People

Working with Individuals

Working with individuals is a cornerstone of our work. Assessments provide an honest, in-depth evaluation of the individual. Without this information, whether we obtain it from in-depth discussion or a 360 survey, all future plans will inevitably use guesswork. With this information, we can help individuals, and groups of individuals, deal realistically with what they want to achieve at work. Specifically, assessments are used before internal job changes or for the personal development of key managers. Here are some examples where this element of our approach has proven value.

Changes

Changes in the organisation resulting from merger or acquisition mean employees have to be reshuffled. Assessments which identify individual qualities, and goodness of fit, inform this complicated task.

Individual Fit

Individuals must fit not just to role but also in teams. The starting point from which to consider and understand team dynamics is the individual objectives and characteristics of the team members. By capitalising on strengths and minimising weaknesses, individual contributions can be repositioned to achieve the best from an existing team.

Succession Planning

Individual assessments are used to initiate the process, by structuring and categorising information. We order data that busy senior managers find hard to capture and we do so in a manner which facilitates objective decision making. We help organisations make the difficult decisions upon which the future of the business depends.

Strategy

Working with Chief Executives and General Managers of Large Divisions.

The Chief Executive carries a heavy burden of accountability and responsibility. It can be a lonely position. Frequently, the Chief Executive will use one of our consultants as a sounding board, to penetrate issues with an informed 'other' who is politically neutral. We maintain the highest standards of trust and confidentiality in this work.

The Dilemma of the Optimum Strategy.

Often great care and intense strategic thought have been devoted to formulating the optimum strategy. Yet, somehow, the optimum strategy is just never realised...
Invariably, there are sound historical reasons for the way things are in organisations. People, structures and systems are accommodated to where the organisation is and not to where it wants to go. We identify ways to implement the transition from the status quo to where the organisation wishes to be.

Organisation

Working with Groups

If individual assessments are the building blocks of what we do, working with groups is about how the blocks are put together. Successful policy implementation is actually carried out at team level. The coherent team, capable of maintaining social and strategic unity - even in difficult times - is fundamental. Here are some examples:

Strategy

Strategy can be delivered only to the extent that the people in the group possess the necessary cohesion, motivation and resources. Talent Development Group consultants use in-depth interviewing of key group members to provide data for a report called an Organisation Analysis. This report captures the key issues in the group, including those that people are reluctant to surface with anyone other than a trusted outsider. An Organisation Analysis is used as the agenda for "off-site" team building meetings. These sessions are facilitated by our consultants to help the group face the issues openly, move to their resolution and commit to action. We provide a structure and a process which enables the group to resolve its issues.

New Lamps for Old

After a merger or acquisition, the old corporate cultures will persist. Managers who flourished under the old regime are resistant to changes in direction. Their experience is invaluable, but they can subvert or undermine new ways. We get these people on-side through the use of a 'Facilitated Workshop' which provides essential opportunities to adjust. At these sessions, people are helped to think through the implications of change and to confront the difficulties and complexities in building a new organisation.