How a US energy utility lifted manager confidence from 73% to 95%
An energy utility in the United States raised average manager confidence from 73% to 95% with World Class Manager®, the CPD-accredited management development programme. The result comes from 1,511 matched start and end ratings from 193 managers between 2020 and 2024, and 96% of those managers ended their modules more confident than they began.
The starting point: what energy and utilities managers wanted
Utility managers lead technical and customer teams where clear goals and good meetings keep complex work moving. When they joined, managers were asked what success would look like for them. The answers most often named goal setting (31%), motivating and engaging the team (30%) and communication (25%), coded from 156 managers’ own words.
What the organisation did
Between 2020 and 2024, 292 managers took part in World Class Manager®, the CPD-accredited management development programme from the Global Growth Institute. Managers worked through online modules, answered reflection questions in their own words and committed to actions with their own teams. Start and end ratings could be matched for 11 modules.
Manager confidence, start to end of each module
Results: manager confidence rose from 73% to 95%
Average confidence rose by 22 points, from 73% at the start of each module to 95% at the end. Across all World Class Manager® managers the rise is 23 points (71% to 94%). 96% of managers in this organisation ended their modules more confident than they began. The biggest gains came in these modules:
| Module | Start | End | Rise (points) | Matched ratings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Developing Me, Developing My Team | 66% | 97% | +31 | 100 |
| Inspiring Appraisals | 68% | 94% | +26 | 160 |
| Optimising Your Time | 67% | 93% | +26 | 154 |
What energy and utilities managers said about the impact
In their own words, from the programme’s reflection and review questions. Verbatim and unedited, original spelling kept, shortened only where marked.
Interactions with my team members have become more conversational then they had been prior to me taking these courses. I think I have improved my listening skills and there is better communication between me & each person on the team.
The meetings are so much better, not rushed, team is more relaxed and have time to be engaged. Way more productive this way.
Employee appraisals and general feedback have improved and are more organized. Also, opportunities for advancement for my team have been realized.
More streamlined meetings with timely starts & mostly early finishes; more engaged team members
My team seems to be working with more confidence and support the business better
How the results were measured
At the start of each module, every manager rated themselves on the module’s core skill. At the end of the module, they rated their confidence again. Both ratings are shown as a percentage of the top of the scale (1 to 5, or 1 to 10), matched for the same manager and module, and averaged across 1,511 matched pairs from 193 managers. Challenges are coded from managers’ own words. All figures are self-reported: they show how managers rate themselves, not business outcomes. The organisation is anonymised and shown by sector and region only.
Frequently asked questions
Does management training improve manager confidence in energy and utilities?
In this energy and utilities organisation it did. Average manager confidence rose from 73% at the start of each World Class Manager® module to 95% at the end, across 1,511 matched ratings from 193 managers (2020 to 2024). 96% of those managers ended their modules more confident than they began.
Which management skills improved most?
The largest rises were in Developing Me, Developing My Team (66% to 97%); Inspiring Appraisals (68% to 94%); Optimising Your Time (67% to 93%).
What did managers in energy and utilities want from the programme?
Asked what success would look like, managers most often named goal setting (31%), motivating and engaging the team (30%) and communication (25%).
How is the confidence score measured?
At the start of each module, every manager rates themselves on the module’s core skill. At the end of the module, they rate their confidence again. Both ratings are turned into a percentage of the top of the scale, matched for the same manager and module, and averaged. The score is self-reported: it shows how managers rate themselves, not business outcomes.
Are these results typical?
Yes. Across all 177 organisations in the matched data (28,460 ratings from 3,397 managers), average confidence rose from 71% to 94%. Every one of the 35 organisations with 15 or more managers in the matched data saw a rise, of between 16 and 34 points.
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