People matter.

”Managers - more than any other factor - influence team engagement and performance. That’s not an exaggeration: 70% of the variance in team engagement is determined by the manager.”*

And yet. School districts hire excellent school leaders into central office roles, without developing their management skills in their new roles and context. Mission-driven organizations pour their energy into meeting big goals, without investing in their emerging leaders. Executive teams hold their direct reports accountable to ambitious priorities, without defining their ways of operating together as a team.

Leadwell partners with school districts and mission-driven organizations to develop leaders through immersive cohort experiences, customized workshop series, and team development.

*Source: How Influential is a Good Manager? Austin Suellentrop and E. Beth Bauman, Gallup

Develop future leaders. Retain staff. Transform culture.

Leadwell brings their experience as team leaders, program designers, professional coaches, and facilitators to develop your leaders, teams, and organization.

Emerging leaders gain skills and confidence they need to grow. “I left this program with a lot of insightful information and useful tools to begin implementing in my current role and in preparation for a future leadership role.”  - Aspiring Manager, Detroit Public Schools Community District

Managers elevate their practice and deepen their relationships with one another. “This program was simply amazing. It provided hands-on and directly applicable strategies for my everyday interactions with my team. I am leaving today with more confidence and optimism with my abilities and potential growth in leadership positions.” - Manager, Woven Care

Senior leaders tackle shared problems of practice. “The Leadwell sessions provided some of the strongest formal leadership training I have experienced, as they allowed space to apply theory to everyday reality.” - Leadership Team Member, National Math and Science Initiative

Leadwell’s core offerings are the Leadwell Accelerator (cohort experience), Leadwell Accelerator workshops, and team development. Leadwell also designs other customized leadership development solutions to meet your needs. Recent examples include: group coaching, organization-wide manager training, and online learning modules.

Invest in District Central Office employees, because thriving students and schools need a thriving system to support them. Develop leaders in mission-driven organizations, because achieving impact requires engaged teams.

Leadership Development

  • The Leadwell Accelerator is a small investment in people that builds employee engagement, upskills staff, and strengthens culture. The Leadwell Accelerator's comprehensive curriculum offers a 35-hour cohort experience over the course of 6-12 months. Participants join small cohorts with their peers, deepening authentic relationships, building leadership skills, and immediately applying strategies to current problems of practice. Leadwell’s research based curriculum guides participants to:

    • Lead from their strengths, building self-awareness and self-development.

    • Help people thrive, growing skills achieving results, giving feedback, and building inclusive culture.

    • Become an agent of change, developing capacity to collaborate, influence, and innovate.

    Explore how school districts and mission-driven organizations have benefited from the Leadwell Accelerator. Read case studies from Canopy and Detroit Public Schools Community District below.

  • The most effective professional learning happens in community with teammates, learning through direct application. Partner with Leadwell to customize and deliver workshops that build the skills your teams need, for example:

    • Check-ins & Team Meetings

    • Feedback

    • Influencing & Motivating Others

    • Prioritization & Delegation

    Workshops are typically two hours each, scheduled as a series, in either in-person or virtual formats. Explore how school districts and mission-driven organizations have benefited from Leadwell workshops. Read case studies from District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS), National Math & Science Initiative (NMSI), and Woven Care below.

  • Building team culture is as important as building tactical skills. Leadwell partners with mission-driven organizations to help teams lead more effectively and inclusively. Each project is customized to what you need. For example, Leadwell creates:

    • Professional development sessions that build managers’ capacity to transform culture

    • Executive Team / Leadership Team retreats that strengthen how leaders work together to drive strategy

    Leadwell works with school districts and mission-driven organizations to diagnose their current culture, define their aspirational culture - and bridge the two.

Leadwell Accelerator - FAQs

Case Studies: Cohort Experience

  • Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) decided to make a radical investment in their central office leaders. By design, school districts allocate resources in direct service of students and schools. DPSCD held a both/and view: a deeply held value of Students First, and a recognition that central office leaders are critical as they carry out organizational vision in service of students and schools. Researchers highlight the importance of learning organizations that prioritize central office leadership development (Honig et al, 2012). However, these leaders are overlooked when it comes to professional development. 

