Among the huge variety of educational tools that creators of educational programs for adults are experimenting with, various “extreme” practices stand apart. Why are professional military-led wilderness training, white water rafting and cliff jumping, six-hour kayaking and expeditions to the wild of Norway so popular in the 21st century? What do C-suites and entrepreneurs get from immersing themselves in an environment full of dangers, which sometimes may lead to death of both new recruits and experienced special forces officers, even when all safety precautions are taken?

Talent War Group is one of the leadership development consulting companies that offers such service. Their new leadership program is called Into the Wild – Extreme (ITW-X). ITW-X offers expeditions tailored to business teams based on their organizational needs and top management assessment. These expeditions into the wild are led by retired military instructors and can last anywhere from a few days to two weeks. The main objective of such exercise is to put business leaders in a critical situation in which decisions must be made quickly. On such expeditions, participants climb mountains, cook their own food and face various challenges of the wild; they also learn to make decisions in different conditions and spontaneously master change management skills and, of course, develop resilience.

Into the Wild Extreme (ITW-X)

Such tests play a similar role in the training of business leaders and of special forces soldiers. It is impossible to prepare for all the tough situations of a rapidly changing external world, but you can learn to manage yourself in conditions of uncertainty and danger without losing your temper and helping other team members. As a result, participants intensify experience in decisions and actions in a rapidly changing situation, discover new strengths in themselves and colleagues, gain confidence in individual and team success.

Echelon Front has gone one step further by building its business leadership development programs around the principles of US Navy SEALs Leadership Development. The founders of the company spent decades in the special forces, and they became popular in the business community thanks to the book Extreme Ownership, which became a New York Times bestseller. The retired Navy SEALs are offering a short leadership and combat training course, after which the members in the teams will be required to complete combat training tasks in both the role of commander and the role of taking orders, and then debriefing.

Elements of such exercises are already present in more traditional programs, including those at leading business schools. Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School offers its students a 9-day leadership development course. As part of the course, students overcome the challenges of leading a group during a daily six-hour kayak trip through Belize’s pristine coastal waterways. Participants were required to develop their management strategy as a part of this experiential outdoor learning course. Groups of students worked together kayaking, navigating the area, fishing and camping.

Extreme elements in management education are still rather exotic, but their gradual spread should not be ignored. It is unlikely that such tools will suit every organization, but they may well be considered as one of the options.

Today there are a huge number of leadership development programs for managers and leaders. In this article we decided to pay attention to the most unusual educational practices within these programs. Wildlife training led by professional military, mountain river route and cliff jumping, six-hour kayaking and expeditions to the wilds of Norway are all tools for developing business leaders in the 21st century.

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