Describes a model leadership academy program at Topeka (Kansas) Public Schools in cooperation with Kansas State University. Created in 1987, the academy was designed to serve the school system's unique needs while fostering innovative educational experiences for administrator preparation. Includes four references. (MLH)

Discusses a study of staff regarding noncourse based learning. Analyzes how patterns of learning relate to various outcomes. Found that managers need help in combining proactivity, elegance, and opportunism in their choice and use of learning patterns. (JOW)

Four focus groups with 300 Fortune 500 managers and two panels of experts were used to build and verify a theory of the impact on management training on organizational performance. The theory suggests that such training design factors as needs assessment, coaching, and simulated practice have a greater impact on performance. (SK)

To help beginning principals create unique professional development plans, Texas A & M University Principals' Center has developed the Management Profile built around a videotaped interview of open-ended questions. Trained assessors review the video, compare responses with a standards matrix, and encourage principals to choose a mentor/coach…

Developed over centuries, Japan's key strengths are education, management, and training. To emulate Japanese success requires individuals with a missionary commitment to self-development, managers who value coaching and staff development, and organizations that reward managers on their ability to develop staff and maximize organizational learning.…

Robinson and Stern describe the Management Training Program introduced by the U.S. Air Force in postwar Japan and its effect on Japanese industry. Roberts compares it with U.S. Training within Industries. Umetani comments that the discussion would have been more convincing had its relationship with other Japanese training programs been addressed.…

Administrator training programs may compromise the ability of governors (superintendents) to offer an authentic "lay" input. This article explores the views of governors concerning the need for expert status. Training courses may contribute to a sense of inadequacy and to the tendency to become incorporated into an institutionalized…

This report presents the results of a demonstration of the cost effectiveness of supervisory and management development training, and it outlines a model that will permit practitioners to conduct a definitive analysis of the financial value of training. The purpose of the study was to predict potential Return on Investment (ROI) and measure the…

Analysis of 51 of 80 project proposals, the capstone exercise of the Arkansas Certified Government Manager program, showed that nearly half dealt with new technology/services and 65% were implemented. The exercise promotes state agency analysis, discussion, and action regarding the issues or problems addressed by the projects. (SK)

Highlights the importance of preparation for company boards of directors and provides checklists for the following areas: understanding of board members and the team, identification of directorial competencies, professional development methods, role of the chair, steps toward corporate transformation, and development of a business excellence…

Instructional objectives for teaching with case studies are outlined, and techniques for using case studies are described. Combinations of objectives and methods for different situations are explored, and suggestions for practitioners on effective use of different case study types, with different populations, and at different phases of management…

A modular group project-based approach to management development was implemented by Volvo Concessionaires (United Kingdom) in partnership with training consultants. Ingredients of its success included top-level commitment, investment in diagnosis and tailoring, and use of company-specific case studies. (SK)

Analysis of affirmative action in South Africa suggests it fails because (1) it is based on developing blacks and women to function in a fundamentally unchanged work environment; (2) it is often seen as quota filling and not development; and (3) many expect it to fail and commitment is lacking. (SK)

A recent study investigated administrator development at a regional assessment center when no specific structured developmental program was provided by the center or by the sponsoring organization. Former participants in an assessment center are likely to pursue professional development activities even though formal postassessment programs are…

Etiquette serves as a defense of the social order while hiding that purpose from its beneficiaries. Although people believe their manners guarantee integrity, politically "innocent" powerful people are often unintentionally offensive to people of a different class, ethnicity, or gender. (SK)