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What does a leadership development program manager do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read
Quoted expert
Gregory Zobel Ph.D.

Leadership development program managers are responsible for developing, executing, and assisting the firm's leadership development. Their duties include coaching and mentoring programs, as well as managing in-person and virtual leadership programs. Additionally, they evaluate leadership development needs and enhance content and processes to make certain that programs remain pertinent and effective. Basic qualifications include relevant experience with learning and development as well as knowledge in leadership development and organizational development.

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Leadership development program manager responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real leadership development program manager resumes:

  • Manage implementation of referrals, coordinate assignment of new physicians and create support network for transitioning patients during clinic closure.
  • Represent the logistics business division for all quality relate issues including process development for all ISO and Non-ISO certify warehouse locations.
  • Create PowerPoint presentations for customer events and for internal training.

Leadership development program manager skills and personality traits

We calculated that 15% of Leadership Development Program Managers are proficient in HR, Project Management, and Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Business skills, Collaboration skills, and Instructional skills.

We break down the percentage of Leadership Development Program Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • HR, 15%

    Partner and collaborate with HR organization partners on program initiatives.

  • Project Management, 12%

    Provided project management to instructional designers and content developers and daily management and work direction to instructors and work teams.

  • Management, 9%

    Developed and implemented the inclusion/diversity awareness and skill-building programs for over 4,000 LLS Distribution Center associates, hourly through senior management.

  • Instructional Design, 6%

    Partnered with instructional designers to create and virtually deliver diversity training to over 700 managers at 7 regional sites.

  • Leadership Development Programs, 6%

    Lead Talent Development programs and operations for PlayStation, a technology/entertainment leader, after successfully launching inaugural leadership development programs.

  • Succession Planning, 5%

    Initiated a process for evaluating and communicating leadership development and succession planning success.

Most leadership development program managers use their skills in "hr," "project management," and "management" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential leadership development program manager responsibilities here:

Business skills. The most essential soft skill for a leadership development program manager to carry out their responsibilities is business skills. This skill is important for the role because "training and development managers must understand business operations in order to match training with business goals." Additionally, a leadership development program manager resume shows how their duties depend on business skills: "developed comprehensive talent management strategy for customer solutions group, identifying and integrating talent to achieve strategic business goals and objectives. "

Collaboration skills. Another essential skill to perform leadership development program manager duties is collaboration skills. Leadership development program managers responsibilities require that "training and development managers need strong interpersonal skills because delivering training programs requires working in concert with staff, trainees, subject matter experts, and the organization’s leaders." Leadership development program managers also use collaboration skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "led/facilitated six-month human capital managers forum focused on leadership, collaboration and change management. "

Instructional skills. This is an important skill for leadership development program managers to perform their duties. For an example of how leadership development program manager responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "training and development managers need to understand the fundamentals of teaching and lesson planning." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a leadership development program manager: "developed teachers to proficiency in instructional planning, execution, and management within the teaching as leadership framework. ".

Leadership skills. leadership development program manager responsibilities often require "leadership skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "managers are often in charge of a staff and programs." This resume example shows what leadership development program managers do with leadership skills on a typical day: "develop nursing executive council to encourage nursing in executive decision-making * dale carnegie program administrator for leadership management team of 125. "

Communication skills. A commonly-found skill in leadership development program manager job descriptions, "communication skills" is essential to what leadership development program managers do. Leadership development program manager responsibilities rely on this skill because "training and development managers must clearly convey information to diverse audiences." You can also see how leadership development program manager duties rely on communication skills in this resume example: "excel at stakeholder relationship building and communication, curriculum design and implementation, change management and program management. "

All leadership development program manager skills

Compare different leadership development program managers

Leadership development program manager vs. Training administrator

Training administrators coordinate employees and management training programs. The administrators administer competency or skill assessments, outplacement, career counseling, and other specialized training for employees. They update and organize the training programs for administrative and clerical works. It is also their job to plan and enforce these programs for government agencies, business enterprises, and other institutions. Leadership skills, communication skills, and management skills are necessary for this job.

