Western & Southern Financial Group : About LDP : Associates

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Leadership Development Program Associates join a three-year program that places high-caliber individuals on the fast track to senior management. During the first two years, LDP Associates participate in three to six rotations that provide a strategic perspective of each of the major business units that comprise Western & Southern Financial Group. Typical assignments include investments, marketing, corporate finance, e-commerce, M&A, due diligence, operations, and strategic planning. Each assignment is customized, providing you ownership of the most demanding and cutting-edge projects in Western & Southern Financial Group.
As an LDP Associate, you report directly to the most senior officer responsible for your assigned operation. In addition, a member of senior management is selected as your coach and mentor, your advocate throughout the program, to ensure your experiences effectively prepare you for a senior leadership role. In the third year, you are placed in a director-level position. After successful completion of the program, LDP Associates are promoted into officer positions throughout Western & Southern Financial Group. As an LDP Associate, you are given a list of business competencies that you are expected to master during your rotation within each business unit. The competencies are acquired through assignment to strategic-level initiatives within the business unit. In most cases, you serve as an internal consultant to the business unit on the strategic initiatives. Performance is evaluated on a quarterly basis against both the business unit objectives and completion of strategic initiatives. Read more about our current LDP Associates and their specific job rotations in Professional Profiles.

Qualifications

Successful candidates who apply for an LDP Associate position have:

•	Graduated from a top MBA program.
•	An undergraduate degree or business experience in an analytical field (e.g., finance, economics, accounting, engineering, etc.).
•	A graduate business concentration in corporate finance, investment finance, real estate, or marketing.
•	Strong financial acumen.
•	Proven business savvy.
•	Excellent analytical, leadership, interpersonal, and communication skills.


	What significant learning as an MBA graduate did you apply to your LDP Associate Rotations? I found myself applying a variety of learnings from business school to my Leadership Development Program projects on a daily basis. Project management, financial analysis, effective communication, and business acumen are just a few examples of the fundamental skills that I relied on to get the job done. My graduate school experience continued to be an invaluable asset as I progressed through the LDP and into a career position at Eagle Realty Group. What did the LDP teach you that academia did not? The LDP offered me the opportunity to work on challenging assignments related to real business issues. This hands-on learning experience is a step above what you can do in a controlled academic environment. The work that I did as an LDP Associate directly impacted business decisions made by senior management. - Darin Vilano Assistant Vice President, Business & Marketing Director Eagle Realty Group, LLC