Case Study
How Liberty Mutual Investments and WeLearn Built Leaders Through True Partnership
- 01 Dec, 2025
- 8 min read
In this case study
Table of Contents
"It was a tale of two cities. On one hand, there was a palpable sense of trust and faith placed in the team. On the other hand, this freedom came with the weight of expectation." Joy Joseph, Head of the LMI Institute, Liberty Mutual Investments
Most leadership programs follow a familiar pattern: define the curriculum, build the content, pilot it, refine it, then roll it out. Liberty Mutual Investments didn’t have that luxury.
When the new Chief Investment Officer took his role, he set a clear expectation: every employee should bring their best to the table. The organization needed to move quickly. The Leadership Acceleration Initiative (LAI) Program had to be designed and delivered simultaneously, with no predefined blueprint and high expectations from the top.
This is the story of how Liberty Mutual Investments and WeLearn built a leadership development program together, achieving an 80% promotion rate and zero attrition among participants.
About Liberty Mutual Investments
Based in Boston, Liberty Mutual Investments is a multi-strategy investment firm managing portfolios exclusively for Liberty Mutual Insurance Company. With approximately 300 employees managing portfolios for one of America’s largest property and casualty insurers, the organization operates in markets where complexity is constant and adaptability is essential.
The firm’s culture rests on three pillars: uncompromising excellence, intellectual vitality, and managing capital as a force for good. These principles shaped not just what the LAI Program would teach, but how it would be built.
The Challenge: Building the Plane While Flying It
Joy Joseph, Head of the LMI Institute, faced a unique challenge. Leadership wanted a comprehensive development program for high-potential Directors, Associates, and Senior Associates. They also wanted it soon. And they trusted Joseph’s team to figure out the details.
That trust was both liberating and daunting. There was no existing template to follow. The program would need to be created, tested, and refined while participants were already engaged.
Joseph described the experience as “a tale of two cities.” The autonomy granted by senior leadership allowed for creativity and responsiveness. But that same freedom meant the team carried full responsibility for making something innovative actually work.
The organization needed a partner who could move at the same pace—someone willing to co-create rather than simply deliver a pre-packaged solution.
Finding the Right Partner
Liberty Mutual Investments selected WeLearn Learning Services for its collaborative approach. Rather than arriving with a fixed methodology, WeLearn worked alongside the LMI team to understand the organization’s specific culture, goals, and constraints.
The partnership model aligned with what Joseph needed: a team that would listen first, adapt quickly, and share ownership of both the process and the outcomes.
Together, Liberty Mutual Investments and WeLearn established clear objectives:
- Develop high-potential talent through personalized assessment and coaching
- Strengthen the leadership pipeline with cross-functional awareness
- Align individual growth with strategic business priorities
- Create a program flexible enough to evolve based on real-time feedback
A Collaborative Design Process
The program’s design emerged through ongoing collaboration between the LMI Institute and WeLearn. Key decisions were made together, informed by participant feedback and organizational realities.
Assessment as foundation.
The program began with a comprehensive assessment process for each participant — 3 to 5-hour interviews exploring each person’s life story and professional journey, 360-degree feedback from 10 to 12 colleagues and mentors, and psychoanalysis testing to identify strengths and development areas. The precision surprised even Joseph. The assessments were ‘so laser focused,’ she noted, that participants immediately recognized themselves in the findings. Managers validated the results. Family members did too.
Iterative development.
Because the program was built while running, feedback loops became essential. WeLearn and the LMI team reviewed participant responses continuously, adjusting content and delivery as needed. What worked stayed. What didn’t was revised quickly.
Shared accountability.
Four WeLearn contractors worked alongside 15 internal subject matter experts and 2 HR/Learning professionals. The blended team meant both organizations shared responsibility for outcomes. Success (or failure) would belong to everyone.
Steering committee involvement.
Senior leaders didn’t just approve the program; they participated in shaping it. A steering committee provided directional guidance while ensuring the initiative stayed connected to broader strategic objectives.
Delivery: A 15-Month Development Journey
The LAI Program unfolded over 15 months, combining multiple learning modalities:
- Cohort-based learning built peer networks and shared accountability
- Executive coaching translated assessment insights into actionable growth plans
- Mentorship connected participants with seasoned leaders across the organization
- Technical and leadership workshops addressed specific competencies aligned with LMI’s culture
- Stretch assignments and business challenges gave participants real opportunities to apply new skills
- Diversity, equity, and inclusion discussions reinforced the organization’s commitment to an inclusive workplace
The program accommodated demanding schedules while maintaining meaningful connection among participants.
Overcoming the Challenges of Real-Time Development
Building and delivering simultaneously created predictable friction. The team had to make decisions without complete information. Some elements worked immediately; others required adjustment.
Three factors helped the partnership navigate these challenges:
Executive sponsorship.
Support from the top wasn’t passive approval, it was active engagement. Senior leaders participated in the program and communicated its strategic importance across the organization. This visibility gave participants confidence that their investment of time would pay off.
Transparent communication.
The LMI team made the program’s existence and its participants widely known within the organization. This transparency built broader support and helped manage expectations as the initiative evolved.
Flexibility as a feature.
Both Liberty Mutual Investments and WeLearn treated adaptability as a strength, not a compromise. When something needed to change, it changed. The partnership’s collaborative nature made quick pivots possible without derailing momentum.
Measurable Results
The LAI Program delivered outcomes that validated the partnership approach:
- 80% of participants advanced either through promotions or expanded responsibilities
- Not a single participant left the organization
- Participants, managers, and coaches all reported meaningful behavioral change and on-the-job application of new skills
These results demonstrated that a co-created program — when built responsively rather than rigidly — could produce exceptional outcomes. Zero attrition stood out as a clear signal: participants saw a future worth staying for.
Lessons for Future Cohorts
The first cohort revealed insights that will shape the program’s evolution:
- Define more upfront, but stay flexible. Future iterations will benefit from clearer initial frameworks while preserving the ability to adapt based on participant needs.
- Brief managers earlier. For participants to apply what they learn, their direct supervisors need context. Comprehensive manager briefings became a priority.
- Let readiness drive timing. Rather than following a fixed calendar, Liberty Mutual Investments will launch new cohorts based on organizational needs and talent availability. “We are not going to let the calendar drive it,” Joseph explained. “We are going to let the company needs and the availability of talent drive it.”
What True Partnership Looks Like
The LAI Program’s success came from something simple but rare: two organizations willing to build something together without knowing exactly how it would turn out.
Liberty Mutual Investments brought deep knowledge of its culture, its people, and its strategic priorities. WeLearn brought expertise in learning design, flexibility in execution, and a willingness to share both the work and the risk.
The result wasn’t just a leadership program. It was proof that when organizations find the right partner they can move fast without sacrificing quality.
As Joy Joseph put it: “It takes an organization to raise a leader.” And sometimes, it takes two.
Your success story starts here
Your success story starts here
See how WeLearn can support your team with strategies that deliver measurable impact.
