Assertively Brand Visionary Opportunities

One of my favourite work games used to be bulls**t bingo – of course I grew up somewhere along the way, and now am more likely to be authoring the card than winning the game. If you haven’t had opportunity to play, the rules are actually quite simple. Prior to starting your next business meeting (or training class!), simply provide folks with a bingo card that is filled with typical business buzz words. Include a mix of adverbs, adjectives, nouns, and verbs to make it interesting and as you hear the typical corporate cr*p rolling off your managers’ tongues, secretly mark your cards, until someone gets ‘bingo’ – although traditionally that is not the word that is shouted.

I’ve even found a site now that allows you to plug in your phrase and automatically generate the corporate version of your favourite buzz term – ‘transformational change’ resulted in the title of my article this week, for example. Catchy.

Frankly, it is amazing how much of the corporate lexicon is focused on change, identifying the need for change, driving change, managing change, communicating change, and coping with change. We are obsessed with change. It’s as if we’ve created this necessity about the word, and even more mystique about the solutions that are needed to allow us to navigate it. To this I say ‘bingo’. The reality is that nothing should be as natural for us as dealing with change.

Imagine for a moment a day where absolutely nothing changed from the day prior. You woke up at exactly the same time and the weather was just as it was the day before (I do miss you London!), you commuted to work on public transportation only to find the exact same people in your subway car as the day prior, you arrived at your desk (at precisely the same time as the day prior), where you were confronted by the exact same emails and issues as the day before (ok, that happens I know). Your co-workers spoke about the same exact thing as before, and were wearing the exact same clothes. Your lunch order came out exactly as the day before, and your meeting schedule wasn’t altered one iota. You distracted yourself with the exact same television programs as the night prior, before falling asleep at the exact same time. If life were without change, we would certainly need a bit more than training… we’d need counselling.

So why is change so hard?  As humans we are constantly ‘seeking’ change in life. A better house, a better job, better furniture, a better car…sometimes even a better partner. Is it really better? Or is it just… different? So why don’t we all automatically seek this same change in our jobs?

It is true that change is necessary for business growth and agility. But it’s not true that we need so much sophistication around equipping our teams to handle it. It should just come naturally.

We are built for change, so let’s just get on with it. What’s your vision, what do you want to accomplish? Assertively brand it and go for it…whatever it is, it will be better than the alternative – stagnation.

Making virtual a reality

How do you ‘bring people together’ for a great learning experience, if your business is spread across different locations, without wasting a lot of time and cost of travel?

We’ve been working with Norwegian-based global media company Schibsted Media Group to deliver virtual instructor-led learning sessions for their divisional leaders in 40 countries. We think it’s a good example of how learning is changing - a truly engaging virtual learning experience that defies the norm.


A far cry from standard ‘virtual PowerPoint presentation’ webinars, we’ve created four-hour virtual learning experiences, which feature many of the accelerated learning principles that are normally reserved for a classroom. Yes, that’s right: we keep virtual attention span for four hours!

It’s definitely a challenge to create a virtual learning program that can keep people engaged for that length of time, and to do that we have leveraged face-to-face facilitation styles, though facilitated virtually, to help drive a higher sense of engagement across the distributed audience. Participants engage in virtual break-out sessions for small group discussions, and they benefit from experiences such as one-to-one skills practice with an actor-facilitator. But they do it all at their laptop or tablet, without any need to travel.

The key to an effective virtual program lies in the design.  All too often the discussion on virtual learning is concentrated at the ‘delivery’ stage of the program – in other words what can we do to save money on time and travel.  This often results in learning designs that were intended for face-to-face interaction being distilled to a more passively delivered learning platform – at the risk of compromising the learner experience. With virtual in mind from the start, however, it is possible to think creatively about the selected technology and how it will add to the learning outcome and save money on the program.

The core focus of keeping participant needs as a priority drives us to challenge assumptions about learning and to think more holistically about how things can work better.

While the pace of technology is changing, it’s important to remember that it’s ultimately about putting the technology to work for us, not the other way around. We’re really proud that we’ve defied convention and created such an effective virtual learning experience. To read more about our experience in re-defining virtual learning at Schibsted, check out our story in Training Journal.

Learning is changing… and so are we!

Todd

Lending a Hand

It’s a phrase we all know. Whether you’re being asked to lend a hand, or offering to lend a hand, it’s one of the most rewarding ‘give and takes’ that comes with having a circle of friends and family around you. You are not alone, you have someone to help you and rely upon. And, indeed, someone who needs you. These acts of helpfulness seem to be all around us, particularly at this time of year. We think nothing of being asked to ‘lend a hand’ when it comes to even the smallest of tasks – helping out with dinner, wrapping a present, or even the dreaded...’can you give me a hand with these lights’.

