the student experience across all our degree programs, including EMBA,” says Newton. “Their agile approach, virtual training, and digital platform make it easy for our working professional students to complete and obtain their own development reports in advance of their leadership coaching sessions.”

For the past several years, TalentSage has focused on designing an ecosystem for EMBA Programs, business schools, and organizations that brings together all the necessary elements to develop leadership and soft skills at scale, says McLaren. By bringing together the best of EduTech, TalentSage can maximize impact efficiently and cost effectively.

“We provide flexible resources so different degree programs or companies can plug in the components that they need,” says McLaren. And recognizing needs change, TalentSage offers agility and flexibility to adapt, while helping programs focus on real learning and impact, she says.

TalentSage ecosystem includes a full menu of diagnostic tools and more
Several key TalentSage diagnostic tools help EMBA students develop self-awareness, one of the single most important factors in leadership success:

• The Classic 360°™ Survey. Based on research and scientifically validated, the TalentSage 360° survey offers a starting point for understanding emotional behaviors both as strengths and development areas. It uses half the questions as traditional 360° surveys, saving valuable time without sacrificing validity.

• 5 STeP Profile™. This survey helps people understand their own personality profiles and preferences. Results also support the TIPing Point Profile™, which helps people better know their strengths and weaknesses as team members, and the Pressure Point Profile, which highlights the personality tendencies that become problematic under stress – often referred to as derailers.

• BMini 5 Profile™. This trimmed-down version of the 5 STeP Profile™ contains 10 statements that reveal a person’s five super traits.

Other TalentSage tools include the Values Fit Profile™, which looks at personal values and their impact on motivation and fit within an organization; the Professional Strengths Accelerator™, which combines positive psychology with the 360° survey to highlight people at their best in their work; and the Professional Development Navigator™, which guides people through the professional development process from feedback insights to goal setting and achievement.

In addition, TalentSage tools, such as a team TIPping Point Profile, Group Dynamics Profile™, and Board Effectiveness Profile™, help improve team effectiveness, while its Organizational Culture Map™ looks at employee experiences.

Diagnostic and awareness tools can miss an important aspect of leadership development. “From our perspective, there isn’t necessarily a right framework or model for leadership,” says McLaren. “It’s actually about being a great leader for everyone and being able to create the environment where everyone in that group can become their best and bring their best to work.”

As a result, TalentSage is completing an equality engagement survey to measure the gaps between the diversity and inclusion experiences of employers and employees, as well as working to bring questions that address diversity and inclusion in other tools.

The ecosystem also involves efficiently and effectively managing the tool administration process through a secure brand-tailored platform, improving completion rates, making available executive coaches to programs that may not have them on staff or contract, training administrators and trainers, customizing tools and approaches, and conducting research. Students can access and manage their data throughout their program without the risk of loss.

Expert survey administration helps reduce costs, increase impact
For LBS, those services help their students gain more from their coaching sessions.

“The LBS branded site and online help desk continue the high-touch experience that we aim to deliver to our students,” says Newton. “With the logistics running smoothly, the students can make the most of their time with our leadership coaches.”

EMBA Programs and business schools also find the diagnostic tests of value in other applications, such as career services, where the results can help students and career coaches in understanding needs and interests and developing career paths. Alumni also benefit: Students can continue to use reports as part of their lifelong learning process, and programs can build offerings that leverage those results as one way to stay connected with alumni, says McLaren.

Conversations help lead to new solutions
Knowing that one size does not necessarily fit all, TalentSage works together with programs, business schools, and companies to determine what elements of the ecosystem best address needs, to customize solutions, and to explore new innovations.

“We welcome conversations around what EMBA Programs need, what organizations need, to understand more about how we can help craft solutions,” says McLaren, who knows EMBA Programs well. She worked for the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, setting up its EMBA Program in Singapore and helping relocate its Barcelona campus to London.

Now as an EMBAC corporate member, she looks forward to partnering with more industry members.

“We’re really interested in making the most of everything we can,” she says. “We want to contribute in a value-added way. We want to learn from members, and we want to understand what would be helpful to them from an organization like us and how we can help them do what they do better. We’re open and in a listening mode.”

For more information about TalentSage, contact Eugenia Patriniche at eugenia@talentsage.com or visit www.talentsage.com.

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