From Managing Teams to Leading Leaders: Abilitie Launches Director Challenge
On September 3 Abilitie launches Director Challenge, a new simulation-based and AI-enabled leadership development experience designed for senior leaders who oversee multiple teams or functions.
This new program builds on the success of Management Challenge, which equips emerging managers with foundational people leadership skills. Director Challenge takes the next step, helping experienced leaders shift from managing individuals to scaling their impact downstream, a transition that demands a different mindset, broader strategic awareness, and a deeper understanding of organizational dynamics.
When we set out to create a simulation for leaders of leaders, we knew the challenge wasn’t simply adding complexity. It was about capturing the shift in mindset — from owning the work to empowering others, from focusing on one team’s output to aligning many teams around the enterprise. Director Challenge is built to help leaders practice letting go of control, building capability in their managers, and making the kinds of decisions that ripple across teams, functions, and organizations.
Andy Rosenberg
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“Abilitie doesn’t have a ‘one-size fits all’ offering. Their ability (pun intended) to adapt to our needs in such a short amount of time highlights the flexible nature of their product design and construct. As a client, that’s a highly valuable attribute of their offering.”
At this level, leadership is no longer about hands-on oversight: it’s about becoming a force multiplier. The program introduces the levers of leadership that drive results, culture, and alignment across a complex organization. Participants learn how to amplify performance by developing the people managers whose teams deliver the work; a deliberate move to orchestrating outcomes several steps removed from the ground-level action.
During the capstone simulation of Director Challenge, participants engage with a cast of AI-powered team managers, each with distinct personalities and growth areas. They encounter common challenges faced by leaders-of-leaders, from reluctance to delegate to rogue managers working in unhelpful silos. Participants must use strategic thinking, coaching, and their own leadership influence to help these managers evolve, turning underperformance into autonomous and skilful execution. You can watch the introductory video here.
“When we create the team manager characters, we give them rich backstories, distinct personalities, and real growth journeys. We want learners to see their strengths, their flaws, and their potential. By interacting with these dynamic characters, learners can truly practice and refine their management, leadership, and coaching skills in a way that feels authentic and engaging.”
Heather Beckham Abilitie Content Director.
This kind of skill development is critical. Senior leaders often find themselves promoted for technical excellence or business acumen, but the skills required to lead other leaders — to scale culture, drive cross-functional alignment, and navigate ambiguity — are rarely taught. Director Challenge fills that gap by offering a safe, realistic environment to practice these next-level capabilities.
Like all Abilitie programs, Director Challenge is facilitator-led and cohort-based, with participants working in pairs to complete tasks and reflect on key decision points. Facilitators guide the experience, contextualizing learning moments and deepening insights through structured debriefs. The program blends AI-powered learning with the human touch of peer and facilitator interaction, a combination proven to create meaningful leadership development.
“t might seem counterintuitive that we’ve chosen to integrate one of the greatest asynchronously-available learning tools of our lifetime into a synchronous experience. However, as technology changes at accelerating rates, we hold true to timeless truths: (1) learning is a social experience and (2) the collective understanding that comes out of a team of leaders getting together shapes culture. We feel honored that organizations trust us with the most important asset they have, their leaders’ time.
Luke Owings Abilitie VP of Product.
For organizations, the benefits are tangible. Developing senior leaders in this way strengthens succession pipelines, improves strategic execution, and fosters a culture of cross-functional collaboration, as well as improving team performance.
Director Challenge is the next step in Abilitie’s leadership pathway for senior leaders with responsibility for multiple teams. For those who’ve completed Management Challenge, it offers an opportunity to build on existing skills and tackle the broader challenges of cross-functional alignment, strategic decision making, and leadership culture.
To learn more or explore how Director Challenge can upskill your senior leaders, schedule a consultation.
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