The perils of leadership development: unintended consequences for employee withdrawal behaviour and conflict

Abstract

This study examines potential negative human resource consequences of leadership development. Applying theoretical perspectives on job demands and resources, we argue that leadership development may result in potential negative outcomes by introducing new and different demands on workers, requiring adjustment and adaptation. We further argue that the pervasiveness of this risk increases as leadership training is distributed across an organisation. We examine the effects of the implementation of a leadership development programme across a whole organisation (N = 9471), analysing data on incidences of withdrawal (absenteeism) and conflict (formal grievances) over a four-year period. We analyse data using fixed-effects modelling, and our findings indicated that increases in the proportions of leaders undertaking development in nineteen service units of the organisation over this period predicted increases in absenteeism and grievances raised by staff. Implications for theory in leadership development, and the management of development initiatives are discussed.