FOCUS IN AN AGE OF DISTRACTION
Today I had six full hours of virtual meetings. Some were on Zoom, some WhatsApp, some Microsoft Teams. Others just used standard telephone conferencing. Whatever the technology, the impact was the same: I spent a lot of time sitting at my desk listening, while I wrote in my notebook and stared at my screen or […]
GETTING INSTUCK FROM ROUTINES AND GAINING REAL INSIGHTS
WIAL Brazil used Action Learning as a blended solution (Action Learning plus individual coaching meetings) to develop leadership skills for an executive director and his team of six direct reports in the automotive industry, listed in Fortune 500. The team is in charge of the Logistics Department, responsible for strategies in Supply Chain and economic […]
HANDLING MULTI-DIRECTIONAL QUESTIONING
As Action Learning coaches, we intervene when we see learning opportunities or to improve the performance of the group. Deciding when and how to intervene can be tricky. We must pick the right moments, role model powerful questioning, and really consider the impact we want to have through the interventions we make. When I’m coaching, […]
HIGH PERFORMANCE TEAMS THROUGH PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY AND ACTION LEARNING
Research confirms that when people feel safe within a team they will perform better; they willingly take risks, actively contribute, and work hard knowing that they can depend on the others in the team to support them and put in as much effort. In a business context, this is called ‘team psychological safety’ (TPS) and […]
HOW ACTION LEARNING CAN IMPROVE ENGAGEMENT AT WORK
Do you know the percentage of people who consider themselves engaged at work? According to Gallup World Poll with data collected in 155 countries between 2014 and 2016, only 15% of the workers consider themselves engaged at work, that is, who feel committed to their work and motivated to be highly productive for being involved […]
HOW DO YOU MOTIVATE YOUR TEAM?
I was fascinated by the book “Why Motivating People Doesn’t Work … and What Does.” written by Susan Fowler (Berrett-Koehler Publishers Inc. San Francisco) The author corroborates the notion that the ‘Carrot and Stick’ approach does not work and it is best to develop intrinsic factors to motivate people to do better. Of course, extrinsic […]
HOW DO YOU (REALLY) BUILD A TEAM?
Action Learning is powerful for finding breakthrough solutions to complex problems and to embed leadership development in the normal working practices. Results on these two dimensions are often very clear and visible. Building high-performance teams is one of the “solutions” that Action Learning brings, but here the results are more often anecdotal testimonials from team […]
HOW HAS ACTION LEARNING CHANGED YOUR LIFE
One of the most powerful questions I’ve been asked within the Action Learning community is this: HOW HAS ACTION LEARNING CHANGED YOUR LIFE?? Michael Marquardt, founder of Action Learning, asked me this question 3 years ago during the WIAL Global Conference in Shanghai. It was during a break, in between sessions. I was stunned, yet […]
HOW ONE LEAP ACTION LEARNING PROJECT SAVED 4.8 MILLION DOLLARS
In 2016-2017, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) launched six action learning teams in its Leadership Excellence and Achievement Program (LEAP). Projects ranged from improvements to hiring processes to streamlining mandatory training for attorneys, to developing agency-wide professional development programs. The six teams were led by trained Action Learning coaches using the WIAL method […]
HOW WE CONDUCT VIRTUAL ACTION LEARNING SESSIONS
It all started in the South of France in September 2019. I began an Action Learning leadership program in a state organization responsible for the payment of pensions to retirees. A multi-phases plan starting with upper management and strategic executives had been decided. Action Learning was to gently accompany the managerial transformation of the organization. […]