Leadership Development in Clarington and Bowmanville: Executive Training at Your Facility, in Durham Region
Clarington owners usually call me after the same kind of week: a good tradesperson was promoted to supervisor, two people quit, and the owner spent Friday solving problems the new supervisor should have handled.
That week is getting more common in Clarington, and there is a clear reason for it.
Direct answer: Leadership development Clarington employers can book from Gurley Leadership Solutions is an in-person program at your own facility in Bowmanville, Courtice, Newcastle or anywhere in the municipality: an online personality and aptitude assessment with a full report, then two-hour sessions every two weeks for four to six months. Clarington is part of my home service area in Durham Region, so there is no travel arrangement to plan.
Does Gurley Leadership Solutions Deliver in Clarington and Bowmanville?
Yes. Clarington is in my home service area, and I deliver the program in person at your facility, the same way I do in Ajax, Whitby and Oshawa.
My office is in Ajax, a straight run along Highway 401. The sessions happen in your building, with your people and your numbers, every two weeks.
| Clarington community | Typical employers I hear from | How I deliver |
|---|---|---|
| Bowmanville | Manufacturers, distribution, health care, retail | In person, at your facility |
| Courtice | Energy park suppliers, trades, professional services | In person, at your facility |
| Newcastle and Orono | Contractors, agriculture, family businesses | In person, at your facility |
| Rest of Durham Region | Ajax, Pickering, Whitby, Oshawa, Uxbridge | In person (home region) |
Service area as published on gurleyleadershipsolutions.com; employer types reflect the calls I receive, not a list of clients.
Why Does Leadership Development Matter for Clarington Employers Right Now?
Because Clarington is about to double in size, and its biggest industry is hiring and building at the same time, so experienced supervisors are the scarcest people in town.
The Clarington Community Profile 2026 says the population exceeds 114,200 and is projected to grow to over 221,000 by 2051, creating 40,400 new jobs. It lists electric power generation, transmission and distribution as the top industry for jobs at 17.2 per cent, and names Ontario Power Generation, Lakeridge Health Bowmanville Hospital, St. Marys Cement and the Toyota Eastern Canada Parts Distribution Centre among the top employers.
The energy work is not slowing down. The Municipality of Clarington calls itself a clean energy leader and the home of OPG Darlington Nuclear, and the same Community Profile says construction is underway on up to four small modular reactors at Darlington, with the first expected to be operating by 2030.
Every contractor, supplier and service business around that work needs front-line leaders who can hold a standard, follow a procedure and keep good people. A trade ticket does not teach that. That gap is what I work on.
What Do Clarington Employers Ask Me to Fix?
Most Clarington owners describe one of four problems, and each one maps to a part of the program with a number we can measure.
| What owners tell me | What the program works on | What we measure |
|---|---|---|
| "My new supervisors were great at the tools, not at people" | Communication, accountability, leading the crew without doing every job | Issues resolved without the owner |
| "We follow procedures until we get busy" | Standards, habits, running the shift by numbers | Rework, near misses, missed steps |
| "Good people leave for bigger projects" | Engagement, recognition, developing others | Turnover and time to fill |
| "We are growing and nobody is ready to step up" | Goal setting, delegation, building the next layer | Internal promotions ready on time |
Typical concerns and the modules that address them; the measures are agreed with each client before the first session.
How Does the Program Work for a Clarington Employer?
The program starts with an assessment, then runs two-hour in-person sessions every two weeks for four to six months, with a goal each leader works on between sessions.
I deliver Leadership Management International programs. Each leader gets a binder for the module, an audio app for the drive, hands-on exercises and real cases from your own operation. Because I am also Lean Certified and a Six Sigma Black Belt, I am comfortable in procedure-heavy environments where a missed step costs real money, and I tie the leadership work to the standards your crew already runs on.
Which Clarington Leaders Should Start Leadership Development First?
Start with the people whose decisions touch the most employees every day: usually the newest supervisors and the managers who will be asked to take on more as the business grows.
When an owner in Bowmanville or Courtice asks me where to begin, I suggest looking at three groups before anyone else.
- Newly promoted supervisors. They were chosen for their technical skill, and the habits they form in their first year usually stay with them. Starting here costs the least and prevents the most problems.
- Managers who carry the owner's load. If most decisions still land on your desk, the leaders one level below you are the ones to develop next, so they can make those calls with confidence.
- The people you plan to promote. If you expect to add a shift, a crew or a location in the next two years, the leaders who will run it should start before the growth arrives, not after.
A small group of leaders from the same operation works well. They hear the same material, practise on the same problems and hold each other to the goals they set. One leader can still go through the program alone, but a group builds a shared language that spreads to the rest of the team faster. If you are not sure who belongs in the first group, we can sort that out on the first call.
I also suggest that the owner or general manager stays close to the process. You do not need to sit in every session, but your leaders should know that you have read their goals and will ask about them. That one signal does more for follow-through than anything I say in the room.
What Happens Between the First Call and the First Session?
Getting started takes a short call, an agreement on goals and an assessment, so most of the preparation happens before your leaders spend any time away from their work.
- A 15-minute call. We talk about your operation, which leaders you have in mind and what is not working today. By the end of the call you will know whether the program fits or whether a public course would serve you better.
- Goals and measures. Before the first session, we agree on the goals for each leader and the numbers we will use to measure them, such as turnover, rework or the number of issues that still reach the owner. Writing them down at the start means nobody argues about the results later.
- The assessment. Each leader completes an online personality and aptitude assessment and receives a full report. The report gives each leader a clear picture of their strengths and the habits worth working on, and it gives us a starting point that is about them rather than about leadership in general.
- The first session. Sessions run for two hours every two weeks at your facility. Each leader leaves the first one with a binder for the module, access to the audio app and one written goal to work on before we meet again.
