From 29 October to 01 November 2009, 14 mid-level managers from CIMMYT and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture worked intensively on their managerial skills as part of the First Level Leadership Development Program imparted by the global management consulting firm “HayGroup” and hosted by CIMMYT at El Batán. As part of the course, supervisors and selected peers and subordinates were asked to provide feedback on participants’ emotional intelligence, management styles, and other key leadership competencies. The course was co-facilitated by CIMMYT knowledge, information and training manager, Petr Kosina, who said that over 40 CIMMYT staff had already taken the course in the past five years. “Participants of this course value particularly the 360-degree survey, which provides objective feedback on how their colleagues, subordinates, and supervisors see them,” said Kosina. “It’s often only after seeing this feedback that they realize the big influence they have over the creation of a healthy and motivational climate within their work teams.”
Capacity development 