Yet, for others, the concept of needing a hand is a very serious matter. Research data indicates that there are as many as 1.3m people living in the US with some form of amputation, with hand or partial hand loss being the most prevalent. Yet, it is estimated that only 50% of those affected receive any form of prosthetic service. These numbers, obviously, grow exponentially on a global scale, where combinations of land mines, disease, and birth complications result in even more instances of hand loss.

Recently, our HF/Demos team in Australia designed and deployed a Helping Hands program, in conjunction with a partner called Odyssey Teams. This program, a 10-week Advanced Leadership Program for Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, took traditional team-based learning to a whole new level through a workshop that guided participants through assembly of prosthetic hands. In the program, participants built prosthetics for children who have lost limbs in land mine accidents. In total 6 hands were built by the team, and have already been shipped to change the life of a child somewhere in the world. A perfect outcome that symbolizes so much about the spirit of cooperation and helpfulness that so many leaders strive to attain in their teams.

As learning specialists, we often spend countless hours contemplating, with our clients, the precise requirements for new skills that are needed to drive team improvement and business result, often concentrating on the very predictable subjects of delegation, performance management, time management, etc. Oftentimes, all that really matters is how well the team works together and demonstrates what can be accomplished when there is a shared purpose that all can rally around.   I am proud of what our team in Australia has accomplished with this innovative program. It is an inspiration to what can be achieved through more progressive learning, and how a differentiated experience can lead to real enhancements in team dynamics.

If you’d like to learn more about the Helping Hands program please watch the video clip.

As we are asked to lend a hand to someone this season, let that be a reminder to us of the greater need that many in the world face, and the more literal translation of the  phrase, ‘lend a hand’.  

On behalf of the entire Hemsley Fraser team, I hope that all of you has a joyous and safe holiday season!

Todd

Our life should to tell a story…

Without getting philosophical, spiritual, or religious about things, at a basic level we all have the gift of life and surely our aim should be to tell a story!?

Whether that story has a big impact on society, the world, or just those around you.  Or whether the story is more personal, is up to you.

One thing is for sure though, none of us want a boring or stagnant life do we?  So, we should all challenge ourselves to think ‘what story am I telling and is it how I expected or wanted it to be?  Is it interesting to me?’

I had opportunity last week to participate in an amazing client experience – one of those programs that doesn’t come along every day, where the client wanted to make a difference and wasn’t afraid to take risks – or our counsel – on how to do it.  The result – an amazing leadership program that not only satisfied the stated learning objectives, but went far beyond in terms of creating momentum and a spirit with the participants.  Interestingly, a large part of our approach focused on how to tell a story – and how to tell a different story when organizational change is a stated goal.   Immersive environments, professional actors, and illustrators all combined with one goal – to re-write the story.

Sometimes just such a break from the past is needed to re-launch our story or to ensure that its constant evolution is on the path that we desire (professionally or personally).  If constant ‘change’, in our personal and working lives, is here to stay… How can we embrace and use this to find opportunities and steps we can take to enrich our life stories and achieve our goals?

It’s just too easy to fall into the trap of stagnating – and we are all guilty of doing it at one stage or another – unless you find time to take stock and look at life through a different lens, with a fresh perspective.  We have to take positive action to navigate to a new part of our story… This could start with learning or experiencing new things, thinking differently, or visiting somewhere new and inspiring.  Look for opportunities to intentionally put yourself outside of the ‘norm’ or your comfort zone.  You may be surprised where this takes you…

Learning new things, thinking differently, and being inspired are great places to start.

How tough are you?

Resilience at work

If there is one thing that managers and leaders have  experienced over the last 18 months it has got to be dealing with constant pressure and change.  Ironically, it seems the only constant is how many times  this topic is mentioned as a top challenge. (Including our latest research)!

From my experience, leaders are challenged to drive for consistently improved performance, while finding ways to embrace new ways of thinking and behaving. As I referred to in a previous note, the days of a steady job, with a predictable workload, are over. Instead, we need talented, resilient, adaptable, imaginative and trustworthy people (these five traits forming the mnemonic TRAIT) to help achieve success. And I would call out ‘resilience’ as being  first among those.


As a leader, by managing your personal resilience and acting as a role model, you have considerable influence over your team’s culture.   The goal is to develop these coping skills within your team, gradually shifting the mindset to one where change is viewed as a positive challenge and something to look forward to.

But this is not just the realm of managers. All business professionals need to build their own resilience and ensure they are working in a positive and sustainable way. The trick is getting the balance right between managing and sustaining optimum levels of pressure, without getting unduly stressed. If the business can get this right then it can ensure people deliver sustainable and positive performance regardless of the environment.

