Human Invest around the world: Our international experience!

Human Invest came to manage several large-scale international projects from Romania by building on more than 25 years of experience in leadership development and by applying lessons learned locally to regional and global contexts. In today’s interconnected world, leadership development is no longer a local endeavor – it is a global mission! Organizations across industries and continents face similar challenges: building trust, sustaining motivation, and leading teams through constant change. This consistent practice has now evolved into managing large-scale international projects, serving diverse teams across multiple regions. What does it take for a company rooted in Eastern Europe to successfully expand into global projects? What lessons have we learned from working with clients and colleagues in different cultures and time zones? And how do we see the future of leadership development across borders?

Human Invest came to manage several large-scale international projects from Romania by building on more than 25 years of experience in leadership development and by applying lessons learned locally to regional and global contexts.

This article explores Human Invest’s journey into international projects: how it started, the challenges and lessons along the way, and the opportunities that lie ahead.

Our success has been the result of consistent practice, positive feedback, and the trust of both Romanian and international stakeholders. You may remember the movie Karate Kid and the scene where the coach makes the boy lift a coat many times, with the aim of improving his technique later and applying it in subsequent confrontations. Similarly, at Human Invest, we have been running leadership development projects for over 25 years, practicing and implementing projects in various organizations in Romania, and now the time has come to apply what we have learned to regional and international projects.

This growth appeared organically, based on positive experiences in Romania. A recommendation about Human Invest from a Romanian counterparty led to the expansion of the project to other regions, based on very good feedback. Or a regional stakeholder invited us to design and implement regional or international projects, knowing our capabilities, senior facilitators, and our approach to project implementation.

Another key reason for this development is our membership in the Blanchard and Wiley international networks. Being part of these global networks helps us carry out large-scale projects. The first aspect is related to effective implementation: when you can rely on senior trainers from different countries in this network, you can ensure the successful implementation of a program with multiple groups, in different countries, with different delivery methods, at different time zones, and with appropriate adaptation of content.


A key factor in an international project is the consistency and coherence of the implemented programs!


Through Blanchard or Wiley licensed programs, we ensure the quality and relevance of the topics regardless of location, whether you are talking about Sydney, Rome, Miami, or Chisinau. The consistency of messages and content ensures the creation of a common language of leadership. All participants, regardless of their location, will have the same understanding of the key leadership concepts discussed. This is also facilitated by the possibility of delivering the program in local languages, which makes the learning process easier.

From our experience, leading global projects comes with a set of recurring challenges and lessons that mirror those encountered locally, but on a broader scale.

These include organizational changes, alignment with key stakeholders, competing business priorities, and the constant need to adapt to diverse cultures, time zones, and participant expectations. The experience of our colleagues in other countries confirms the same patterns, reinforcing the importance of trust, relevance, and structured design.

In the systemic approach, it is evident that what is in small, in one section of the system, is also found in other parts of the system. Similarly, the challenges of local projects are also found in regional or global projects. Among the most important ones, I would list: changes in the organization (in priorities, in key people in the organization), contracting and proper alignment with key stakeholders, obtaining the necessary support (project sponsorship), competition with other business priorities, proper understanding of the business context, and impact measurement. Speaking of lessons learned, I have learned that constantly adapting to participants’ expectations and feedback is key to the success of a development program.

Also, when you run a leadership development program planned to take place over 6-12 months, multiple changes can occur within the organization. For example, the team you finish the project with may be completely different from the team you contracted and started the project with, with different working styles and expectations.


Contact us to get an invitation for the upcoming Virtual Briefing in October: Human Invest Leadership Development International Projects

 


Another major lesson is related to the trust you need to build with your counterparties in the company you work with!


Practical exercises and case studies linked with their business reality are most appreciated by beneficiaries. This is why the preparation and the (re)alignment with the trainers team is very important. The frequency and duration of the sessions matter, as do the learning methods: finding the right combination of training, follow-up, practice, e-learning, etc.

Being there for them when they need you, the speed on response, the quality of the work delivered, the honesty and humbleness when something less good happens – all this helps you build a trustworthy relationship.

Our colleagues at Blanchard have identified five key aspects that we consider when designing a project to ensure it has an impact: Management support, Strategic integration, Effective design and delivery, Follow-up and reinforcement, Demonstrated Tangible Value. When planning and evaluating such a project, these benchmarks help us to take a structured approach and increase efficiency.

To capitalize on these opportunities, we plan to strengthen our approach to regional and global clients, ensuring that our programs remain relevant, sustainable, and impactful in diverse markets. In life, there is no such thing as “maintaining the status quo.” If you don’t make efforts to grow, to learn, and to develop, in time you will actually regress. I believe this principle also applies to organizations.


Looking into the future, Human Invest sees significant opportunities for expanding international projects, driven by the ongoing need for quality leadership development across borders.


The way markets and organizations are transforming, along with various other changes and challenges that constantly arise, invite us to rethink our approach. I believe that as long as you offer quality in what you do, this will be appreciated by participants, regardless of the country they work in.

And as people will continue to need quality leadership, they will face challenges to increase team efficiency, they will go through transitions and transformations, they will be faced with personal questions related to regaining motivation and vitality I believe that our mission remains relevant. We continue to strive for organic, sustainable growth that brings satisfaction and results to both us and our clients.

We want to be more conscious in our approach to clients active in regional and/or international markets, so that we can have conversations about leadership development and identify areas where our presence could be beneficial.

 


Contact us to get an invitation for the upcoming Virtual Briefing in October: Human Invest Leadership Development International Projects

 


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