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A NSW local council has used a customised and contextualised leadership training program from Forsythes Training as part of its continued change management and organisational development program.
A total of 18 senior and up and coming leaders have now successfully completed the six month program.
Trainer, Trish Davies, used elements from Forsythes Training’s Team Leader Step Up and Cert IV in Leadership and Management programs, its emotional intelligence course and other programs to target and assess the competencies Council is looking to instil in its leaders.
“We needed to build on the training Council had done in relation to its cultural change program as well as integrate Council’s values and other relevant policies,” Trish said.
“Another key element of the training was the use of Human Synergistics LSI 1,” she said.
“The Life Styles Inventory (LSI) is an organisational tool that uses both self-assessment and colleague feedback to see, measure, and change the thinking and behavioural styles proven to drive the performance of individuals, teams and organisations.”
Zooming in to training
The training was initially being delivered face to face but when the Covid-19 pandemic struck, Trish and the participants easily transitioned into using Zoom to complete the program.
Trish said many participants were surprised by how easy and flexible Zoom is to use.
“We were still able to create breakout rooms and some participants found it easier to participate in the speaking and role play exercises online than in person!”
Participant feedback
100% of participants said they would recommend the program to other local councils.
Trish said that some of the biggest benefits were in giving the leaders skills and confidence to have difficult conversations or engage in conflict resolution.
“The emotional intelligence and human synergistics’ components had a big impact. There were improvements in self-awareness, awareness of team diversity, effective listening and effective communication.
Here’s some of what they had to say in the program evaluation.
What area in your role has this training had the biggest impact? And why?
“I’ve learned some great tools to have on having hard discussions! The first step of a plan is to have a plan!”
“How to prepare for conversations and coaching sessions.”
“Emotional intelligence – realizing [sic] my strengths and weaknesses and sitting back and reflecting on both areas.”
“Understanding peoples forms of communication, or lack of communication and how I can draw that out as a leader.”
“Self-reflection and realizing my potential, Back yourself, you’ve got this!!”
“Emotional intelligence. I have a very diverse team and it helps to recognize learning styles and how people take on information in different ways.”
“Having a better understanding [of] emotional intelligence and how that impacts myself in my work and my relationships with others and how I handle situations but also the ability to identify it in others.”
Favourite part of the program? And why?
“Group discussions – hearing others issues and strategies for dealing with them. Realising regardless of what area we work in we seem to all face the same problems.”
“Favourite part of the program was the [human synergistics] circumplex and emotional intelligence as it gave me a lot of self-realisation on things I was unaware of how my personality was in those scenarios.”
“Understanding the different roles people play in a team and that diversity is good within a team.”
“Emotional intelligence, becoming more self-aware and understanding my own traits and how they can affect others, the circumplex was a favourite.”
“Getting to know more of my fellow workers. Everyone is different but all have something to offer.”
Next steps
Council and Forsythes Training are utilising the feedback and evaluation from this program to jointly develop another training program for later this year.
Need to skill your leadership team for cultural and organisational change?
- Read our insight article on emotional intelligence here.
- Read more about how Lifestyle Inventory (LSI) tools can help measure and drive improved individual, team and organisational performance here and here.
- View our nationally accredited leadership and management qualifications here or our short courses here.
- Talk to our expert team about customising and contexualising a program for your organisation. Call 02 49 22 0122 or contact us online.
