MINING

Leadership development goes deeper at Goldcorp

by Dr. Rosie Steeves bY aLL MeaSUreS, goldcorp inc. [G-TSX: GG-NYSE] is one of the most successful resource companies in the world. It's also a company that invests significantly in leadership development across the organization. Coincidence? Not according to COO Steve Reid. "We have six strategies to guide people in their day-to-day work,? he says. "Grow people, grow safety, grow partnerships, grow margins, grow reserves and grow production. It's not by chance that grow people comes first.? Certainly Goldcorp isn't unique in running a leadership development program, but the scope of its approach is. Commonly, managers near the top of an organization are heavily involved in leadership development initiatives, while those lower down the hierarchy are lucky if they receive piecemeal training. While such training may be done with the best of intentions, it rarely gives participants the level of leadership development they need to produce Steve Reid, COO Goldcorp. Photo courtesy Goldcorp Inc. real results. At Goldcorp, the model has been flipped on its head. Virtually everybody who works at the company is, or will soon be, involved in some form of leadership and personal development. From Reid to his frontline workers, from Canada to Mexico and beyond, thousands of employees will be put through the paces of their own specially designed programs. For example, supervisors participate in an 18-month program consisting of 13 workshop days spread over four sessions, assignments in-between the workshops to apply the learning and an action challenge designed to address a realtime organizational challenge. Managers participate in their own customized program "The Art of Leadership and the Science of Management? consisting of two five-day workshops, individual coaching and intersession activities. For front-line employees there is the "Dare to Grow? program which consists of four modules, each delivered over a period of about a month by graduates of the supervisor's program. "This isn't training,? stresses Reid. "This is about personal growth and establishing a corporate culture that allows our entire workforce to be leaders in critical areas like safety.? Indeed, Goldcorp's investment in people is quite unique. While many organizations recognize the need to develop the leadership skills of their managers, integrated long term programs touching all levels of the hierarchy are a rare, if nonexistent, organizational occurrence. For the COO, this novel approach is just common sense. "I learned early on in this game that you get better results when you bring the collective expertise of people together. If we want to make sure our strategies are implemented throughout the organization, we'd better pay close attention to what's happening in the place where the work gets done. That's not the corporate office - that's the mine sites.? Wherever someone is located in the organization, he or she will be getting a consistent message about Goldcorp values. A series of mergers over the past few years placed the company in the position of grappling with how to unify 9,000 people in 15 operations in six countries, making enterprise-wide leadership development all the more relevant. Without it, Reid says, Goldcorp could have easily ended up with what he calls a default culture, one whose lack of unification would have stood in the way of some rather aggressive growth targets. "This isn't about telling people what to do or giving them a set of rules,? Reid clarifies. "It's essential that we respect each individual's contributions. We value the diversity that each individual brings and when you do it this way you can see the energy and momentum building as people start to speak a common language.? Whatever actual language they speak (there are currently three to choose from), equipping 9,000 people across multiple sites isn't easy. Any leadership development program requires a serious investment of time, effort and money. In Goldcorp's case, it also takes a willingness to trust a yetunproven process with results that aren't always immediately visible. And because the company's leadership program is so unique, there aren't much historical data to bolster resolve either. It bodes well for Goldcorp that Reid and his team are going in with their eyes wide open, approaching the program with the same precision they approach a new mining site. "We don't worry about comparing ourselves to others,? says Reid. "We know what we're doing is different. We just have to make sure it's effective. That's where the measures come in. Of course, we love hearing the anecdotal stories about how much people appreciate the leadership development they are getting right now, particularly from the experienced supervisors who say 34 www.resourceworld.com August 2008

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