CASE STUDY

Empowering Dhiraagu’s Leadership Team For Sustained Market Leadership

The Challenge

Dhiraagu’s Background

Dhiraagu has been the leading telecommunications provider in the Maldives since 1988 and has successfully maintained its market position despite increasing global competition. To ensure continued success in a dynamic telecoms landscape, Dhiraagu’s Leadership team engaged Let’s Talk Talent to support them in uncovering and creating internal growth opportunities. The goal was to develop leadership capabilities that would allow Dhiraagu’s executives to focus on high-level strategy while empowering middle and senior managers to lead with greater independence and effectiveness.

Dhiraagu’s Objective

Our objective was to design a practical development programme that would enhance leadership capabilities across Dhiraagu’s management team, shifting focus from technical proficiency to broader leadership effectiveness. This involved identifying and addressing key development areas, as highlighted in a comprehensive training needs analysis and internal 360-degree assessments. These data points provide the broadness required to engage the entire leadership team whilst also supporting the specificity required to engage and develop each member. 

Dhiraagu’s Goals

  1. Enable the Leadership Team to Step Up and Drive the Strategy.
  2. Empower Mid and Senior Managers
  3. Promote Strategic Awareness and Emotional Intelligence
  4. Deliver a Flexible, Multimodal Programme

Approach and Implementation

Using insights gathered from the training needs analysis and 360 assessments, we developed a targeted six-month programme for Dhiraagu’s leadership team. This programme was tailored to address key development areas and focused on the following core competencies:

  1. Strategic Awareness and Application
    • The team engaged in workshops designed to deepen their understanding of strategic planning and alignment, equipping them with tools to contribute meaningfully to organisational goals.
  2. Decision-Making and Problem-Solving
    • Sessions focused on refining critical thinking skills, encouraging leaders to make informed, independent decisions, and handle challenges proactively.
  3. Emotional Intelligence
    • Through self-discovery and feedback-based sessions, leaders learned to build empathy, improve interpersonal communication, and create a positive team culture.
  4. Leadership Capabilities
    • The programme included exercises and group activities to strengthen leadership presence, inspire teams, and promote accountability among managers.

Learning Modalities

The programme combined in-person workshops, virtual learning sessions, self-directed exercises, and individual and team coaching, providing a comprehensive development experience that allowed participants to learn at their own pace and apply new skills in real-time.

The Results

The leadership development programme for Dhiraagu’s managers achieved the following results:

  • Enhanced Leadership Capacity: Leaders and managers displayed increased confidence in applying leadership skills, contributing to a more autonomous middle management team.
  • Reduced Reliance on C-Suite: Leaders took on greater responsibility for decision-making and problem-solving, alleviating pressure on the C-Suite and allowing executives to focus on strategic initiatives.
  • Stronger Team Dynamics: Improved emotional intelligence among leaders driving a more cohesive, communicative, and engaged workplace culture.
  • Flexibility and Engagement: The multimodal programme design enabled high engagement and sustained participation, with managers reporting high satisfaction with the learning methods.

Conclusion

This case study demonstrates the value of a practical, data-driven approach to leadership development. By enhancing Dhiraagu’s management team’s leadership capabilities, Let’s Talk Talent has helped the company strengthen its foundation for continued market leadership in an increasingly competitive landscape. The programme’s success highlights the potential of a flexible and skill-focused development initiative in transforming a technical leadership team into a strategic, people-oriented force that supports Dhiraagu’s ongoing success.