ALM Intelligence: Q&A with DDI’s Tacy Byham

Many organizations have come to rely on DDI’s Global Leadership Forecast (GLF) for evidence-based research into corporate leadership practices and systems worldwide. For GLF 2018, DDI collaborated with The Conference Board and EY to convert data into actionable insights and recommendations. ALM Intelligence’s Liz DeVito recently sat down with Tacy Byham, DDI’s CEO, to learn about this year’s study. 

ALM Intelligence: What’s different about this year’s research?

Byham: This is our eighth study on global leadership since we launched the research stream in 1999. Over the years, the research has been consistent in its purpose to uncover insights into the state of global leadership and provide evidence-based recommendations on developing leadership talent. What’s notable about this year’s study is that we expanded the sample and strengthened the questionnaire’s alignment to business issues. GLF 2018 is our largest survey ever and, we think, the largest of its kind in the market today. Over 25,000 business leaders and 2,500 HR professionals at 2,488 organizations worldwide responded to our survey, including 1,000 C-level executives. Our partnership with The Conference Board (TCB) was instrumental, and we integrated findings from TCB’s CEO Challenge into our survey design and presentation of findings.