Together Housing
Values and Competency development
We were initially engaged with Together to develop and deliver a Management Development Programme. Our two Directors spent 4 days ‘getting to know’ the organisation – talking to managers and the Leadership team. This process showed the need to set clearer expectations for managers in terms of their role and how they should be going about it. We worked closely with the senior team to develop a set of core values and to roll them out amongst the employees alongside a competency framework that is now firmly embedded in the Performance Management process. This has been a huge success. Together are now using the competency framework as a peer assessment tool – managers shadow other managers and rate the delivery of their teams – providing feedback with a view to enhancing performance.
Management Development Programme
We then designed and delivered a management development programme that focused on the competencies, training over 150 managers.
The management development programme included a range of modules such as Managing Performance, Managing Change, Communicating with Impact, Influencing and Negotiating and Coaching. Before attending any modules, delegates attended a one day development centre, aimed at testing the competencies in actions – we designed the centre, trained their internal observers, as well as providing observers from our associate network and also produced development reports for each individual. We also designed and facilitated Action Learning Sets aimed at reviewing and embedding the learning.
Customer Service training programme
We worked with a Steering Group to define the approach to customer service, specifically a set of principles that should be followed in every interaction, to ensure excellent service delivery. We produced a DVD showing the customer service principles in action. The DVD was bespoke – using client staff as themselves and actors as customers. We designed and delivered a training programme for all staff to introduce the principles (using the DVD) and focusing on the core skills that would support the principles in action. All staff from CEO to Caretakers and Cleaners attended the training to ensure a consistent approach to customer service across the organisation.
Other work completed for Together over the last three years includes:
- 360 feedback process for Senior Management team
- Change management support during merger
- Defining Leadership Behaviours (building on the existing competency framework)
- Development and delivery of a Leadership programme
StraightForward have been working with our organisation for over two years. At the outset, they spent considerable time understanding our organisation and our requirements. They have worked together with both our Executive & Senior management Teams in an OD capacity, supporting us in re-aligning our vision and values and re-launching these.
Furthermore, they have helped us with the design and delivery of our bespoke Customer Service Training Programme and then a hugely successful Management Development Programme which now spans 3 organisations and has been designed to ensure our Managers have the capability to deliver in very challenging times. We have also worked on the design and implementation of a competency framework which has been very well received by our staff.
This training has made a significant impact on both what and how TransPennine (now Together Housing) deliver our services. We are already seeing the benefits of our staff being managed consistently and Managers are thoroughly enjoying what is a challenging programme which requires significant commitment from them.
I would have no hesitation in recommending StraightForward to work with any other organisation who is committed to developing it’s workforce.
Mel Foulds, Group Head of OD