Leadership Program "Brains Trust"

Situation

A state government technology organisation had historically recruited its management team purely based on their technical expertise and indirectly, at the expense of customer service skills.

 

The organisation wanted to also change their culture from a passive stance to a more proactive one. To make that change, the former shortcoming in skillsets needed to be addressed.

 

The objectives were to:

• Increase understanding of the business drivers and impacts on their role
• Facilitate participant’s motivation to learn and practice skills on the job
• Provide insight into their own capabilities and opportunities for improvement
• Facilitate and support the application of behavioural change tools to deliver outcomes through people during change
• Facilitate and support the application of behavioural change tools to deliver outcomes through people by managing for performance

 

Resources

• Leadership approaches
• NBI - Whole Brain Thinking
• Emotional Intelligence
• Coaching models
• Positive Psychology
• Change Management models

 

Implementation

A formal program was developed with the team at Emerge Consulting. The design process was customised to suit the organisations business environment. The program was open for all management and it was corporately sponsored/funded.

A cross functional approach was favoured over an intact team approach. This allowed managers from across the organisation to meet one another, learn about each other’s’ part of the business and form lasting support networks. Each manager with people management responsibility received an invitation to attend, which was endorsed and supported by their manager.

 

The program consisted of 3 one-day workshops delivered over a three-month period. In between workshops participants applied what they had learnt back on the job. Each program commenced with individuals receiving a 360-degree survey using the Human Synergistic Management Impact tool. This was followed up with individual de-briefing sessions.

 

At the conclusion of the program participants presented their learnings to the Executive Leadership Team.

 

Outcomes

The program has been running in the same format since inception and over 140 managers have attended. The feedback has been very positive since commencement with managers not even waiting for an invitation - they were asking to be placed on the attendance waitlist.

 

"The program has consistently been the 'shining star' in our Corporate L&D Program” said the client contact. “Managers who have attended tell me that there is now a consistent approach and one voice across all people managers.”

 

The program gained momentum over time and during the last number of intakes there was a noticeable shift in the levels of energy, commitment and camaraderie. There was a noticeable improvement in team morale and engagement as mangers felt more confident and equipped with the tools to lead their teams.

 

Some of the noted success factors were:

• Maintaining and keeping the focus on the program until all managers had participated

• Engaging the Executive leadership team and having their support throughout

• Adopting a cross-team approach to enrolments

• Having the same facilitator for the duration of the program

 

In their own words:

“Our Corporate Management Development Program has been a huge success and this is largely due to the excellent job Lordien has done over a considerable period of time. Right from the initial proposal stage I was impressed by the amount of effort and thought put into the program design. It not only met our requirements but added value with elements we had not previously considered. Her facilitation skills were excellent and she quickly formed good relationships with all our managers. There were times when the program required some adjustments and Lordien was flexible in her approach. I found her very easy to work with. Lordien is a true business partner. She has been on the journey with us and maintained her excellent standards, passion and commitment throughout. I look forward to working with her again on future development programs.”

 

“Consistent approach and one voice across all people leaders/managers in the organisation.”

 

“Noticeable improvement in team morale.”

 

“Staff are more productive.”

 

“A noticeable shift in the dynamics within my team as well across the whole department. It’s fantastic!”

 

“Strategies applied have united us as a team, improved our communications and processes, resulting in eliminating inconsistencies and providing a higher level of service we provide to our customers.”

 

"Equips you with the tools and confidence to apply them back in the business.”

 

“This program helped make my team more accountable and encourages them to think for themselves.”

 

“Helped me build stronger relationships with my stakeholders.”

 

“The shift from technical experts to people leaders has been incredible!”

 

And finally, from the CEO:

“I've had the opportunity to sit in on the end-of-program presentations by participants and seen first-hand the enthusiasm with which they share the positive impacts the program has had on them and the teams they lead. The tools they've been provided with have clearly given them new ways of both understanding and tackling old challenges and the program itself has enabled strong relationships to be built across organisational boundaries. The staff who have taken part are better managers and leaders as a result, and the organisation as a whole is stronger for it.”