Rebuilding collaboration & respect in the management team

The Covid-19 period has put the management team of Jean-Pierre Lepage, President of the Almaco Group Service Division, under a lot of stress and pressure.

“All of our projects vanished, and people went on furlough and some of the colleagues were laid off.”

Because of these unprecedented times, the relations between the members of the management team had deteriorated. Jean-Pierre realized that him and his team were not working together as a team anymore, and they had to rebuild consideration and trust for each other.

“We decided to participate in the BoMentis management training to rebuild a working together-mindset, improve our communication, respect and enhance our team spirit.”

From armor to understanding

Expectations Jean-Pierre had for the management team training included getting to know each other better on a more personal level and understanding each other’s behavioral styles and differences.

“During the BoMentis management team training held by Executive Coach Peter Peitsalo we had to open ourselves to our team members. This doesn’t usually happen since at work we all wear an armor.

In the training, I learned more about myself and my management style. It was insightful to gain a deeper understanding also on how my team members saw me as a manager.”

Utilizing the DiSC Workplace Profile

The Coach Peter led the management team to have open and honest discussions on each other’s behavioral styles. The team utilized the DiSC Workplace Profile -tool as a backdrop for the team discussion.

“From the open discussion, I got to know my team differently. We talked openly up about priorities, problems, and fears. Now I also have a better understanding of what are my team members expectations from me.”

Jean-Pierre’s take-aways from the training included a heightened sense of confidence as a team manager. Further, understanding the diversity among the team members allowed him to gain beneficial insights on how to vary his management approach with different people – based on their DiSC Workplace Profile’s.

Concrete steps towards rebuilding confidence

When asked about the benefits of the training to the management team, Jean-Pierre brought up the challenging situation with two of his managers. Previously, they had not seen eye to eye, and focused a lot of energy into competing. After the management team training, it was energizing to see how they were able to put aside their differences. Since then, they have started to work together rather than competing against each other.

“We got a better understanding of each other, and as a team we started to rebuild confidence. We still have a long road ahead of us, but this was a great start.”

Taking time to listen to team members

After the management team training Jean-Pierre has applied the learnings in his daily life by taking more time to listen to people and by adjusting his communication according to the different behavioral styles. Now he visits the other managers more often to chat with them. Another simple but major difference is that the management team now keeps their cameras on during their team meetings.

”I have already discussed with HR and other managers about this positive training experience! I highly recommend a BoMentis training!”