Customized Training
Most POD quarterly courses are available as privately scheduled training programs. It is often less costly and more valuable to have staff receive training together.

360-Degree Assessments
In a 360-degree feedback process, you rate yourself on a set of competencies and are rated by others of your choosing—such as your manager, colleagues, and direct reports—on those same competencies. Two 360-degree assessments are currently offered for UW leaders: UW ARC 360 includes 12 leadership competencies developed by POD for mid-level managers at the UW, and Extraordinary Leader is based on the competencies outlined in the book "The Extraordinary Leader" and is for directors and other executives. Learn more about the variety of assessments we offer for individuals and teams.

Employee Development and Coaching
Through referral from department management, an individual may obtain personalized help on work-related issues in a confidential and safe atmosphere. A consultant will work exclusively with an individual on understanding UW policies, conflict resolution skills, and interpersonal skills.

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
A customized workshop introducing the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) can be developed for your work group to assess personality "types," discuss how style and preferences impact the way we work together, and lay the foundation for respecting individual differences. The MBTI has been used in organizations for decades to build teams and improve working relationships.

Strategic Planning
Strategic planning is a systematic method of planning for the future built on the foundation of an organization's mission, vision, and values. It typically includes:

• historical analysis of the organization;
• assessing the current and future climate within which the organization competes or operates;
• developing or reviewing the organization's mission, vision, and values; and
• identifying strengths and weaknesses of the organization.

The consultant's role in this is typically:

• planning with the leader(s) of the organization and strategic planning initiative;
• designing a process that fits with the client organization's time frame, resources and other characteristics;
• facilitating meetings and activities that lead to the desired outcomes; and
• coaching leaders and group members in the development and implementation of a strategic plan.

Organizational Restructuring
This typically involves realigning personnel with organizational goals and resources. Usually the restructure is objective and based on the organization's needs and goals. The consultant's role in an organizational restructure may include:

• objective observation and recommendations about the best staff structure to meet the organization's goals and resources;
• conducting interviews, focus groups, or other such surveys to ensure that the perspectives of those who might be affected by a restructure are taken into account;
• linking the organization's leaders to resources that can aid in decision making; and
• coaching the organizational leader in determining the best structure and making it come to life.

Executive Retreats
These retreats involve groups who gather to make decisions that will create real change. The group dynamics can be very complicated. The outcome of the retreat typically has great impact on a large organization. The consultant's role would include:

• clarifying and naming the goals and purpose of the retreat;
• planning appropriate means of arriving at the outcome desired;
• facilitating discussions within the retreat; and
• coaching leaders to ensure that the outcomes have the maximum chance of success.

Executive Retreats are one of many types of retreats our experienced consultants can help you with. Learn more

Leadership Coaching
Many leaders have particular issues, skill gaps, knowledge gaps, etc. that keep them from being the best they can be. Consultants who coach provide:

• confidential, individual guidance and facilitation to help the individual leader build his/her leadership skills;
• feedback and suggestions for improving performance; and
• assistance in planning the individual's professional and organizational goals and directions.

Learn more about professional coaching

New Leader Integration
New leaders and the individuals they'll be working with experience a "getting to know each other" phase as they try to adapt to each other and their new situation, including the new leader's style, approach, expectations, and vision. New Leader Integration expedites and enriches this experience through structured sessions between a new leader and his or her team. The New Leader Integration process addresses concerns and challenges that could otherwise bog down a team indefinitely, and it lays the groundwork for superior communication, collaboration, and performance.

Team Building
One key to successful teams is bringing together individuals who differ and then dealing effectively with those differences. Forming a team and working in teams can result in conflict or synergy. Consultants working with teams can help minimize the conflict and maximize the synergy by:

• helping team members learn more about each other so that communication is more effective;
• aiding a new team's formation through the steps of chartering, setting norms, clarifying goals and roles;
• reenergizing or refocusing an existing team through a variety of methods and techniques; and
• assisting in resolution of conflicts that have occurred within a team.

Conflict Resolution
In human relationships, conflict is inevitable. Conflict, if dealt with positively, creates an opportunity for those involved to grow, learn from each other, and acquire new perspectives and skills. The consultant will be a neutral partner in problem-solving. Consultants who assist with conflict resolution:

• help to uncover the root of the conflict through interviews, mediation, and observation;
• listen to those in conflict and assist them in arriving at solutions and/or agreements that will help resolve the current conflict and help to lessen any subsequent conflicts; and
• make available a number of tools and resources to help those in conflict change their future behavior.

Meeting Facilitation
Meetings are a regular occurrence for most in the work setting. Having a facilitator allows all members of the group to fully engage in the meeting. A meeting facilitator plays a number of roles at any given time including:

• reminding the group of the meeting goal;
• sharing honest constructive feedback;
• suggesting tools for problem solving;
• acting as a resource, keeping the group on track; and
• observing and addressing group dynamics issues.

Change Management
Managing change well is important in ensuring that the change is successful and sustained. A consultant called in to assist with change management will coach and guide a leader in several aspects of instituting a change, including:

• analyzing the reasons for the change;
• ensuring that the change is necessary and beneficial;
• making the best of an imposed change;
• planning for the implementation of the change;
• communicating the change;
• providing tools and suggestions to build buy-in and input for the change; and
• ensuring that the "people" issues related to the change are addressed and that there is a plan for sustaining the change.

Process Improvement
Due particularly to technology, our ways of working are constantly changing. Improving processes involves making sure that we are using the systems and people within our organizations most effectively. The outcomes of process improvement are to:

• provide better customer service;
• cut time needed to perform a function;
• cut the costs involved; and
• improve the quality of a service or process.

A consultant involved in a process improvement effort will:

• bring to an organization methods to measure and map current processes;
• facilitate meetings and activities that will assist the people within the organization to look at different ways of doing business; and
• develop new and improved processes.

Diversity Consultation and Training
Race, gender, ethnicity, culture, age, education levels, sexual orientation, and work experience are a few of the many ways in which team members can be different. The way these differences are managed within the group will have enormous consequences on how the team functions and on how well it accomplishes its objectives. The same variables that challenge us also provide us with the potential for discovering and building on common ground and increasing the synergy of the team if they are managed well.
Consulting can provide:

• Customized training modules and workshops to build team member skills for working with a diverse group.
• Leadership coaching
• Assistance planning for diversity management.
• Assessment of diversity issues that may be impacting the functioning of the team.
• Problem-solving for managing diversity issues.

Customer Service Consultation and Training
Every work group has customers, internal or external people for whom they provide services or products. These are the people we deal with, either face-to-face or over the phone, to do our business.
A consultant can provide assistance in:

• Training staff in customer relations skills.
• Training and coaching managers in developing skills they need to support staff in providing excellent customer service.
• Assessing and analyzing the quality of service provided.
• Surveying customers to determine their level of satisfaction and gather suggestions for improvement.
• Devising a system to track customer complaints, strategizing for improvement, and making specific changes in policies and procedures based on customer feedback.
• Developing a customer service orientation for new staff.
• Determining meaningful ways to reward and recognize staff for their efforts on behalf of customers.

Business Analysis and Operational Review
Business analysis and operational review assist organizations in efforts to improve the performance of the unit in meeting its core purpose and objectives. They identify and analyze the processes, procedures, methods, and activities the organization undertakes to achieve its results. They may be targeted at operations regarding a specific function or segment of the organization or they can address the entire organization.

 

 

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