The Explorers Mindset Leadership Programme

THE VISION

A programme to develop leaders with an Explorers Mindset, able to challenge boundaries in volatile times

The Explorers Mindset Leadership Programme

An Explorer is curious, has an appetite for personal and collective growth, resets expectations, reveals new insights, and challenges themselves and others to push beyond comfort zones to learn and grow.

Explorers make things happen; they embrace vulnerability as they take themselves and their teams to new places.

Designed and facilitated by Generator Talent in partnership with the Antarctic Heritage Trust, this transformational programme nurtures the spirit and adventure of famous explorers; their leadership approach, their mindset and the incredible stories of achievements, focussing on legends including Ernest Shackleton, Robert Scott & Roald Amundsen. We bring an explorer’s mindset and their leadership lessons to current day executives, creating a sense of adventure, possibility and growth to meet the challenges of the present age.

Every organisation needs leaders with an Explorers Mindset.

“I would absolutely recommend the programme and would like to see it roll-out for some of my direct team. Being on the programme allows people to get closer together as a group and build relationships. The structure and format are great, and it connects concepts together in a unique way. ” Inaugural Participant Testimonial

“I would highly recommend the programme to others. I’ve been telling all my friends about how great it is. The vision to put the programme together the way it’s been done is unique. It is more enjoyable and engaging than any other leadership programme I’ve done before” Inaugural Participant Testimonial

“It’s a unique leadership programme as it doesn’t depend on a single leadership construct; it’s not another ‘be like the All Blacks’ programme. It provides a lot of different styles and insights into leadership approaches and allows participants to reflect, choose and adapt into their own authentic style to be more successful; there is not one single ideal way of leading. The individual and team challenge of the Expedition is unique and a great part of the programme” Inaugural Participant Testimonial

“The programme you’ve put together in one of the most creative leadership approaches I’ve seen in my career – the narrative you’re threading is exceptionally creative, the guests you’re introducing are world-class and the quest this is attached to is unique. Without question, you are onto something magic here and I cannot wait to see that come to life at scale for The Warehouse and Generator Talent. Congratulations.” Inaugural Participant Testimonial

“This leadership program was unlike any other I have experienced. It incorporated the traditional principles of a leadership course, however the innovative approach of applying this learning through the lens of Antarctic Explorers led to a deeper, more immersive experience. I appreciated the authenticity and diversity of guest speakers. Every guest left us with something deep to reflect on. The highlight for me was the expedition component. Not just the final event, but the training, the planning and preparation of such an adventure created a new space for us to create life-time connections with fellow participants, our guides and leadership coaches. They’re on to something special here!” Inaugural Participant Testimonial

“A fabulous, well constructed, experiential learning journey and challenge. A refreshing, enlightening, and humbling approach to personal and leadership development which I will never forget. ” Inaugural Participant Testimonial

THE FOUR STAGE JOURNEY

The Explorers Mindset Leadership Programme is conducted over four stages, beginning with an immersion into the mindset of the explorers, a phase of self-discovery and learning over a period of time, and a real opportunity to apply learnings in today’s world through an outdoor challenge to “put yourself in the shoes of an explorer”.

SELF DISCOVERY

Commencing with pre-work and a two-day Foundation Workshop in Christchurch, participants are immersed into the heroic-age of Antarctic Exploration. They then engage with The Explorers Mindset model, undergoing a personal 360 Feedback Assessment and articulating their Leadership Intentions.

LEARN & EMBED

Six half-day workshops, either face to face or virtually, deeply exploring the Explorers’ Mindset Leadership Model and embed the concepts and insights. The objective is to equip participants with the new skills, insights and confidence to lead in a more thoughtful and compelling way.

THE EXPEDITION

Individually and as a cohort, participants engage in an experiential challenge (their own Expedition), to apply new skills and approaches, testing their physical and mental endurance, and creating a lasting memory to reinforce their journey of self-discovery and learning.

REFLECTION

The programme concludes with the cohort returning to a classroom setting, to reflect on their learnings and to articulate their ongoing commitment as leaders. A final celebratory dinner formally wraps-up this transformative programme.

The Explorers Mindset Leadership Model

Through detailed research and analysis of the Antarctic Explorers from the heroic age, we’ve built a model and 360 survey of the six key attributes that define their leadership approach. What we found was that these six timeless attributes – Curiosity, Conviction, Loyalty, Resilience, Risk Tasking & Courage – are as relevant today as they were 100 years ago.

The Expedition

The programme includes an outdoor expedition that challenges participants’ existing boundaries on risk, while applying personal and leadership learnings in a physically and mentally challenging environment.

EXAMPLE: COAST TO COAST EXPEDITION

This is a three-day expedition crossing from the South Island’s west coast to east coast (3 days and 2 nights). The expedition programme can accommodate a range of physical abilities, skill and experience. The cohort cycle, hike and raft across the soiuth island – connecting with nature, and fueling curiosity, resilience, leadership and teamwork.

The Expedition starts in the Tasman sea, cycling through lush native bush, hiking across the Southern Alps, then rafting the stunning Waimakariri River Gorge and finishing with another cycle along quiet rural roads to the final destination on the East coast. This stage is delivered by Adventure Activity Operator (AAO registered with Work Safe) approved vendors. The progarmme’s partnering vendor is Adventure South: https://www.adventuresouth.co.nz/

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

The Explorers Mindset Leadership Programme has been developed for senior or high potential leaders seeking to deepen their self-awareness, to develop a different mindset and to apply techniques and approaches to make themselves a more thoughtful and compelling leader of people in a world of constant change and complexity.

The programme can be conducted with a cohort of 12 from a single organisation, or as an open-enrolment programme, constituted with attendees from multiple organisations.

Participants who attend the programme will have the opportunity to:

Measure themselves and get feedback against the attributes and behaviours of the legendary leaders of the heroic age of Antarctic exploration.

Learn from the lessons and stories of great leadership, contemporised to the modern-day challenges and hear from a range of exemplary guest speakers with their point of views on leadership.

Test out theories and techniques back on the job through skill applications, learn to journal and reflect, and to enact their own development plan.

Participate in a challenging experiential Expedition with other cohort participants, taking the opportunity to extend oneself physically and mentally in the natural outdoors.

A Partnership between the Antarctic Heritage Trust & Generator Talent

The involvement of the Antarctic Heritage Trust creates a unique value through their stewardship of the Antarctic Huts of Scott, Shackleton & Hillary. The Trust holds New Zealand’s authentic claim on the ‘spirit’ of the early Antarctic Explorers and provides artefacts & explorer guest speakers, providing a sense of history and reality to the programme.

Generator Talent brings a proven ability in executive development, led by experienced and successful leaders in their own right. They have 15 years consulting in Executive Development across ANZ, and are the co-creators and facilitators of the “Accelerating Leadership Presence” program, conducted for more than 10 years with 300+ Alumni.

A part of the tuition fee paid in attending an Explorers Mindset Leadership Programme goes directly to the Antarctic Heritage Trust to help fund their mission; to conserve the Antarctic Huts, to share the great polar exploration stories, to encourage young people to explore the world around them and to sustain and care for people and the planet.