Case Study - Team Effectiveness Experience Bank …freshairlearning.com/.../Case-Study-Team-Effectiveness-Experience... · Why&are&we&doing&this?&We&want&to&share&with&you&our

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Case StudyA Beyond Ordinary

Team Effectiveness Experience

Case studyA crucible team effectiveness experience

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Hello!

This case study showcases a team effectiveness experience we created for the senior team of a global investment bank.

Why are we doing this? We want to share with you our approach to creating powerful learning experiences.

And we want you to get in touch to explore how we can support you.

Regards,

Dave StewartManaging DirectorThe Fresh Air Learning [email protected]+44 (0) 7776 153428

Extraordinary Team ExperiencesInspirational Leadership Journeys

Case studyClient testimonials – one week after

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A great experience. I really liked the outdoor activities and how we come together as smaller and bigger teams.

It was a unique experience and extremely worthwhile. I learned so much and appreciate having had the opportunity to participate.


Case studyClient testimonials -‐ 3 months after

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A view from the Head Coach:

Three months on from the event the team experience is still very much alive in the day to day work of this leadership team as it undertakes its highly complex leadership task. Specifically:

• Referring to Dunblane acts as shorthand for the high performance and mutual expectations attained and agreed, and enables the team to quickly check in on its own performance.

• The deeper levels of trust have remained allowing for better and more courageous conversations amongst the team.

• The core messages of collaboration, trust and leadership were woven into a series of global town halls held following the event allowing for a cascade of key behavioral messages and expectations.

• The differences between leading in complex rather than complicated environments have been well understood increasing the execution agility of the team.

• The team has built on the work in Dunblane to include Nancy Klein’s work on Thinking Environments in order to further boost its in-‐the-‐moment effectiveness during team meetings.

• The video footage has been exploited and shared multiple times with great effect. The wet and windy hills of Dunblane give audiences a sense of the seriousness of the team’s commitment to high performance, and stand in stark contrast to a typical luxury executive retreat.


Case studyThe video

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This video is about what we do. The footage is taken from the team experience we describe in this case study. Click link to watch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1Yy11TEH74


Case studyStructure

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The case study is structured simply as follows:

• What?

• So what?

• Now what?


What?Client context

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• A division of a global bank’s investment arm was created to manage down a significant portfolio of legacy risk.

• The expected life-‐span of the division was 2 years.

• Consequently there was a need to accelerate the effectiveness of the new international leadership team, and start to work out the behaviours needed to be effective and model these to the wider division.


What?Engaging the market, refining the requirement

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The customer requirement emerged in 3 stages:

• A Request For Proposals that was framed in terms of outcomes, with helpful context and clear guidance around minimum necessary constraints.

• An invitation to interested suppliers for clarification questions.

• A conference call with suppliers, chaired by the client’s Head Coach and attended by two client/participant directors.


What?The customer requirement

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Desired Outcomes PlanningFactors

• A highly memorable shared experience

• A better understanding of one another

• A platform for better and deeper team dialogue

• A clear understanding of the case for collective mission, trust-‐based relationships and collaboration

• 14 delegates, 36 hours

• Grounded in Lencioni’s Team Dysfunctions, particularly Trust

• Outdoors, strenuous activities, competition, complex CSR challenges welcome and expected

• Simulations welcome but no direct reference to running a business

• Needs to be rich in metaphor

• CEO absent for part of event -‐incorporate this into the play


Mountain Rescue SimulationDay 1: Competitive skills training in diff constellationsDay 2: Rescue operation + climactic act of commitment

What?Design concept

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Pre-‐reading• Lencioni• McChrystal• Snowden

Lencioniteam

questionnaire

Appreciative Inquiry“How do we need to be to achieve mission-‐led, trust-‐

based, collaborative impact? At pace? Globally?

Production of Team VideoFilm producer works with Comms Director to tell the team story. Video shown at final review session.

Review

& Evaluation

36 Hours2 Weeks

Pre-‐DinnerTalk


What?The importance of storyline

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We created a storyline to provide a relevant and energisingcontext for the simulation:

“As the flooding in Cumbria has shown, large scale natural events require specialist assistance from around the UK.

The bank has submitted a proposal to create “shadow” mountain rescue teams (MRTs) to backfill frontline Scottish MRTs that are deployed out of area.

This has been welcomed by the government and wider blue-‐light community as a wonderfully innovative and exciting CSR offer.

To take this idea forward, a divisional executive leadership team will pilot an accelerated Shadow MRT induction course.”


What?The relevance of this storyline: metaphor and the CSR angle

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• Mountain Rescue (MR) is founded on volunteer teams with a clear sense of common purpose and commitment to unity of effort.

• The success of each “call-‐out” depends on the trust, courage, commitment and mutual support of team members operating towards a common goal, and within the context of a wider multi-‐agency effort, often in very demanding environmental conditions.

