Here is a sample of the latest results from their Foundations of Management programme today.
A cornerstone of Mitchell Phoenix's approach is that participants on their programmes are required to create concrete business results by applying what they have learned in the seminar room back in the workplace.
For this reason Mitchell Phoenix programmes are structured a day a month for five or six months. In between the days delegates apply the material in the workplace and create results to be reported at the following seminar.
A sample of the results from the latest Foundations of Management programme:
Making a business more profitable
A chef at a restaurant was tasked with improving sales over the Christmas period. He noticed that team meetings were usually held between three and six pm on a Friday, when the team were distracted by the thought of the busy evening ahead. So one Friday he asked his team to go away and think of ideas on how they could increase sales, and to bring those ideas to a special meeting which would be held on the following Wednesday afternoon.
Suggestions included:
Selling mulled wine and mince pies at the bar
Improving the children’s menu – giving them colouring books, pencils, balloons and better drinks
Making a Christmas party menu – which they had never done before
By the time the chef reported his results to the Foundations group, the Christmas party menu was proving popular, and they were selling approximately 50 mince pies a day from behind the bar. When he was asked why this particular idea had been so successful, the chef replied that it was the member of staff who works behind the bar who proposed the idea. Because it is his idea, he is working hard to make it a success. The chef commented that his staff are more engaged, and the restaurant is more profitable.
Retaining a valued employee
A sales team manager ran an appraisal with a salesperson who had become so demotivated they were ready to leave the organisation. The manager used the tools acquired on the Foundations programme to explore the reasons why the salesperson had become so demotivated, and used the salesperson’s own ideas to define what action they would take. Based on what the salesperson said, the sales manager created a series of concrete actions to be achieved in the months following the appraisal. This process has restored the salesperson’s confidence and passion for the job, which in turn have led to more consistent performance on a day-to-day basis.
Developing your people resource
A manager in a charity had to construct a proposal for an external body to fund a three-year project. Usually the manager would write this funding proposal alone, shutting herself in her office for a considerable length of time. Using the material from the Foundations programme, she decided to consult her project team manager, asking the team manager a number of carefully considered questions about how the proposal should be constructed.
The project team manager, seeing the way in which her manager was working with her, called her team together and asked them the same questions she had been asked. Then the two managers and the project team met and shaped the proposal together.
The feedback the manager received from the project team manager and the project team was that they had enjoyed the process and were looking forward to the changes in their way of working that the suggestions in the proposal implied. They were more motivated and confident than they had been before. This was unusual because it is more natural for teams to resist change than support it. The manager had made the chore of writing a proposal into a motivating exercise on selling change.
Creating resilience
A manager in a bank runs a team whose busiest period is in December. Last December was no exception, and the manager noticed the team were struggling to meet their timescales, the staff had concerns about some of the tasks they had been set, and they needed a boost. The manager decided to speak to each individual in the team every two days, find something to praise them about and praise them. As a result of this, the people in the team felt they were valued and coped with the pressure of the December rush.
Final Evaluations of the Programme
This course has made me analyse every aspect of my management style and made me aware of how important my influence is. Being spread over 5 months it has enabled me to really absorb and practise many tools that I know I will continue to use to enhance my practice. I feel it has given me confidence to go forward and be successful. - A manager at a national charity. Final evaluation = excellent
This course is presented in a fun and interesting way and the huge amount of information has been presented in a way which has meant that you don’t realize the volume until the end. - A manager at a bank. Final evaluation = excellent
It definitely makes you a better manager. It takes you out of your prejudices and is good input on how to create a good and happy company. - A chef at a restaurant. Final evaluation = excellent
It does change the person. It is very useful. It gives me the tools so I can do my job better. It is very dynamic and it is over five months so results have to be delivered. - A manager at a bank. Final evaluation = excellent
The last five seminars have taught me how to become a structured, effective and professional manager. Mitchell Phoenix, and especially Sean, are an asset to any company that wants the best from their managers and directors. - A manager in a technology company. Final evaluation = excellent
Quite apart from the fact that I learnt a lot about the role of managers in business and was able to practise all the theory learnt in a real working environment, I feel that my confidence with presentations and my ability to achieve and the feeling that I am capable has improved remarkably. - An executive at a specialist ship operator. Final evaluation = excellent
The next Foundations of Management programme starts on February 2nd in London.
Posts
