Best-seller offshoot.

The Leadership Challenge Revised Edition, video, 2003, 28 min., CRM Learning (800-421-0833, www.crmlearning.com), $895, Leader guide, PowerPoint slides, Q & A cards.

The Leadership Challenge, Revised Edition, is an updated video based on the book of the same name. The new edition provides trainers with a contemporary video to complement the variety of resources that support the best-selling book by James Kouzes and Barry Posner.

The program's premise is simple. Leadership is not about power or position; it can be demonstrated by ordinary people in all areas of an organization. For over 20 years, Kouzes and Posner have studied thousands of successful leaders who achieve extraordinary results and have found common practices and skills. They believe leadership can be learned and share numerous examples to illustrate their belief. The video features five stories that show successful leaders in action.

FIVE LEADERSHIP PRACTICES

Through the stories and corresponding interview clips, the video reviews the five common leadership practices and 10 supporting commitments:

Model the Way

1. Find your voice by clarifying your personal values.

2. Set the example by aligning actions with shared values.

Inspire a Shared Vision

3. Envision the future by imagining exciting and ennobling possibilities.

4. Enlist others in a common vision by appealing to shared aspirations.

Challenge the Process

5. Search for opportunities by seeking innovative ways to change, grow, and improve.

6. Experiment and take risks by constantly generating small wins and learning from mistakes.

Enable Others to Act

7. Foster collaboration by promoting cooperative goals and building trust.

8. Strengthen others by sharing power and discretion.

Encourage the Heart

9. Recognize contributions by showing appreciation for individual excellence.

10. Celebrate the values and victories by creating a spirit of community.

The story characters are found in everyday corporate America--a mid-level manager who needs to improve his team's performance; a company president struggling with rising healthcare insurance costs; a hospital plagued with a poor reputation, low employee morale, and financial distress; and a manager who needs to support and encourage his team. Interspersed with the stories are interview commentaries from Kouzes and Posner. They expand on the storylines, sharing quotes from their book and research, and provide more insight into the common leadership practices.

ASSURING RELEVANCY

The video's challenge may be that viewers can't relate to the specific examples shown in the stories and therefore may dismiss the learning points altogether. The interview clips with Kouzes and Posner help draw out those points, but a trainer should use the suggested classroom activities to help participants relate the material back to their own environments. These activities include a "Snapshot Log" that helps participants tie the leadership practices to their current projects and "Q & A Cards" for a creative classroom discussion activity.

CRM Learning continues to provide quality video programs with maximum flexibility. The program includes both VHS and DVD versions of the video so regardless of your organization's current technologies, trainers will be able to use the program. The spiralbound leaders guide suggests multiple training designs. The DVD also includes the first edition of this video in case you have legacy issues and want to have both programs available. There's even an option to show the video chapter by chapter so that it can easily be shown in chunks. The video itself is high quality with crisp, clear graphics and excellent sound production. The materials also include a PowerPoint presentation with additional research from Kouzes and Posner to supplement and support the training program.

RECOMMENDATION

If you're using other Leadership Challenge products in your leadership development curriculum, then you'll definitely want to include this video program in your arsenal of tools. It can be used as a stand-alone training program to dig deep into leadership practices or as a broad overview of the Leadership Challenge principles to new hires or others who need a basic introduction. Even if this is your organization's only exposure to The Leadership Challenge, it's a worthwhile investment based on its content and value.

The Leadership Challenge star rating

CATEGORY

Holds viewer interest  3
Acting/Presenting      3.5
Diversity              3.5
Production quality     4
Value of content       3.5
Instructional value    3.5
Value for the money    2.5
Overall rating         3.5