Traditional leadership development can fall short, leaving trainers, organizations and participants wondering about its lasting impact. You’ve likely experienced this yourself: attending a workshop, listening to an inspiring keynote, and then returning to your daily work with good intentions but little tangible change. This common scenario highlights a disconnect between theoretical learning and practical application—a gap that some training approaches fail to bridge. The challenge lies in moving beyond surface-level insights to instigate genuine and sustainable leadership behavioral change within an organization. For years, the industry has relied on models that might offer valuable concepts, but often lack the deep integration to transform how leaders operate on the front lines.
Lorne Kelton, the founder of ThinkShift Performance Solutions Inc., has spent over 25 years helping organizations develop their leadership, critical thinking, and employee engagement skills. His methodology moves beyond 45-minute presentations, seeking to uncover a deeper truth within an organization—that even the organization itself might not fully recognize. Lorne joined us on the Accelerating Operational Performance podcast to share his insights and strategies behind his methods, revealing how his no-nonsense approach leads to lasting leadership behavioral change. You can watch his interview here or listen to it here.
Lorne Kelton’s Thorough Process for Leadership Behavioral Change
Lorne’s ability to drive leadership behavioral change stems from a thorough and often invasive process designed to uncover the underlying issues within an organization. This isn’t about superficial surveys or quick observations; it’s about peeling back the layers to get to the core of behavioral issues.
The initial step is securing full transparency and permission from stakeholders, then he dedicates significant time to individual, one-on-one discussions with the people who will participate in the program. His goal here is to mitigate their fears and what they’re coming to the table wanting and not wanting. A key tool he uses in this process is empathy: he lets participants know that if he were in their shoes, he would be feeling exactly the same way—in terms of resistance. This understanding is particularly vital as many individuals are “compelled” by their supervisors or by their senior management to be a part of the program. This defensive position often stems from a fear of loss, whether it’s perceived control over the status quo or the exposure of vulnerabilities to management.
After talking with participants, creating buy-in and building trust, Lorne starts his day-in-life study—the invasive part of his process—where he is on-site with the participants. This means observing phone calls, accompanying leaders to meetings, and capturing every interaction as it happens. During these observations, you can imagine, Lorne takes a lot of notes. He offers to share these notes, demonstrating transparency and building trust.
However, we need to understand that observed behavior can be contrived to a certain degree due to his presence—a phenomenon akin to the observer effect in science. To counteract this, he employs an iterative verification process. Independently meeting with individuals (like direct reports) who were part of the observed interactions to corroborate or not the initial concerns and gain a more authentic perspective.
All these detailed notes and observations are then quantified. They are put into a spreadsheet to produce graphs that drill down into specific metrics, such as productivity, to tones of voice, to dismissiveness. This step converts qualitative observations into things that can be quantified, offering undeniable evidence that empowers data-driven discussions about leadership behavioral change. This rigorous, almost 360-degree evaluation provides data that even the most aggressive defensive individuals highly respect.
At the heart of this entire process are four key behavioral clusters that Lorne examines to understand and facilitate leadership development:
- Critical Thinking: How individuals approach problem-solving and decision-making within their teams.
- Development: Their approach to nurturing and growing their team members.
- Achieving: Their effectiveness in driving results and reaching objectives.
- Execution: Their ability to translate strategies into tangible actions.
By systematically analyzing these areas through direct observation and data, Lorne helps organizations pinpoint the specific behaviors that are causing them challenges and provides the foundation for targeted, impactful leadership behavioral change.
Breakthrough Moments in Leadership Behavioral Change: Case Studies and Key Insights
Significant shifts in leadership behavior can be achieved through targeted programs, particularly when addressing difficult and persistent challenges. These programs often involve an important emotional component, as they directly confront the assumptions and emotional reactions that drive specific behaviors.
Consider this example shared by Lorne: a general manager at a mining company was undeniably a top performer in process engineering. However, despite this technical prowess, his team of nearly 300 people found it challenging to approach him or understand his expectations. This manager operated under the impression that “those soft skills did not matter,” believing his core competencies were his primary value, rather than the ability to manage his direct reports. This illustrates a blind spot—an area where a leader is unaware of the negative impact their behavior has on others.
Achieving breakthroughs with strong, often aggressive defensive people relies heavily on a combination of directness and concrete data. These individuals notably respect two things above all other things, which are direct communication and robust evidence.
The approach isn’t merely about telling them what is observed; it’s about demonstrating the consequence of specific behaviors, illustrating how “this” behavior led to “this” consequence. When observations are quantified, producing the evidence becomes insurmountable and undeniable. This data-driven, direct feedback allows the individual to acknowledge and embrace the necessity of leadership behavioral change.
