Why do many organizations encounter challenges when seeking to develop their executive leaders? After all, executives are skilled, hardworking and accomplished individuals who possess many years of experience in their field and in leading others.

These challenges arise because executive development is much more complex and nuanced than traditional leadership development. What works for most leaders throughout organizations may not work for leaders at the executive level.

While there are many reasons why developing executive leaders requires a unique approach, I have found three primary challenges that must be addressed to achieve maximum engagement when seeking to develop executives. To address these challenges, it is crucial for effective executive development initiatives to incorporate the following innovative features.

1. Expert Bias

Often, extensive experience and success at the senior level contribute to what I refer to as the “I know” mentality, or expert bias. Our brains possess countless cognitive biases which influence our thinking as we navigate day-to-day experiences. As executive leaders develop greater expertise and become more tenured in their industries and roles, they become less inclined to be self-developing and self-critical and more inclined to acquire expert bias.

Along with success comes self-deception, and executive leaders must gain awareness around the unconscious bias impact of “self.” It is critical for executive development initiatives to drive self-awareness, self-critique and self-development. To foster introspection and identify learning gaps, programs must include a combination of assessments to provide clarity on strengths and areas for development. Executive leaders can then leverage the assessment data to engage their workforce in a deliberate and intentional manner.

2. Fear Of Being Outed As Not ‘All-Knowing’