This has become such a hot topic recently that we have introduced two new resilience courses into our portfolio to help people develop in this area:

• Building Resilience and Sustainable Team Performance - For Managers and Leaders
• Working Positively and with Resilience for Business Professionals

But that’s enough promotion, there are certain things we can all do to build our resilience at work…

• Know the difference between pressure and stress – Google 'stress indicators' and be aware about how you respond to pressure.
• Understand the impact of the language we use on others – Before you give someone some work to do, put yourself in their shoes, how will they best respond to your message?
• Try to be self-aware and be mindful of your emotional state - Stay positive and deal with uncertainty (after all it’s the new normal, so you’d better get used to it)… Remember to assess what you can impact/influence and what is out of your control – it is a wasted emotion to get stressed about things out of your control (although we all do it to some degree – it’s natural ;-))

So, next time you are faced with a stressful situation, see how you can approach it differently and pay attention to how people respond to you.

Could you benefit from 'learning by stealth'?

A common criticism of face-to-face training is that it gives people a moment of epiphany…but then it’s back to work and, all too often, back to business as usual.  It is well documented that any new skill requires repeated hours of practice to master – yet, we don’t always structure our own personal development in a way that facilitates repeated practice.  So why is that?

The reality is that people are in a hurry.  Development is often viewed as one more thing on the ‘to do’ list and thus the entire process is managed as an event.  As if we don’t learn when not in the ‘training event’!

But learning opportunities are constantly around us.  What if our developmental programs were so well-integrated into daily life that you didn't even know you were being trained?


‘Learning by stealth’ isn't as far-fetched as it might sound.  It’s simply a case of providing a learning experience that is more naturally orchestrated within the day-to-day rhythm of the business. Just think of the advantages:

• The learning is directly related to your own personal circumstances and work objectives
• Learning can be reinforced many times over, ensuring a sustained advantage
• Learning budgets potentially go much further
• Higher participation rates (how many people don’t think they need or have time for training versus how many people would miss a scheduled ‘meeting’)

But learning by stealth still takes a concerted planning effort to pull off – it can’t be left to chance.  Only the most experienced trainers/facilitators can provide the right combination of challenge and support that’s required to bring out the best in each individual, and to ensure that the primary goal of the intervention really is rooted in learning -- otherwise it will just be a meeting!  

And all of these learning opportunities should still be managed in a cohesive way…a stealth architecture perhaps!

The key advantage of this type of approach is that it can be much more impactful than traditional theory and practice style training.  And for many, who in today’s fast-paced and highly entertained world would resent anything akin to boilerplate development, stealth training can achieve breakthrough results.

So next time you’re offered an opportunity for a ‘day of training’ – why not consider how you would structure that development in a way that embeds and sustains your development right in the context of your day.  Perhaps the day of training, is 8 stealth opportunities that just ‘naturally appear’ in the course of your day.  I think you’ll find this approach ensures greater connectivity and relevance, and thus assures you more natural points to practice and develop new skills.

Don’t forget the soft stuff

More and more research validates that universities are not equipping graduates with the real skills they need to succeed in the workplace.

Employers are saying that it’s not enough just to have technical or academic ability. Understandably, they want to recruit candidates who will be a good ‘fit’ in their organization. Usually this translates as: will they get along with other people? Can they cope with life in the workplace?  Are they adaptable as things change? It seems what is missing, for many graduates, are the ‘softer skills’ that relate to their ability to empathize and interact effectively with others, to communicate well, and to work in teams. And these are the key skills for aspiring professionals and managers!

These issues aren't likely to go away, and in my opinion if anything will be exacerbated by other environmental shifts.  I grew up in a generation where my social interactions with others were constant, and face-to-face.  Matter of fact, I can still remember my only negative report cards from early education typically containing some language to the effect of cautioning about the extent of my ‘socialness’.  Not only didn't my educators recognize how this aided my development, they actually felt I was hampering others in their noble quest to diagram a sentence or memorize the periodic table!  Today’s generation (our up and coming workforce) has developed in a much more ‘heads down’ mode.  While a more technology-agile workforce will have some advantage, a workforce whose primary method of communication is texting, may not.  What’s worse is that this generation is entering the workforce at a time when many organizations, looking for budget cuts, aren't investing as heavily in the very skills that will be needed for survival.