We looked at the average leadership development program manager salary and compared it with the wages of a training administrator. Generally speaking, training administrators are paid $23,777 lower than leadership development program managers per year.Even though leadership development program managers and training administrators are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require logistics, training programs, and learning management system in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a leadership development program manager are more likely to require skills like "hr," "project management," "management," and "instructional design." On the other hand, a job as a training administrator requires skills like "nursing home," "long-term care," "home health," and "training materials." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Training administrators tend to make the most money working in the health care industry, where they earn an average salary of $45,657. In contrast, leadership development program managers make the biggest average salary, $99,222, in the pharmaceutical industry.The education levels that training administrators earn slightly differ from leadership development program managers. In particular, training administrators are 10.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a leadership development program manager. Additionally, they're 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Leadership development program manager vs. Manager & instructor

Training directors are responsible for directing the planning, design, and implementation of training programs. They are responsible for assessing and identifying the company's training needs, maintaining a consistent culture regarding training, and managing and directing employee training. Training directors are expected to provide engaging communication about the program to encourage employee participation and emphasize the benefits and value of exercise. They are also expected to establish and maintain good relationships with vendors to provide more training programs.

Manager & instructor positions earn lower pay than leadership development program manager roles. They earn a $13,531 lower salary than leadership development program managers per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Leadership development program managers and managers & instructor both require similar skills like "hr," "training programs," and "blended learning" to carry out their responsibilities.

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that leadership development program manager responsibilities requires skills like "project management," "management," "instructional design," and "leadership development programs." But a manager & instructor might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "course curriculum," "safety procedures," "professional development," and "direct reports."

On average, managers & instructor earn a lower salary than leadership development program managers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, managers & instructor earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $55,999. Whereas leadership development program managers have higher pay in the pharmaceutical industry, with an average salary of $99,222.In general, managers & instructor achieve lower levels of education than leadership development program managers. They're 13.1% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for leadership development program managers in the next 3-5 years?

Gregory Zobel Ph.D.Gregory Zobel Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Associate Professor of Educational Technology, Education & Leadership, Western Oregon University

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality are already substantial, but the next couple of years will make these more affordable and more ubiquitous. Given the industry's massive investment in AR and VR, it's more than likely that educational technology will expand in these directions.

Leadership development program manager vs. Director of training

A health, safety, and environmental (HSE) manager is primarily in charge of spearheading and overseeing a company's health and safety programs. Their responsibilities typically revolve around coordinating with different departments to gather data, assessing existing programs and policies to identify areas needing improvement, implementing solutions on issues and concerns, developing strategies to execute programs, and creating new safety policies as necessary. Furthermore, as an HSE manager, it is essential to lead and encourage team members to reach goals, all while enforcing the company's policies and regulations.

On average, directors of training earn higher salaries than leadership development program managers, with a $9,716 difference per year.By looking over several leadership development program managers and directors of training resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "project management," "succession planning," and "performance management." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from leadership development program manager resumes include skills like "hr," "management," "instructional design," and "leadership development programs," whereas a director of training is more likely to list skills in "customer service," "training materials," "oversight," and "professional development. "

Directors of training typically earn lower educational levels compared to leadership development program managers. Specifically, they're 7.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.7% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Leadership development program manager vs. Hse manager

Hse managers average a higher salary than the annual salary of leadership development program managers. The difference is about $17,445 per year.According to resumes from leadership development program managers and hse managers, some of the skills necessary to complete the responsibilities of each role are similar. These skills include "project management," "training programs," and "employee engagement. "While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "hr," "management," "instructional design," and "leadership development programs" are skills that commonly show up on leadership development program manager resumes. On the other hand, hse managers use skills like regulatory agencies, osha, environmental regulations, and safety program on their resumes.hse managers enjoy the best pay in the construction industry, with an average salary of $105,683. For comparison, leadership development program managers earn the highest salary in the pharmaceutical industry.In general, hse managers hold lower degree levels compared to leadership development program managers. Hse managers are 13.2% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.9% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of leadership development program manager

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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