The document discusses the development of first level leaders at British Petroleum. It describes how meeting with different groups revealed varying needs across levels. Senior executives were unaware of isolation felt by first level leaders, while lower supervisors did not understand corporate priorities and business dynamics. The culture at BP did not traditionally support reflection. A training program was developed with input from first level leaders and their bosses to be global and centrally funded. It consisted of four components: supervisory essentials, context and connections, a leadership event, and peer partnerships. The goal was to help first level leaders understand BP's strategic thinking and receive support for their roles and aspirations.

1. Developing First Level Leaders
at British Petroleum
By ABBAS HAIDER 54284

2.  Meeting different groups, highlighted their
different needs
 For example; the first level leaders
wanted to have a better understanding of
the whole corporation and its priorities
 The lower level supervisors didn’t know
the dynamics of the upstream businesses
Understanding the Diverse Needs

3.  The senior executives had no idea about
the isolation felt by the FLLs
 Listening to the frontline supervisors,
gave them an idea that many gains can
be obtained if the FLLs are made to
understand how different departments
work
Contd.

4.  BP’s culture didn’t traditionally support a
reflective pace
 Status quo and resistance to change was
encountered… “That’s not the way we
operate!”
 But sometimes, you’ve to go slow to go
fast
Moving Slow to Go Fast

5.  The FLLs now had the agreed, along with
their bosses, on the program design
 The program was demanded to be global
 Funding should be centralized, else, it
would impact the FLLs and would lead to
budget cuts
 Ending up with 6 pilot courses
Contd.

6.  In order to make the courses successful, the
trainees needed to answer the below at the
end of the training
 Am I exposed to BP’s strategic thinking?
 Are they giving me what I need to do my job?
 Can I be the kind of person I need to be in this
position?
What We Delivered

7.  Does BP support my aspiration as well as
its own?
 To help the FLLs answer the above, a 4
component program was developed.
 The program contained the following…
Contd.

8.  Supervisory Essentials; entailed basic, project,
technology, health, environment, safety
management
 Context & Connections; a 2 day session
covering BP’s overall strategy
 The Leadership Event; a 4 day session covering
personally faced dilemmas, improving
leadership skills through role plays etc.
Contd.

9.  Peer Partnerships; pairing the FLLs with
experienced colleagues, this flourished
dialogue about difficult managerial as well
as leadership issues and ways to handle
them
Contd.

10. Questions?
Thank you…