• MR teams train regularly at weekends in the mountains. This entails close, communal living, and fosters the trusting relationships which support elite performance and resilience.

• They have a wide role in support of the Police and the community at large. These include the search and rescue of dementia suffers, workers in remote areas, and downed aircrew and passengers.


What?The importance of place

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Place and social setting have a powerful impact on how people think, behave and learn. Within the constraints of being “within an hour of Edinburgh” we selected the Dunblane area. Why?

• The area offers superb outdoor opportunities in open, wooded, and hill terrain. There are sweeping views over the Highlands and Lowlands. The natural environment is inspiring and uplifting.

• The nearby monument to David Stirling, the founder of the Special Air Service, speaks to the high performing, mission-‐led, empowered team culture the client was seeking to develop.

• The success of tennis star and local boy Andy Murray is testimony to a superb team effort that lies behind a powerful global brand.

• The town itself, 20 years on from the school massacre of 1996 , is a model of collective resilience.


HR Director COO

What?The client-‐provider team

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CEO

Head Coach

Fresh Air Learning

TechSecMedia

TaysideMRT

Climb Industries

Design & DeliveryGroup

Client Sponsor Group

• The detail of the simulation was shared with the Head Coach only

• COO and HR Director provided advice on groupings to optimisethe development of key relationships

• The final outline was briefed into, and approved by, the CEO


What?The delivery team

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At the Fresh Air Learning Company we accelerate the effectiveness of high value teams. We specialise in the use of experiential and inquiry-‐based techniques to create extraordinary metaphor-‐rich experiences. MD Dave Stewart led the combined team. Read about him next slide.

Climb Industries Group is the leading Scottish provider of access and rescue training. Relevant to this project are its outdoor leadership and adventure medic capabilities, and the impressive mountain rescue credentials of director Stuart Johnston. Stuart was supported by a small team of qualified outdoor leaders and mountain rescue team members. Read about Stuart next slide.

TECHSEC Media is an award winning video production company acknowledged for producing high quality videos in the most demanding of air, land, subterranean, high-‐access, and maritime environments. MD Nicky Brown worked with the client team’s Comms Director to produce a short video by the team about their experience. Read about Nicky next slide.


What?The delivery team

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Dave Stewart, MD The Fresh Air Learning CompanyDave’s passion for team effectiveness has its roots in an Aberdeen rock band, a mountain rescue team operating in the Cairngorms, and worldwide service with the SAS. He has also led at senior levels in the public, private, and not-‐for-‐profit sectors; is a Chartered Director with the IoD; and a Masters graduate of Ashridge Business School.

Stuart Johnston, Director Climb IndustriesStuart is one of the UK’s most highly qualified and respected mountaineering instructors. He is a course director for the Wilderness Emergency Medical Services Institute (Europe), is a former national training officer for Scottish Mountain Rescue, and has led over 500 rescues as leader of TaysideMountain Rescue Team. He is the MD of three of Climb Industries’ companies.

Nicky Brown, MD TECHSEC MediaIn addition to being an experienced cameraman and producer, Nicky is also a seasoned expedition leader, mountaineer, caver and sailor. His impressive client portfolio includes: Hewlett Packard, Virgin, Orange, BBC, ESPN, Reuters, SKY, Times, UWE, City of Bristol College, Nacre, Nautilus International, Northrop Grumman and many more. Nicky also lectures and provides mentoring on Digital Media Degree courses.


So what?How the event unfolded

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Pre-‐event • Engage with client team. Conduct 121s and issue Lencioniteam questionnaire. Agree overarching inquiry theme.

• Conduct detailed ground recce.• Produce the plan. Get endorsement from client. Brief CEO.

Day 1 1200 -‐1800

• Team gathers, opening brief, introductions, team disclosure exercise.

• Competitive Mountain Rescue skills training in different sub-‐team constellations (score orienteering, shelter and sustenance, abseil, improvised casualty evacuation), and incorporating Appreciative Inquiry question 1.

Evening • Pre-‐supper talk by experienced Mountain Rescue leader: “Team effectiveness. 500 rescues & counting.”

• Supper with discussion of Appreciative Inquiry question 2.


So what?How the event unfolded

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Day 20900 -‐1500

• Review of Day 1• Casualty management training• Intelligence starts to come in about possible casualty situation• Planning and preparation for potential deployment• “Call-‐out”-‐ team deploys to search for 2 casualties• Casualties found. Triage required. One will die. One will live.• Moment of team commitment around Appreciative Inquiry

question 3. Team members step forward to write down all the behaviours, processes etc. they want to ditch on bib of the dying casualty; and write down all the promises they are making for the future on the “to live” casualty

• Casevac the “to live” casualty; leave behind the dead casualty• Award ceremony – Mountain Rescue badges• Closing session involving Appreciative Inquiry question 4 and

showing of the team video made over previous 24 hours by team Comms Director and video cameraman/producer.