    Leadwell and DPSCD partnered to create the DPSCD Leadership Forum - a cohort-based program for central office leaders of all levels. Over six months, Leadwell designed 54 modules grounded in research-based competencies  - including facilitator guides, session plans, session presentations, participant workbooks, and evaluation surveys - with DPSCD feedback at every step of the way. Leadwell facilitated a Train-the-Trainer to position DPSCD leaders to facilitate the program. This signature professional development program is rooted in experiential learning and grounded in equity. The curriculum creates space to form a transformational community while building lasting skills.  

    Participants have stepped into larger roles, grown as managers, and shifted organizational culture. Upon completion of the pilot:   

    • Approximately 23% of participants earned a promotion within the calendar year 

    • Leaders applied tactical management skills to support their teams and achieve results, facilitating more effective check-ins, giving direct feedback, and leveraging project management frameworks

    • Participants transformed collaboration and connection, building trust with one another and creating new cross- departmental collaboration structures 

    Participants said:

    “I left this program with a lot of insightful information and useful tools to begin implementing in my current role and in preparation for a future leadership role.”  - Aspiring Managers cohort participant

    “The Leadership Forum allowed me to think more critically about what it truly means to be an effective leader and how to lead with an equitable and inclusive mindset. It allowed me to connect with colleagues across the district to engage in personal growth that in turn will help me to influence positive change within my team and ultimately throughout the District. " - Managers cohort participant 

    Clients said: 

    Leadwell “helped us move from a big idea to a fully realized initiative, and through each step in the journey, they brought knowledge, skill and thought partnership that pushed our work to the next level. We are so grateful to be their partners.” - Elizabeth Cutrona, Deputy Superintendent of Strategy and Academics, Detroit Public Schools Community District

  • Canopy is in the business of saving the planet. Canopy works collaboratively with brands, producers, local NGOs, Indigenous leaders, and decision-makers. They bring the power of the global market to secure large-scale and just conservation for the world’s climate-critical and biodiversity-rich forests. Canopy knows that in order to achieve this big vision, they need to pour into their people.

    Canopy partnered with Leadwell to develop the skills and capacities of their management team. Over the course of a year, Leadwell customized and facilitated Leadwell Accelerator workshops, both in-person and virtually. The Leadwell Accelerator is a research-based leadership development curriculum that guides teams to immediately put management tools and frameworks into practice. Based on Canopy’s needs and priorities, Leadwell designed and delivered a Scope & Sequence that included topics such as: 

    • Defining the role of a manager at Canopy

    • Setting clear expectations

    • Effective 1x1 check-ins

    • Prioritization & delegation

    • Effective feedback

    • Upward management 

    Leadwell collaborated with Canopy to adapt workshop topics and delivery based on managers’ feedback and needs. Over the course of the workshop series, 93% of managers somewhat agreed, agreed, or strongly agreed that each workshop gave them useful ideas and tools to improve in their jobs. 98% of managers somewhat agreed, agreed, or strongly agreed that each workshop was well facilitated. The most powerful professional development happens with peers, when participants can apply ideas to their actual work and teams. When asked what was most valuable about each workshop, managers consistently noted the value of practicing and discussing frameworks with their peers. They cited specific tools and strategies they planned to put into immediate practice.  

    Canopy’s mission is to protect the world’s forests, species, and climate, and to help advance frontline communities’ rights. This work requires the collective efforts of a confident and effective management team. Leadwell Accelerator workshops have played a critical role in developing Canopy’s managers and leaders.

Case Studies: Workshop Series

  • District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) sought to transform culture and strengthen engagement within their Central Services team. DCPS partnered with Leadwell to offer customized Leadwell Accelerator workshops focused on specific leadership skills, capacities, and mindsets in order to advance their strategic priorities and cultural work. DCPS and Leadwell collaborated to identify 9 out of the existing 54 Leadwell Accelerator modules to offer DCPS Central Services leaders, through a series of three workshops:

    • Transforming Culture, focused on:  leading with purpose & strengths, inclusive culture, and collaboration. 100% of participants strongly agreed or agreed with the statement: “Overall, this workshop was a valuable use of my time”

    • Leadership Fundamentals, exploring: ways of being & doing in leadership, feedback, and influence. 100% of participants strongly agreed or agreed with the statement: “The workshop was well facilitated”

    • Excel Now & Develop for Future, empowering aspiring managers to identify and build on their strengths, give feedback, and motivate others. 100% of participants strongly agreed or agreed with the statement: “The workshop gave me useful ideas and tools to improve in my job.”  

