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High-impact results for your career

Unleash your leadership potential and thrive as a women leader.

High-impact results for your career

Unleash your leadership potential and thrive as a women leader.

Celebrating 20 years of Strategies for Leadership

2024 marks 20 years since IMD hosted the first edition of Strategies for Leadership. Since then, it has evolved into one of IMD’s most established and enduring programs.

The program’s launch came amid a growing debate in the early 2000s on advancing women into senior leadership roles. In 2004, just 19% of senior management roles globally were held by women – a number that had barely shifted in three decades. Twenty years on, the program has welcomed more than 1,170 women and 81 different nationalities, equipping them with the tools to progress in their careers, assume influential roles, and drive meaningful change within their spheres.

“When we first started this program, it was probably the most controversial market research IMD had ever done. Everybody had an opinion, and the opinions were evenly split.”

Women leaders share their transformative journeys

To mark the 20^th anniversary of IMD’s Strategies for Leadership program, we’ve been speaking with some of the remarkable women who have participated in the program over the years to find out how the experience impacted them.

Empowering women to make real impact

IMD’s Strategies for Leadership equips you with the tools to overcome the unique challenges and limiting biases women leaders face and discover your most effective and authentic leadership style.

When we say “real impact”, we mean it. After attending IMD’s Strategies for Leadership program, participants stated:

100%

“I felt more confident about myself.”

100%

“I took practical steps that enhanced the performance of my team/organization.”

100%

“I could better choose and focus on my priorities.”

100%

“I have become a more effective executive”

*Survey of 2024 program participants.

IMD SL Strategies for Leadership - IMD Business School

“What I really learned in this program is having some practical tools that fit my own leadership style.”

Isabel Workel-Tijhuis, Group HR Director, Triodos Bank, The Netherlands

Isabel describes IMD’s faculty and coaching as “extraordinary” and found the program well-balanced, powerful and very valuable.

“The major impact that it had on me is that it made me very self-aware.”

Marina Corti, International HR Director, Workplace and Social Responsibility, Cartier, Switzerland

Moments of very honest, caring feedback from her classmates allowed Marina to learn a lot about how other people perceive her and what she can improve.

“Inspirational, empowering, invaluable.”

Nicole Watson, CEO, Econic Earth Foundation, USA

Nicole says the program made her realize what she needed to shift within herself to become a stronger, clearer leader.

“I had a chance to work with the best coach I’ve ever had.”

Jessica Bobet, Global Expert Lead, GSK Consumer Health, Switzerland

Jessica describes the program as “life-changing, powerful and challenging with care” and says, for her, it was key to bringing clarity to areas where women build their own biases and limitations.

“The major impact of this program for me in one word is empowerment.”

Minna Wilkki, Head Of Department, European Research Executive Agency, Belgium

Minna appreciated the contribution of the other women in the program to her learning journey, and they continue to provide a support network to her and offer feedback long after the program.

Amazing things can happen when you get a group of highly intelligent, capable and inspiring women leaders together for an intensive few days. You build deep relationships with complete strangers, you gain deeper insights about yourself as a leader, and you gain a global network of like-minded women leaders you admire and want to work with again. All this within an environment that is safe and full of compassion and support. What more can you ask for?

The highlight of this program is really the connections that you make because you establish very authentic relationships. They really impact you as an individual, as a person.

I gained quick and easy tips which I use on an ongoing basis and shared with more junior women in my group. I also took a lot from the coaching sessions which I am applying in my daily life.

The Strategies for Leadership annual alumnae event deepens the connections made during the program. You meet a wider network. It’s a moment in time to re-energize, connect, learn, and continue inspiring positive impact in the world. And it’s so much fun.