So what?Why we did what we did – Appreciative Inquiry

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Appreciative Inquiry helps participants acknowledge what is already strong, imagine greatness on a consistent basis, and then converge on the themes and specific steps to make this real. The overarching inquiry theme was:

• “How do we need to be to achieve mission-‐led, trust-‐based, collaborative impact? At pace? Globally?

The 4 inquiry questions were:

• What do we as a team already have in place that is impressively strong in this respect?

• What does this team look, sound and feel like when it is consistently demonstrating mission-‐led, trust-‐based, collaborative behaviours and processes?

• Right here, right now, with life and death at your feet, what are you (personally and collectively) committing to ditch? Step forward and write these on the bib of dying casualty. What are you committing to doing differently? Inside the next 2 weeks? Step forward and write this on the “to live” casualty’s bib.

• This is what we have committed to (i.e. the bibs). Who is going to lead on each of these? What timelines? What resources? What does “job done” look like?”


So what?Why we did what we did – Mountain Rescue

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The overarching rationale for a Mountain Rescue scenario is covered in an earlier slide. This slide looks at the rationale for some of the activities. Allwere supported by Mountain Rescue personnel.Score orienteering i.e. multiple check points of different value and difficulty.

4 teams. Competition. Common goal to achieve highest score. Multiple possible strategies. A balance between thinking, discussion, action.

Shelter and sustenance i.e. erect tent, collect water, get stove on, make brew for whole team

3 teams. Competition. Practical team exercise that focuses on basic tiers of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Provides an opportunity to demonstrate care and collaboration across boundaries.

Abseil A high-‐bonding experience. Individual courage & collective en-‐couragement.

Improvised casualty evacuation 2 teams. Competition. Using various props, create a workable solution to move casualties to safety.

Pre-‐dinner talk. “Team effectiveness. 500 rescues.”

Promote discussion on leadership styles and strategies in various operational and political contexts.

Casualty management 2 groups. Team skills with a focus on care. Cognitive, emotional and kinesthetic aspects.

Search and rescue operation Whole team exerciseworking with initially sketchy information to create and commit to a plan. Triage event -‐ see earlier slide. Cognitive, emotional and kinesthetic aspects.

So what?Why we did what we did – Team Video

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• We provided the team with an experienced film maker to work with the Comms Director over the 36 hours.

• This allowed the team to pick up on some of the metaphors and imagery of the event, and start to shape the key messages they needed to share across the team and externally to the wider organisation.

• The video was edited “on the hoof” in time for showing at the final session. This proved to be a fun as well as significant climax to the event.

• Footage was used subsequently to brief the wider organisation on some of the key messages.


So what?Post event 7 day evaluation

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A great experience. I really liked the outdoor activities and how we come together as smaller and bigger teams.

It was a unique experience and extremely worthwhile. I learned so much and appreciate having had the opportunity to participate.


So what?Post event 3-‐month evaluation

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The view from the Head Coach:

Three months on from the event the team experience is still very much alive in the day to day work of this leadership team as it undertakes its highly complex leadership task. Specifically:

• Referring to Dunblane acts as shorthand for the high performance and mutual expectations attained and agreed, and enables the team to quickly check in on its own performance.

• The deeper levels of trust have remained allowing for better and more courageous conversations amongst the team.

• The core messages of collaboration, trust and leadership were woven into a series of global town halls held following the event allowing for a cascade of key behavioral messages and expectations.

• The differences between leading in complex rather than complicated environments have been well understood increasing the execution agility of the team.

• The team has built on the work in Dunblane to include Nancy Klein’s work on Thinking Environments in order to further boost its in-‐the-‐moment effectiveness during team meetings.

• The video footage has been exploited and shared multiple times with great effect. The wet and windy hills of Dunblane give audiences a sense of the seriousness of the team’s commitment to high performance, and stand in stark contrast to a typical luxury executive retreat.


Now what?Why would you work with people like us?

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• This is our core business. Our passion. We team with other niche companies and work closely with clients to craft extraordinary experiences for ambitious teams. We are really good at this!

• We have all the experience, formal qualifications, “war stories” and in-‐the-‐moment-‐awareness to keep you safe and entertained, and challenged as well as supported as you step out of your comfort zones, onto your learning edges, and other anxiety-‐filled buzzword places!

• Beneath the outdoorsy’ness of our people, we have decades of experience as senior leaders and directors, hold Masters degrees and fellowships from leading business schools and professional institutions, and are trained business coaches.

• In short, we have the “balls, brains, and backgrounds” to create the extraordinary team experience you seek.


Now what?Get in touch. Let’s explore how we can support you.

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Dave [email protected]

+44 (0)7776 153428

Managing DirectorThe Fresh Air Learning Company

www.freshairlearning.com


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Case Study - Team Effectiveness Experience Bank …freshairlearning.com/.../Case-Study-Team-Effectiveness-Experience... · Why&are&we&doing&this?&We&want&to&share&with&you&our