    DCPS invited members of existing cross-departmental leadership groups to opt-in to the workshop series as participants. Each workshop guided participants to explore three frames of leadership: knowing SELF, supporting TEAMS, and navigating SYSTEMS. Participants focused on research-based competencies such as: Self awareness, Self development, Give feedback, Build inclusive culture, Collaborate, and Influence. DCPS also chose to offer a Train-the-Trainer to equip DCPS leaders to expand the reach of the Leadwell Accelerator workshops, delivering content throughout their departments. DCPS Central Services leaders gained leadership skills in community with one another. Participants said:

    “I have learned a lot in such a short period of time; actionable items that I can immediately implement in my current role at my organization.”

    “I loved the warm and engaging environment that the Leadwell Accelerator workshop created. This created a bonding experience for me and my colleagues to learn together, supporting our professional and personal growth. I feel empowered to implement today's learning in my workplace.”

  • Our organization is getting ready to grow. How do we help our leaders grow, too? 

    The National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) is a nonprofit STEM solutions provider transforming the face of STEM. In 2025, NMSI’s Leadership Team identified their focus as “Becoming an Organization Ready for Growth”. In order to be ready to grow, the Leadership Team knew they needed to adopt and model specific mindsets. They knew they needed to create new strategies and structures. They also wanted to invest in their own growth - as individual leaders of their respective teams, and in their collective leadership as a team. NMSI partnered with Leadwell to customize and deliver Leadwell Accelerator workshops to support this growth. 

    The Leadwell Accelerator is a research-based leadership development curriculum that empowers cohorts of leaders to immediately put management tools and frameworks into practice with their teams. Leadwell adapted this comprehensive curriculum into a series of four virtual workshops for NMSI’s Leadership Team. Based on NMSI’s priorities, the workshops focused on: defining the role of a manager, giving effective feedback, influencing and motivating others, and empowering staff to lead. 

    Nonprofit leaders often choose to attend external conferences, with best intentions of reporting back ideas to their teammates. Or, they log-in to professional development webinars, listening to experts explain various frameworks, that they may find time later to adapt to make sense for their organization. Leadwell Accelerator workshops offer something different: a safe and engaging space for the NMSI leadership team to learn and practice and apply together. 

    “The Leadwell sessions provided some of the strongest formal leadership training I have experienced, as they allowed space to apply theory to everyday reality.” - Paul Duchene, Chief Operating Officer, NMSI

    Investing in the growth of their leaders will propel NMSI to organizational growth.


  • Woven Care is changing lives, one child at a time. Woven Care is serious about this vision. They have served Colorado children and families with high quality pediatric therapy for over 15 years. In their 10+ clinics, Woven Care meets every child where they are, offering comprehensive and coordinated pediatric care and therapy services. Woven Care came to Leadwell because they sought to pour into their clinic leaders - just as they pour into the children and families they serve. They have a bold growth plan and need leaders with the skills to grow the company. 

    Woven Care partnered with Leadwell to develop the management skills and capacities of their clinical managers. These leaders are trained and accomplished therapists, who have been promoted into team leadership positions. They bring expertise to the patients they continue to serve. Woven Care saw an opportunity to invest in their professional development as managers of large teams of people.

    The Leadwell Accelerator is a research-based leadership development curriculum that empowers cohorts of leaders to immediately put management tools and frameworks into practice with their teams. Leadwell adapted this comprehensive curriculum into a three-day workshop experience - plus a two-hour virtual session - for Woven Care managers. Leadwell Accelerator Day One grounded the cohort in leading with purpose, strengths, and equity. 100% of participants strongly agreed/ agreed that the workshop gave them useful ideas and tools to improve in their jobs. Day Two focused on effective feedback and inclusive team culture. 100% of participants strongly agreed/ agreed that the workshop was a valuable use of their time. One manager shared: “This program was simply amazing. It provided hands-on and directly applicable strategies for my everyday interactions with my team. I am leaving today with more confidence and optimism with my abilities and potential growth in leadership positions.” The theme of Day Three was motivating and empowering staff. Not only did 100% of participants again strongly agree/ agree that the workshop gave them useful ideas and tools to improve in their jobs. 100% also strongly agreed/ agreed that the workshop created space to build relationship with peers. 

