The 70-20-10 Rule

I recently heard about something called the "70-20-10 Rule", developed by the Center for Creative Leadership in the 1980's.  The "70-20-10 rule" describes a leadership and management training module that was based on a survey of 200 executives, in which executives were asked to report how they believed that they learned most effectively.  Based on these results, 70% of leadership development should come from so-called experiential learning, 20% should come from relationships and feedback, and 10% should come from formalized education and training.

Here is the model in more detail:



The major point to be made is that the bulk of leadership development should focus on exposure to a wide range of different experiences (sounds a little like my recent post "Jack of all trades, Master of none", doesn't it?), both within the organization as well as external to the organization.  We learn best by doing - we learn best "on the job."  In contrast, a much smaller proportion of leadership development should focus on formalized education and training, such as what one would typically get through an executive education or graduate degree program.  These formal training programs should complement, but not replace, experiential learning. 

One last point should be made - the evidence for the so-called "70-20-10 rule" is weak at best.  The sample size was relatively small (only 200 executives were surveyed).  Moreover, the results may have been biased by the fact that they asked already successful executives to reflect on their own personal experiences.  A more rigorous study design - for example, a randomized, controlled trial - would have been preferable. 

Regardless of the lack of evidence demonstrating that this model is the absolute best way to go, I do think the model provides a good place to start when designing a personal or organizational leadership development program.  Development should emphasize experiential learning (70% on-the-job training), but coaching/mentoring (20%) and formalized curricula (10%) should be included as well.