Back in 2012, we highlighted that business should really be looking for five specific traits and a mind-set for success, in new recruits.  Because the days of hiring people for a steady job - with a predictable workload - are over, our argument is that employers now need to recruit and develop individuals who are talented, resilient, adaptable, imaginative and trustworthy. These five traits form the mnemonic TRAIT. Adaptability is vital, as today’s recruits will need to become, to some extent, a Jack or Jill of all trades. The most important thing, though, is having the right mind-set, because that will impact on whatever job they’re asked to do.

So, why aren't these skills overtly learned at universities or business schools? Perhaps because ‘soft skills’ can actually be the hardest skills to teach? Getting people to behave differently, take a different approach, or have a different attitude, takes a more sophisticated approach to enabling learning.

Two things are needed to resolve this situation. First, students themselves must take more responsibility for developing the skills that will make them more employable. Secondly, universities and business schools need to update their formula. This could mean supplementing their capabilities with an alternative approach, partnering with soft skills providers to provide subject matter expertise and delivery know-how. Not only will the result be valuable for students in their work, but it is likely to help them in their lives generally.  And even then, the workforce must be ready to accept new graduates and understand the fundamental shift that occurs during that first transition to the working world.

So, the real challenge for organizations is to identify and develop candidates that not only have the technical skills required for a task, but also have the right traits and the right mindset for success.

I have an idea…

These are likely the 4 words most dreaded by anyone who has ever worked or lived with me, as they are typically used in conjunction with some home or workplace beautification project.  I’ve actually heard tell of former employees warning current teammates to steer well clear of being sucked into a renovation project with me.  It seems people think I’m difficult to work with on such projects – I personally have no idea why.  I will point out that they all seem to enjoy the resulting product when it is done, so hopefully we can at least agree that the end justifies the means.

I have an idea!

I have always been a firm believer that a great working environment brings out the best in people.  When done correctly, it not only looks better, but space is utilized more efficiently, team communication improves, levels of professionalism seem to rise – the overall mood of the place is lifted.  Believe me; I’ve proved this many times over.

Folks at Hemsley Fraser heard me utter the dreaded 4 words a little over a year ago.  In my opinion, if we were to embody our corporate strap, ‘learning is changing’, it simply wasn’t enough to continue our focus on great content and great facilitators, but equally the environment for learning had to be perfect as well.

What makes a best in class, class?  After considerable research and polling of our delegates, we think we know:

• Mobile furniture configurations, allowing the classroom to be mixed up
• More free space for thinking and working in small groups
• Fun zones that spur creativity and innovation
• Modern technology (including flat screens for easy viewing)
• Quality audio 
• Paperless, or paper ‘light’, courses utilizing videos and apps to bolster learning
• Bright and fresh décor, increasing energy levels
• Time and space for networking, and learning from others
• White board walls – no longer constricting big ideas to little flip charts

As a result of this vision, I’m proud to say we have invested significantly in all of our core facilities (London, Cornwall, and Washington).  We have shown that a next generation classroom is effectively a place where clients can free their imagination.  If you want to see how (and see me learning to play Jenga), click here!

Now we have gone further…

Before we even get to the venue, the learning starts well in advance, during our creative design process. As with most professional services firms, our standard practice has always been to go to the client.  It does seem the most polite and customer friendly approach after all.  But is it the most effective?   I don’t know why the light bulb was so slow to go off for me, but during our recent office refurbishment and after many meetings with our building designers - each time them bringing me sample books of the carpet, wallpaper, and furniture books they thought I would like – it finally occurred to us…why aren’t we going to the showroom where we can see everything in one place and hopefully find some inspiration?

And in just the same way, as an L&D provider we can only take just so much when going to the client.  What if their needs are slightly different than what we anticipated?  What if their budget is different?  Frankly, what if they aren’t sure what they want yet?

At this moment I realized that we needed not only a next generation venue, but a design showroom as well.  I had an idea!

I’m proud to say we have now created just that – a first-class Learning and Development shop window – right in the heart of London.

In this space, just now opening, clients can see all that we have to offer.  For one thing, technology is transforming the creative design process. Interactive design boards allow you to create, play, share and approve your designs; knowledge assets all on display; standard content and alternative delivery media all ready to be previewed.  Quite simply, this is game-changing the ‘art of the possible’ in learning design.

Of course it has to spur imagination, so throw in ‘inside/outside’ space, a client creation zone, some AstroTurf, and Underground ‘quiet carriages’ and you’ve got something very different to experience!

Whether a customer is looking for a high-end customized solution that challenges their thinking, or simply a chance to innovate and improve company-specific learning programs, we have seen our new visual and interactive approach to design really help push the creative envelope.

When you can experience an ideal learning environment, talk to subject matter experts on learning, and participate in game-changing design, isn’t that worth leaving your office for?

Plus, our fresh coffee and pastries are pretty good too ;-)