Since 2014, the Faculty Development Department aligned all faculty development programs across the AOs Clinical Divisions creating the Faculty Education Program (FEP), and the Chairperson Program (CEP). In this process, the Faculty Development Coordination Group responsible for the alignment defined the need for a program that addresses the needs and challenges faced by education leaders in the AO and developed the competency-based Leader Education Program (LEP).

A leader in the AO is someone assigned with a governing, educational, or faculty development role and is expected to be able to self-assess leadership behaviors, apply models of such behavior to build and lead teams, facilitate change, advocate for education, and enable continuous learning and improvement.

The LEP therefore teaches about how to apply educational principles and best practices to the surgeon's own setting, how to describe traits and behaviors, how to build and manage teams effectively, and how to successfully build, organize, direct, and control resources, tasks, budgets and processes.

In addition, LEP participants can communicate effectively, and advocate for education and its impact both inside and outside the AO, enabling the AO to be a learning organization.

The feedback from the LEP pilot that was rolled out in Miami in October 2016 was incredibly positive. The succinct and targeted online activities help prepare learners to familiarize themselves with the concept taught at the LEP; the case-based learning, combined with interactive exercises, allowed learners to achieve the learning objectives. The stimulating discussions in a safe and trusted environment further empowered the learners to apply the newly learnt concepts.