From there the rhythm stays the same for four to six months: a session, two weeks of practice on real work, then a report back on the goal. The rhythm is the point. Leadership development that happens in one long day tends to fade by the next month, while a habit practised for two weeks at a time, with someone checking on it, tends to stick.
For a Clarington employer, the practical benefit is that nobody has to drive into Toronto or give up a full day. Your leaders learn in their own building and are back with their teams the same afternoon.
What Results Should a Clarington Employer Expect?
Expect two or three changed habits per leader within about 90 days and a measured result against the goals set at the start, with the second half of the program making the change hold.
The reason it shows up quickly is that supervisors drive most of what a crew feels. Gallup found that managers account for at least 70 per cent of the variance in employee engagement across business units. Change how a supervisor runs the week and the team notices within a quarter.
Client result: The Shandex Group in Pickering, also in Durham Region, put its executive team through the program in 2025 and followed with a 2026 Effective Leadership Development cohort of 16 managers alongside CEO Jennifer Shannon. The client's own description is that the program pays for itself 10x over. That is their report, not a guarantee; a Clarington program follows the same format.
In my 35+ years in senior executive roles at Honeywell, Johnson Controls and Armstrong Fluid Technology, the operations that grew without losing their culture developed supervisors before the expansion, not after it. Clarington is in that window now.
The honest caveat: If you have one supervisor who needs the basics, a public course or a self-paced program costs less. This program earns its place when several leaders need to change how they lead and you want the result measured. A 15-minute call will tell you honestly which you need.
How Does This Compare With National Leadership Programs?
National firms see the same supervisor gap, and an in-person program at your own facility closes it with practice and follow-through between sessions.
Korn Ferry's 2025 Workforce survey found that 41 per cent of employees say their organization has cut management layers, and 37 per cent say the lack of managers has left them feeling directionless. FranklinCovey notes that organizations often expect new leaders to achieve results without dedicated training and development.
Both are respected names with global reach. For Clarington and Durham Region employers who want customized, local and measurable results, my approach is the better fit: I am in your building every two weeks, the goals are yours, and I track the change against them. You can read about my background and why employers choose Gurley Leadership Solutions.
What Is the Bottom Line on Leadership Development in Clarington?
If you run a growing operation in Clarington and have more than one supervisor or manager to develop, an in-person program at your own facility is the practical choice, and the first call will tell you whether it fits.
- Choose a public course if one person needs awareness-level basics.
- Choose a self-paced online program if budget is the only constraint and nobody will measure behaviour change.
- Choose an in-person program with Gurley Leadership Solutions if several leaders need to change how they lead, you are growing, and you want the result measured.
I deliver Leadership Management International programs in person in Bowmanville, Courtice, Newcastle and across Durham Region and the Greater Toronto Area. Clients such as SinaLite and AGF-Rebar have reported a return above the 10:1 target set at the start.
Growing in Clarington and Short on Ready Supervisors?
A 15-minute call with Malcolm Gurley is enough to map which leaders would start, what each would work on, and what you would measure.
416.669.7644 · Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM · Ask about government funding options when you book your call.
Book a 15-Minute CallWhat Do Clarington Employers Ask About Leadership Development?
What is leadership development training?
Leadership development training is a structured program that changes how supervisors and managers lead day to day, rather than a single class that explains leadership. A good program includes an assessment, short sessions spread over several months, practice on the job between sessions, and measurement against goals set at the start.
How do you develop leaders in the workplace?
Develop leaders in the workplace by giving each one a specific goal, a new habit to practise on the job, and a regular review with someone who holds them to it. Gurley Leadership Solutions does this with two-hour sessions every two weeks at the employer's own facility, so the practice happens on real work.
What are the benefits of leadership development?
The main benefits are lower turnover, fewer problems escalated to the owner, more consistent standards on the floor, and a bench of people ready to be promoted. Clients of Gurley Leadership Solutions such as SinaLite and AGF-Rebar have reported a return above the 10:1 target set at the start; those are client reports, not a guarantee.
How long does leadership training take?
A Gurley Leadership Solutions program runs four to six months, with two-hour sessions every two weeks. Most leaders show two or three changed habits and a first measured result within about 90 days, and the second half of the program is what makes the change hold.
Who offers leadership development in Clarington and Bowmanville?
Gurley Leadership Solutions in Ajax, Ontario, led by Malcolm Gurley, delivers leadership development Clarington employers can book in person at their own facility, in Bowmanville, Courtice, Newcastle and across Durham Region. Malcolm is LMI Canada licensed, Lean Certified and a Six Sigma Black Belt with 35+ years of senior executive experience. Call 416.669.7644.
Malcolm Gurley brings 35+ years of senior executive experience with Honeywell, Johnson Controls and Armstrong Fluid Technology. He is LMI Canada licensed, Lean Certified and a Six Sigma Black Belt, a member of the Ajax Pickering Board of Trade, and delivers Leadership Management International programs in person across Durham Region, including Clarington, and the Greater Toronto Area from Ajax, Ontario. Local figures on this page were checked against Municipality of Clarington sources on November 4, 2026. Frequently asked questions
Sources and References
- Municipality of Clarington, Clarington Community Profile 2026 (clarington.net)
- Municipality of Clarington, Invest Clarington: Clean Energy (clarington.net)
- Gallup, Managers Account for 70% of Variance in Employee Engagement (gallup.com)
- Korn Ferry, Workforce 2025: Power Shifts (kornferry.com)
- FranklinCovey, 6 Critical Practices for Leading a Team (franklincovey.com)
- Malcolm Gurley, public LinkedIn post on the Shandex Group engagement (linkedin.com)
- Gurley Leadership Solutions published testimonials and service area page (gurleyleadershipsolutions.com)
