Type of Project: Talent Management through forma ILM L7 Programme

Riverside are one of the largest providers of social housing in the UK and they approached No Guru in late 2011 to see if we would partner with them to deliver an ILM Level 7 Diploma Programme to senior managers identified through an assessment centre as “talent”.

The Diploma is a hugely ambitious undertaking for candidates alike and we identified units of learning relevant to the organisation so that it would:

  • Equip managers with tools and skills to progress in the organisation
  • Help to retain talent within the organisation
  • Support them in addressing challenges presented in the sector; welfare reform, mergers and acquisitions etc
  • Allow them to take on specific projects and secondments to address come of the challenges

In delivering the programme we tried to find new ways to weave together classroom sessions with experiential and other elements such as:

  • Princes Trust Volunteering
  • Leadership Cafes with senior leaders
  • Cohort Projects eg Charity Fundraising And CSR elements
  • Off site visits eg Jaguar Land Rover to explore lean process and methodologies
  • The programme was delivered in partnership with Riverside from January 2012 completing in early 2015.

Riverside Housing

Outcomes:

The programme became “RISE” and has ben instrumental in pushing forward the strategy for talent within Riverside.  

rise

  • 9 out of 10 members of cohort achieving ILM L7 Diploma in Strategic Leadership & Executive Management
  • Evidence of cohort members being seconded to business critical projects

We held the graduation ceremony in the surroundings of the Liverpool Athenaeum and graduates were presented their Diploma by Carol Matthews who expressly thanked No Guru for their work with Riverside.

"We approached No Guru to help us as part of our RISE talent management programme, to equip senior managers to address challenges such as welfare reform and ensuring the viability of the organisation. Our experience of No Guru is that they put the needs of the client and the learners first and are very flexible. I have worked closely with them to develop the ILM Level 7 Strategic Leadership & Executive Management qualification for RISE. Through thorough pre-project planning they have made this process very easy and the work delivered has been to a high standard. I would recommend No Guru as a provider to any organisation."

Richard Bell
Learning and Development Partner Riverside Housing

News

University of Leeds – Adaptable Leadership

Another assignment from University of Leeds, this time with Faculty of Arts, Humanities & Culture.  With change and challenge presented by the current financial position across HE, we were pleased to be asked to deliver a new programme for the faculty exploring leadership in different contexts, leading change from an adaptive versus technical approach and using real world scenarios to collaborate across teams, to solve problems and explore new opportunities.

Thank you to our stakeholders for your trust in us, once again.

International Office with University of Huddersfield

Delighted to be working with the International Office at University of Huddersfield, on a new programme to help officers position the University as the University of Choice for international students coming to the UK to study.

It has been a pleasure working with key stakeholders in devising a programme to meet the needs of the business, and look forward to sharing more news as we roll this one out.


NEW: Heriott Watt University

We are delighted to announce we are now working with Heriott-Watt University to deliver the Welcome to Leadership programmes for their managers. The university has a large international presence with an ambitious strategy and we are looking forward to working with their Professional and Organisational Development team. Heriott-Watt is the latest University to join our growing list of valued customers within Higher Education and we are grateful for this amazing opportunity.

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John's Blog

Creating Action from Procrastination

Do you know how sometimes, you want to bite the bullet and make changes but you are a little afraid of the consequences, and perhaps, the reactions of others?

Procrastination I’ve found, aside from being the ‘thief of time’ is the enemy of positive action. Waiting for the right time can be a useful strategy in some situations, but more likely it becomes an excuse not to take action.

At the centre of all this, are the conversations we have – conversations that are decisive, action orientated and can resolve tensions or competing values. Conversations that boldly take us into new territory.

I noticed recently I was almost on the point of putting off a conversation I should be having. In spotting that I committed to practicing what I preach, by setting up, and hosting a conversation that mattered to me, and to others.

The results were good.

We managed to navigate some tricky terrrain.

The path ahead is much clearer.

Conversations are our route to taking action, moving away from tension or even pain, and moving towards better outcomes in work, and in life.

My e-Book ‘Find Your Voice’ – has strategies to help us host our most important conversations. It is FREE to download from my website and is ideal for those who want to stop procrastinating and start taking action.

You are most welcome to grab a copy and I’m available to run workshops to create better conversations within the workplace.

Find Your Voice and create action!

John

Conversations Procrastination FindYourVoice

Why be a coach or mentor?

I am a little biased but I love both coaching and mentoring. I used to enjoy being the ‘trainer’ which satisfied the performer in me but as I get older there is something that I find deeply satisfying in being a coach or mentor.

More than that, I find it a privilege to work with people.  People that trust you enough to share their greatest challenges, dearest hopes, deepest fears and core beliefs about life. I can think of few professions in business that afford you such intimacy. I feel lucky and grateful each and every session I get to spend with my clients. (more…)

Speaking Truth to Power

For those afraid of speaking …

(But) TED is a tough, pressured, hugely stressful gig, even for experienced public speakers, and I’m not that. Standing in the wings waiting to go on, I told the stage manager that my heart was racing uncontrollably and in an act of great kindness, she grasped both my hands and made me take breath after breath. And what you don’t see in the video – deftly edited out – is the awful, heart-stopping moment when I forgot a line, followed by another act of collective kindness, a spontaneous empathic cheer as I composed myself and found my cue. “That’s when the audience came onside,” an attendee told me. “You were human. That’s when you won them over.”  Guardian April 2019

 

This from Carole Cadwalladr, a journalist at the Guardian who has in this last year investigated the role of tech corporations and their platforms in influencing the workings of our democracy.  What makes her TED talk so compelling is because here she is facing those very same technology giants on their turf.  And speaking truth to power.

(more…)