Beyond the analytical and direct approach, another insight from these deep-dive interventions that Lorne provides is the simple, yet often underestimated, power of simply being listened to. As humans we want to feel wanted, needed and cared for, making it important for leaders to feel supported in executing strategies and embracing leadership behavioral change. It allows them to navigate and leverage their strengths without facing negative consequences. This empathetic, listening-focused approach fosters the psychological safety required for individuals to confront their challenges and adopt new, more effective ways of leading.
Group Interventions and Critical Thinking for Sustainable Leadership Behavioral Change
While intensive one-on-one interventions are powerful for individual leadership behavioral change, effective transformation often extends to group settings. When working with teams, the focus frequently shifts to critical thinking, a core competency that can greatly impact how groups function. This approach directly addresses underlying feelings, reflecting on those feelings, and surfacing assumptions and biases that often lie at the root of most organizational problems.
The meaning individuals attach to their assumptions and biases, and how they interpret those, can be very impactful. If these deeper layers can be surfaced, the insights gained can be shared globally and in a group setting. This allows for introducing specific examples, either from the company itself or, even better, from another company, enabling participants to identify with the scenarios. They often recognize, “Oh yeah, okay, that sounds like me” or “I’ve been through that situation”. The critical thinking principles brought to the table are considered among the most valuable learning tools because many organizations lack the time or resources to implement them internally.
A vital aspect of this work is detailed in Lorne’s book, I-Frame: A Manager’s Guide to Critically Balanced Thinking. The model effectively encourages managers and seniors to identify their triggers. Once a trigger is identified, the next step is to deconstruct it. This involves understanding why an individual felt a certain way. For instance, why did a specific comment from one person elicit a particular reaction, while the same comment from another did not? Lorne being present in the environment allows for picking up on these nuances. The reaction itself can then trigger a behavior that might have led to problems in the first place.
The process involves uncovering the underlying assumptions and biases that contribute to these emotional reactions, often tracing back to early experiences. While not a psychological assessment, the goal is to identify these triggers and assumptions, understand their meaning, and then repurpose the reaction. This equips individuals to recognize when they are about to follow a “default path” and instead, take the time and review how they can be productive. This approach to critical thinking is a great step for fostering sustainable leadership behavioral change within teams and organizations.
Accelerate Your Operational Performance with Authentic Leadership Behavioral Change
Recognizing the critical role of leadership, behavioral change is important for any organization aiming to boost productivity, enhance team engagement, and drive innovation. Lorne’s insights shed light on a path to achieving these goals through a disciplined approach to managerial effectiveness. This isn’t just about implementing new processes; it’s about transforming how leaders interact, decide, and inspire every single day.
For leaders in manufacturing, supply chain, and operations environments, the implications are clear: understanding and addressing behavioral patterns is the key to accelerating projects, engaging teams, and enhancing leadership skills. Whether it’s an individual executive facing a blind spot or a management team grappling with communication breakdowns, truly understanding and addressing behavioral patterns is the key.
This authentic leadership behavioral change creates workplace environments where teams are not just managed, but truly inspired. It acknowledges that even the most senior managers need to feel heard and valued.
Take the Next Step: Invest in Your Leadership Behavioral Change Journey
For leaders interested in accelerating their operational performance through leadership behavioral change, consider these practical next steps:
- Explore Coaching or Leadership Training: For tailored, impactful transformation, investigate options from ThinkShift Performance Solutions Inc. or us at Unique Training & Development.
- Embrace Critical Thinking: Look into resources that cultivate critically balanced thinking, such as Lorne Kelton’s book, I-Frame: A Manager’s Guide to Critically Balanced Thinking. Understand how to deconstruct emotional triggers and underlying assumptions for more productive reactions and stronger leadership.
- Prioritize Directness and Data: Recognize that providing direct feedback, supported by quantified observational data, can be incredibly effective in sparking breakthroughs, especially with aggressive defensive individuals.
- Practice Active Listening: Remember the impact of simply listening to your team members and senior leaders.
- Self-Reflection: Consider your current leadership style and its impact. Commit to making even one small, manageable change in your daily interactions or approach to leading.
Investing in professional development is a continuous process. Making that commitment to excellence in your leadership isn’t just beneficial for your career progression; it’s fantastic for your team, your organization, and for pushing the boundaries of innovation. That’s how leaders truly lead the way.
Here are some related topics that you may find interesting:
Dr. Gwen Acton: Essential Leadership Skills for Scientists
Kirby Griffin: Linking Leadership Directly to Operational Performance
Bob Parker: How to Make Training Unforgettable with Experiential Learning in Manufacturing
Kari Ann Versace: Leadership Development, Driving Efficiency and Operational Excellence