    There is something special about the culture of Woven Care. During each workshop day, there was tremendous joy in the room. During breaks in the content, the cohort enjoyed fresh air together, shared family photos, and laughed together. Each Woven Care clinic leader entered this experience with unique strengths and expertise. They entered this experience with deep and authentic relationships with one another. Through the Leadwell Accelerator, this community of leaders added concrete management frameworks to their daily practices. One manager shared: “This workshop has made a huge impact on my professional journey. It has helped me learn so much about myself as a leader and how I can support my team. I would recommend [the Leadwell Accelerator] to anyone who is looking to expand their knowledge on leadership and self-awareness in the workplace.” As Woven Care continues to grow and serve more Colorado families, their clinic leaders are well-positioned to support their teams to meet big goals and to thrive. 

Case Study: Professional Development at Scale

  • How might we create manager and leadership support at scale? Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) understands that Central Office manager effectiveness is critical to serving students and achieving District goals. Central office managers play a pivotal role in recruiting and retaining talent, increasing staff productivity and performance, and developing future leaders. In 2025, the District selected The Leadwell Group to design and implement a professional development program for the approximately 200 managers in DPSCD’s Central Office. This initiative included both in-person convenings and a series of asynchronous courses available to all Central Office managers. 

    DPSCD and Leadwell solicited input from managers on the topics and skills they were most interested in developing, and built a Scope and Sequence to meet these needs. The first in-person convening in summer 2025 focused on Receiving and Acting on Feedback. Participants aligned on the core responsibilities of managers, developed a team data routine to understand and act on staff engagement data, and practiced tactical strategies to improve their 1x1 check-ins with direct reports. Managers’ feedback was overwhelmingly positive. 99% agreed that they built skills as a manager, 100% agreed that they built confidence as a manager, and 100% agreed that they feel well equipped to succeed in their role as a manager.*

    Following the first convening, Leadwell partnered with the District to design and release six asynchronous courses, as a sustainable and scalable way of continuing to support managers’ professional learning. Courses include critical management skills such as prioritization & delegation, project management, and coaching & developing staff. The District can track course completion and participant feedback over time to understand course value and impact.

    Managers came back together for a second in-person convening in winter 2025 focused on Support and Accountability. Participants strengthened their goals-based management through Objectives and Key Results (OKR) and worked in small groups to build skills in managing conflict. Feedback continued to be positive. 98% agreed that they built skills as a manager, 99% agreed that they built confidence as a manager, and 97% agreed that they feel well equipped to succeed in their role as a manager.*

    Clients shared: “We've partnered with Leadwell and Christina for several years now to build out our leadership development pipeline across the District. The work started with differentiated pathway development for aspiring managers, current managers, and managers of managers and has since expanded to central office-wide convenings on topics like receiving and acting on feedback, goals-based management, and more. The response from managers districtwide has been overwhelmingly positive. What Leadwell has helped us achieve is manager and leadership support at scale. The goal has always been for our managers to be the best versions of themselves so that their teams benefit from stronger leadership. Leadwell has been an outstanding thought partner throughout, and the investment has returned far more than we could have imagined.” 

    * Net Agreed,  including somewhat agree, agree, and strongly agree


What Districts & Organizations Are Saying

“Working with Leadwell has helped us spend much needed time focusing on the development of our central office managers. As an often overlooked group, the customized, cohort-based development that Leadwell co-designed and co-facilitated with us has led to meaningful professional learning for some of our highest-potential leaders. Cannot recommend Leadwell enough for your organization's talent development needs!”

— Detroit Public Schools Community District Client

“I loved the warm and engaging environment that the Leadwell Accelerator workshop created. This created a bonding experience for me and my colleagues to learn together, supporting our professional and personal growth. I feel empowered to implement today's learning in my workplace.”

— DC Public Schools Participant

“The Leadership Forum allowed me to think more critically about what it truly means to be an effective leader and how to lead with an equitable and inclusive mindset. It allowed me to connect with colleagues across the district to engage in personal growth that in turn will help me to influence positive change within my team and ultimately throughout the District. "

— Detroit Public Schools Community District Participant

Recent Clients Include…

A small investment in people can transform your impact.