How many leadership programs have you paid for that made absolutely no difference in your leadership impact? If you are at all like other people we’ve talked to, the answer is, “Far too many.”

While providing opportunities for development is the “right thing to do” for your employees, wouldn’t it be great if it was also a highly impactful thing to do? Well, finally, there’s a solution that is powerful, highly rated, and transformational – and it’s time that more people knew about it.

For more than a decade, our Catalyst Leadership Program has been a well-kept secret, offered strictly to our long-term partners. But this year, we’re taking it public. It’s time to let the secret out of the bag.

Now, leaders near and far can experience the transformational nature of this year-long, relationship-driven deep dive into leadership’s most elusive mysteries – executive presence, strategies for creating a culture of high-performance, and interpersonal impact.

The Catalyst Leadership Program brings leaders together for four in-person sessions, totaling nine days of intensive, cohort-style learning, coupled with six months of highly focused individual and group leadership coaching, for a total of 21 integrated touchpoints. There’s nothing like it if what you’re after is a permanent lift in your leadership approach and ability to amplify your impact – all while feeling confident and at ease.

The Problem with One-and-Done Leadership Programs

Many leadership programs are designed as high-impact, short-term experiences—think weekend retreats or intensive workshops. While these sessions can be energizing and packed with insights, they often lack sustainability. Leaders walk away inspired, but without a structured path for continued growth, that momentum fades fast.

True leadership development doesn’t happen in a weekend—it requires time, practice, reflection, and reinforcement.

One of the biggest pitfalls of short-term leadership training is the lack of follow-up and accountability. After the initial session, participants are usually left to implement their learnings on their own—without coaching, feedback, or support. The absence of structured follow-up means that concepts are quickly forgotten and new behaviors are rarely reinforced.

Learning without reinforcement is like pouring water into a leaky bucket: the effort goes in, but very little is retained.

Without an ongoing process, real behavior change simply doesn’t stick. Leadership growth involves rewiring habits and shifting mindsets—neither of which can happen overnight. A one-and-done program might teach someone what to do, but without consistent practice and reflection, they never fully learn how to do it. Over time, old habits return, and the initial gains are lost. This creates a frustrating cycle for both the leader and the organization.

The data backs this up. According to a study by McKinsey, only 25% of respondents said their leadership training programs had a measurable impact on performance. Another survey by the Center for Creative Leadership found that less than 20% of participants sustain improved behaviors six months after attending a leadership program. These statistics highlight a key truth: without a long-term, structured approach, most leadership training fails to deliver lasting results.

How the Catalyst Leadership Program is Different

• First and foremost, the Catalyst Leadership Program is designed to be a personal change management program. The journey begins with a clearly defined vision of what you want to be known for as a leader and ends with a reflection of the evolution you’ve experienced – and a clear idea of what comes next. The Catalyst Program is 100% about you: how you want to show up, and how to get there.
• Once the vision is clear, we go to work on how to get there. Through a variety of simple models for leadership impact, and a deep exploration of what shifts need to be made to achieve the desired changes, Catalyst delivers results like no other program we’ve seen or heard of anywhere in the world.
• The year-long structure allows time to apply strategies to real-world situations, and time to experiment with different approaches, get feedback, and see results. But it also allows time to mess up, to backslide, to try again, and to lock in learning over time. Evolution takes time. It takes environmental pressure. And when it comes to leadership, it takes intentional choice. Over the course of 12 months, what results is real, sustainable change – what we call an “evolution of self.” But don’t take it from us. More than once, people have told us that they don’t even recognize themselves anymore (in a good way!), and when they look back, they realize just how far they’ve come. Graduation day says it all. We’ve never NOT been blown away with the presentations our participants give about the impact they are having as a result of their commitment to evolve on purpose.

Real Results from Catalyst Leadership Training

Check out just a few of the scores of testimonials that people share with us after the program:

“I loved this program… (they) did a great job with the content and programming. I have used a lot of what I have learned – tactics for presentations, important conversations, and remembering the importance of using my commitment statement.” – Catalyst Participant

“Thank you so much! Catalyst is a wonderful program supported by wonderful people! I’ve learned so much that I will use throughout my career and personal life!” – Catalyst Participant

“The Catalyst Program content was very relatable to the business world that we live in. I enjoyed how each session built upon the last and that was great to reinforce old learnings and move forward with new ones. I found the developUs team to be very understanding and human but also willing to push us outside of our comfort zones.” – Catalyst Participant

“By far the best training I’ve ever encountered. (They) literally invested so much into this program. I am beyond impressed, appreciative, and thankful for the coaching and teaching. I would recommend this program to anyone that will listen.” – Catalyst Participant

Perhaps our favorite testimonial lies in the data shared with us from one of our many repeat customers. They’ve done multiple cohorts over the past six years and keep coming back for more. Recently, our point of contact reached out to share their retention data, telling us that of the 50+ people that have participated, all but one is still employed with the company. He called us, asking, “What else do you have that we can offer to our leaders and soon-to-be leaders?”

Conclusion

Learning happens in a day, but evolution takes time. It’s time to stop throwing money into short, low-impact events that change nothing. Impact is our love language, and the Catalyst Program was designed with impact in mind.

After all, if you impact leaders, they’ll impact others, and a culture of leadership legacy can be within reach. When you’re ready to take that step, we’re ready to walk the path with you.

It’s time to look at a new way to approach leadership development—with a partner that won’t just show up, teach, and go home again. Relationships change the trajectory of leaders and lives – and we’re the relationship-driven performance improvement people.