ORIGINAL ARTICLE Developing clinical leaders: the impact of an action learning mentoring programme for advanced practice nurses Sandra G. Leggat, Cathy Balding and Dan Schiftan Aims and objectives. To determine whether a formal mentoring programme assists nurse practitioner candidates to develop competence in the clinical leader- ship competencies required in their advanced practice roles. Background. Nurse practitioner candidates are required to show evidence of defined clinical leadership competencies when they apply for endorsement within the Aus- tralian health care system. Aiming to assist the candidates with the development or enhancement of these leadership skills, 18 nurse practitioner candidates participated in a mentoring programme that matched them with senior nurse mentors. Design. A pre-postlongitudinal intervention study. Method. Eighteen nurse practitioner candidates and 17 senior nurses participated in a voluntary mentoring programme that incorporated coaching and action learn- ing over 18 months in 2012 and 2013. Participants completed a pen and paper questionnaire to document baseline measures of self-reported leadership practices prior to commencement of the programme and again at the end of the programme. Results. The mentors and the nurse practitioner candidates qualitatively evaluated the programme as successful and quantitative data illustrated significant improve- ment in self-reported leadership practices among the nurse practitioner candi- dates. In particular, the nurse practitioner candidates reported greater competence in the transformational aspects of leadership, which is directly related to the nurse practitioner candidate clinical leadership standard. Conclusions. A formal, structured mentoring programme based on principles of action learning was successful in assisting Australian advanced practice nurses enhance their clinical leadership skills in preparation for formal endorsement as a nurse practitioner and for success in their advanced practice role. Relevance to clinical practice. Mentoring can assist nurses to transition to new roles and develop knowledge and skills in clinical leadership essential for advanced practice roles. Nurse managers should make greater use of mentoring programmes to support nurses in their transition to new roles. Key words: action learning, advanced scope, clinical leadership, longitudinal intervention, mentoring, nurse practitioner, skill development What does this paper contribute to the wider global community? • Clinical leadership is recognised as important for nurses, and advanced practice nurses in par- ticular, and this paper provides empirical evidence of the effec- tiveness of a formal mentoring programme with an action learn- ing approach in assisting advanced practice nurses to develop competence in clinical leadership. • A formal mentoring intervention with an action learning approach can assist nurses to overcome barriers to clinical leadership development, thereby enhancing knowledge and skills in transfor- mation leadership that assist in the transition to new nursing roles. Accepted for publication: 26 November 2014 Authors: Sandra G. Leggat, PhD, Professor, La Trobe University, Bundoora; Cathy Balding, PhD, Adjunct Associate Professor, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Bundoora; Dan Schiftan, RN, PDACN, MPH, Senior Policy Advisor, Victorian Department of Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Correspondence: Sandra G. Leggat, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria 3086, Australia. Telephone: +613 94791749. E-mail: s.leggat@latrobe.edu.au © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd Journal of Clinical Nursing, doi: 10.1111/jocn.12757 1