WBS & Partners - developing organisations and the people in them
Current Projects: Trans-National European Project with GMB
(2008-2011)
WBS is commissioned by the GMB trade union to deliver a European trans-national project in Scotland, Hungary and Poland. The project aims to develop key individuals within private sector firms across Europe to support the improvement in partnership working, communication, team management and performance development.
The contract involves co-ordinating the work across the three countries, facilitating the shared learning and demonstrating change and impact in the companies of the delegates.
Each year the contract needs to be renewed with the European Commission of Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunity, the main criteria being the quality and impact of the work.
Now into its third year of development, this project has an in-depth piece of research which takes place at the start and informs the detail of the work for the following 12 months. This research is designed and conducted by WBS with the co-operation of the Polish and Hungarian partners and the 30+ private sector organisations within the project scope.
Trans-national partnership meetings take place across Europe to agree the process, content and material of the workshops. Each sovereign partner recruit delegates from the management and the trade union ranks of the companies and asks them to attend as ‘buddy groups’ to cement partnerships and to ensure the responsibility for implementing the action plans is embedded across the organisation. This has been one of the most effective parts of the project.
The programme of development workshops are delivered in all three countries and culminate in a large learning seminar where delegate representatives share their learning and action plans. The workshops content has involved:
• Managing Teams and Building Performance
• Negotiating Business Goals and Planning for Success
• Managing own and others daily performance
• Coaching within a Team
• Dealing positively with Conflict
• Effective Communication
• Negotiation and Influencing Skills
