The leadership training market for executives has become more crowded in recent years, with offerings ranging from university certificates to individual coaching and hybrid courses. For a business leader, choosing an appropriate training program requires understanding what these programs actually change in daily management practice, and what they do not change.
Mandatory training for executives: what the NIS2 directive changes
Training for executives is no longer just a personal development choice. The European NIS2 directive, adopted at the end of 2022 and currently being transposed into member states, introduces an explicit training obligation for the governing bodies of entities classified as important or significant.
Article 20.2 of this directive requires executives to undergo training that enables them to assess risks and management practices related to cybersecurity. Article 21.2.g includes cybersecurity training among the mandatory minimum risk management measures. In Germany, the cybersecurity law (BSIG) already makes regular training for members of the governing body a documentary control point.
This regulatory constraint means that a training program for executives can no longer be limited to interpersonal or strategic skills alone. Programs that incorporate a risk management dimension, including cyber, meet a concrete legal need. Organizations like the Académie Dirigeants offer courses that intersect leadership and the operational responsibilities of executives.
Leadership training for executives: what distinguishes a useful program from a generic catalog
Most leadership training programs make the same promises: emotional intelligence, conflict management, managerial posture, change management. The issue is not the content, but the level of personalization.
A business leader does not face the same situations as a middle manager. Decision-making under uncertainty, managing the solitude of the position, and the articulation between strategic vision and daily execution are specific realities. Feedback from the field varies on this point: some executives believe that mixed training (executives and managers) enriches discussions, while others feel that only a peer group allows for addressing the real issues.
Three criteria can help evaluate the relevance of a program before committing:
- The composition of the group: a course reserved for executives fosters open exchanges on governance, cash flow, or transmission issues that middle managers do not address
- The duration and pace: a format spread over several months, with practical application intersessions, produces more sustainable results than a seminar concentrated over a few days
- The post-training support: individual coaching, alumni exchange groups, or extended remote follow-up prolong the effect of the course beyond the classroom
In-person, remote, or hybrid courses
The in-person format remains preferred for executive training, particularly because the quality of informal interactions (meals, breaks, group exercises) plays a role in building trust among peers. Available data does not allow for concluding that a remote format produces the same effects on relational leadership development.
On the other hand, online modules work well for theoretical contributions or regulatory updates. A hybrid course that alternates in-person and remote can offer a good compromise, provided that the online segments do not serve solely to inflate the displayed hourly volume.
What leadership training changes (and does not change) in a company’s management
An executive who undergoes leadership training generally expects an effect on team engagement, their ability to delegate, and the clarity of their strategic communication. Leadership is a skill that must be developed, and the results largely depend on what the executive puts into practice after the training.
Training accelerates awareness, it does not replace practice. An executive who discovers their leadership profile (directive, participative, delegative) gains clarity about their managerial reflexes. This clarity only transforms into operational competence after months of application.
On the ground, executives who gain the most from training are those undergoing a transition: rapid company growth, governance changes, integration of a new management team, shifting from family management to structured management. In these contexts, training serves as a framework for rethinking one’s role rather than adding tools.
Limitations to know before signing up
No training can correct a structural organizational problem. If management difficulties stem from chronic understaffing, a fragile business model, or a conflict among partners, a leadership development program will only provide temporary relief.
The most honest training programs about their limitations are often the most useful. A program that promises to “transform your leadership in five days” deserves careful scrutiny. Programs that extend over several months and include feedback sessions implicitly acknowledge that developing executive skills takes time.
Choosing an executive training program: questions to ask before signing
Before committing to a course, a business leader should ask specific questions to the training organization:
- What is the profile of the trainers: active executives, former executives, consultants, academics? The diversity of profiles enriches the training, but having at least one peer executive among the trainers changes the quality of exchanges
- What is the size of the cohorts? Beyond about fifteen participants, individualized exchange times significantly decrease
- Does the program integrate the new regulatory obligations for executives, particularly regarding cybersecurity and risk management?
- Is there an active alumni network, and in what form does it operate?
The quality of a training program is also measured by what it does not promise. A program that clearly outlines its scope, prerequisites, and the profiles of executives it addresses avoids disappointments and increases return on investment. Executives who make sustainable progress are those who reinvest each gain into their daily practice, over months and years.
