Daher Case Study

Daher is an integrated equipment and services provider to the aerospace and defence industry. As part of a European group that has trebled its turnover in 6 years, logistics and planning are critical to continued business growth. A major investment was put into the implementation of a new supply chain and management information system and a cross functional team was set up at the UK headquarters site in Derby to lead the implementation project.

Although team members liaised with each other on a day to day basis they had never worked together such a demanding and time critical project – working together effectively as a team was vital to their success.

Kingswood worked with the project team to help them get started and understand what they would need to do to establish a strong team connection and make best use of the talents they each brought to the task.

An initial two day kick off workshop enabled the team to agree a clear vision of what success would look like and commit to a set of shared goals. The team learned about the unique skills and talents that each member could bring to the project and the challenges ahead and see beyond their functional knowledge and expertise. The key strengths of the team members were mapped out to provide a basis for allocating key roles and responsibilities and a process for regular and meaningful communication was put in place.

“The workshop helped me to achieve a better understanding of my colleagues and highlighted the way forward”
SAP Implementation Team member

Styles&Wood Case Study

Styles&Wood is a leading property management business, supporting major retailers in store design and fit out programmes. Over several years, Kingswood has developed a partnership with Styles&Wood to deliver focused and practical training and people management initiatives that support their corporate values of teamwork, inspiring people and a can do approach.

Management development was one of the most challenging and critical areas for improvement. Most line managers work at the sharp end with clients, under pressure to put together the best team for each project and deliver excellent customer service any training and support would need to be practical and accessible to fit in with operational demands.

Kingswood designed an easy reference Managers Guide for use on site, backed up by an on-line Toolkit with additional resources and guidance. Managers attended a one day workshop to introduce them to the key concepts of understanding and motivating people and making best use of individual talents and differences to create high performing teams.

Manager's confidence levels have increased significantly, less time is spent on people problems and conflict issues and most importantly performance against delivery and quality targets exceeds customer expectations during a difficult time for the construction and property sector enabling Styles&Wood to retain key customers for life.

"Judith managed to understand our business culture and organisation quickly, and then was able to help us segment key training needs and prioritise them. The managers handbook and the training delivered on the back of this was relevant, pitched at the right level and within our budget constraints"

South Yorkshire Probation Case Study

As a result of key changes in the criminal justice system at a national level, South Yorkshire Probation Service embarked on a major restructuring and cultural change process to enable them to successfully apply for Trust status.

Managing the change process sensitively was critical to maintaining individual motivation and team commitment to continue to deliver a high quality public service.
Kingswood designed an innovative support programme for staff to enable individuals to understand the opportunities that change may present and make the right choices for their future.

Individuals affected by the changes in the organisation attended a short workshop session to understand more about how to handle their reactions to change and move forward.
As employees were consulted upon opportunities for new job roles or voluntary redundancy, a half day Life Transitions Workshop was offered to individuals  who were unclear about which life and work options may be best for them. In a supportive group session participants explored their current work life balance, their unique skills and talents, values and motivations in order to plan their next life phase.

For South Yorkshire Probation the programme has helped the change process to run more smoothly and given individuals the confidence and knowledge to make the right career and life choices.

“I felt more positive about preparing myself for the restructure process.   I felt Judith had empathy with my situation, she helped me make sense of how I was feeling and that my feelings were normal.   Her approach was really supportive and she made me realise things about myself that I wouldn't have done before the workshop”
Course Delegate

"The workshops were invaluable in terms of giving me the confidence and skill to support my team going through a very difficult time. Judith is very genuine and shows great empathy with the situation which I found most helpful."
Line Manager

UCLAN (University of Central Lancashire) Case Study

The University of Central Lancashire is now one of the largest universities in the UK with more than 32,000 students and 3,000 members of staff.

UCLAN recognises the importance of recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and is committed to encouraging harmonious working relationships between individuals and team members. Kingswood supports the University in the delivery of a mediation service which provides an alternative approach to formal grievance procedures and a rapid first intervention to prevent escalation of conflict issues.

With the support of a trained mediator from Kingswood, individuals are provided with a more creative way to repair and build working relationships. Sessions are based upon helping people to understand their differences and how they can improve communication and work more effectively together.

The end result is that talented people are retained within the organisation, the quality of the student experience is enhanced by more effective team work amongst staff and Department Heads spend less time resolving conflict and grievance issues.

Work Options Case Study

Kingswood worked in partnership with Age Concern Training and Age Concern Mid-Mersey to deliver one of six pilot projects funded by the DWP to identify good practice in the provision of face-to-face guidance for working people approaching or over 50 years of age. The Work Options programme helped people to understand and evaluate the options available to them in relation to work, training, retirement and later life style choices.

Kingswood led on the design and delivery of innovative training methods to make life transition planning both accessible and relevant to busy working people. Short, lively and interactive sessions helped to raise awareness of the need to plan and challenge current thinking. A self guided learning resource was designed to enable individuals to identify and prioritise their needs and issues. Group workshop sessions then provided people with the tools to gain a better self awareness, increased self esteem and confidence and a vision and action plan for the future.

A number of major employers in the St Helens area engaged with the Work Options programme as a way of promoting their age management policies and their commitment to engaging with and retaining older workers.

“It made me stop and think; to realise that I have to take action rather than wait for things to happen. Really enjoyable and thought provoking”
Programme participant

“I gained a real self awareness; an understanding of my worth and my desires for the future. Talking and sharing with other delegates helped me learn to see things differently”
Programme participant

“Your contribution and that of your team was excellent. Your advisor team was committed and enthusiastic as well as highly knowledgeable. Thank you again for your help”.
DWP Ageing Society Directorate