Many organizations invest heavily in developing senior leaders while overlooking the group that most directly shapes day-to-day performance: middle managers and frontline supervisors. Often called the “forgotten middle,” these leaders translate strategy into execution. When they lack development, priorities become unclear, teams fall out of alignment and progress slows. This session explores why developing leaders at every level is essential for delivering results while building a reliable bench of future leaders.

In this Leader Talk, Russ Hill, co-founder of Lone Rock Leadership and architect of the LeaderOS framework, will share real-world example of scaling successful leadership development initiatives with organizations such as Chick-fil-A, Cigna, Johnson & Johnson and Lockheed Martin. Attendees will learn how leaders create clarity around priorities, build alignment across teams and generate the movement needed to turn strategy into results.

This interactive session will provide actionable insights on:

• How to identify the management “clay layer” in your organization and diagnose the leadership gaps that slow execution
• A practical framework for developing managers at all levels using the LeaderOS competencies: clarity, alignment and movement
• Specific leadership routines managers can use to define key results, align teams around priorities and drive consistent progress
• How strengthening the forgotten middle builds a reliable bench of future leaders and improves execution across the organization

View full agenda.

Speaker

Russ Hill, Cofounder and Managing Partner, Lone Rock Leadership Russ Hill solves the $400B leadership training problem by transforming underperforming leaders into executives who deliver measurable business results. His journey began after being ranked the lowest-performing leader in his company — a setback that pushed him into intensive development at Gallup and Wharton and eventually into leading national media operations. That experience revealed a core truth: most leadership training focuses on soft skills instead of outcomes. Russ refined his methodology through a decade of executive consulting across 14 countries, driving culture and performance transformations. His work helped scale Spectrum Association Management to 900+ communities and turn around major media brands at Bonneville International. He has coached leaders at Amazon, Cigna, Chick-fil-A, Lockheed Martin, Johnson & Johnson, and other global organizations. As co-founder of Lone Rock Leadership, Russ created the Lead In 30 methodology and LeaderOS framework, helping leaders master clarity, alignment and movement. He is the author of Deliver: Why Some Managers Get Results and Most Don’t and host of The Lead In 30 Podcast.