Awarded – leadership development with blended learning
Awarded – leadership development with blended learning
How can sustainable leadership development be achieved in a complex, decentralised organisation? This award-winning project shows how blended learning in leadership development does not stop at knowledge, but is consistently implemented in everyday leadership – awarded the eLearning AWARD 2026 in the category of blended learning with a focus on leadership.
Together with the Harry-Brot Group, a practical, transferable learning architecture was developed that enables managers to act effectively, not just learn.
Starting point: Leadership under real conditions
In a company with several thousand employees spread across production, logistics and sales, leadership is characterised by high tempo, varying conditions and growing complexity. Every day, managers face the challenge of combining operational requirements, employee management and change processes.
Die Ausgangssituation war typisch für viele Unternehmen:
- Uneinheitliche Führungspraxis
- Führungsverhalten stark abhängig von individueller Erfahrung
- Unterschiedliche Rahmenbedingungen in Produktion, Logistik und Vertrieb
- Steigender Druck durch Digitalisierung, Strukturwandel und komplexere Arbeitsprozesse
What was needed, therefore, was not another training programme, but an approach that would actually change leadership.
The goal: developing effective leadership
The aim of the project is sustainable leadership development that directly links learning with implementation. Leadership should not be taught theoretically, but should be experienced and effective in everyday life based on Harry Brot’s values.
The focus is on:
- Developing a common leadership approach
- Strengthening communication, reflection and decision-making skills
- Sustainable transfer of knowledge into practice instead of isolated learning impulses
- Establishing learning as a continuous process
- Visible behavioural change in everyday leadership
Our conviction here is that:
Leadership development in a company only creates value when learning is put into practice.
Leadership development in a company only creates value when learning is put into practice.
The concept: Blended learning for managers with a focus on implementation
The project was designed as a blended learning programme for managers. Digital learning formats, face-to-face sessions and accompanying coaching are systematically interlinked.
Key elements of learning architecture
The implementation: Learning becomes action
A key criterion for success is consistent practical orientation. All content relates to real management situations within the company. Managers worked with their own cases, implemented measures immediately and reflected on their experiences in the learning process.
The programme was initially piloted, then iteratively developed and gradually rolled out. The high level of participation and continuous engagement clearly demonstrated that:
This form of leadership development meets actual needs.
This form of leadership development meets actual needs.
The effect and the results
The programme’s impact is evident on several levels:
- Noticeable change in leadership behaviour
- Improved communication and cooperation within teams
- Greater capacity for reflection among managers
- Strong acceptance across all management levels
- Learning as a natural part of everyday leadership
Leadership is no longer seen as a role, but as an active creative task.
Why this project was awarded
The eLearning AWARD 2026 recognises projects that do not use digital learning formats in isolation, but achieve a lasting impact within the company. This is precisely the core of this project:
- Blended learning as an enabler for implementation
- Leadership development with measurable transfer
- Learning as a strategic tool for organisational development
Or in other words:
No leadership development without implementation.
“Companies and organisations have many managers, but only a few who are truly skilled leaders. With the support and expertise of IWP, Harry-Brot has been permanently closing this gap for a good three years now. After all, the people in the company are the most important asset. And they should be prepared for their tasks every day by trained leaders, guided in their work and, at the end of the day, led with enthusiasm!”,
summarises Markus Heinze from Harry-Brot.
Head of Project
Markus Heinze
Head of Training and Development
Harry-Brot Group SE & Co. KG
Dr. Nina Schimmel
Head of Production and project management
IWP Factory GmbH
Institut für Wirtschaftspädagogik
Further information
Learn more about the eLearning Award and the eLearning Journal
More on the topic of blended learning
