Creating Smarter People for Smarter Businesses

Current Projects: Trans-National European Project with the GMB


Improving Communication & Partnership Working, 2008-10

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 fourth 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. During 2009/10 this was 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.  See the outputs and report at the right of this page.

The project covered:

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

Employee Appraisals & Performance, 2011

Across 2011 our partnership concentrated on examining best practice across Europe in setting up and running Employee Appraisals - especially with front-line staff.  15 private sector companies took part and openly shared their own appraisal and discussed the impact of this process on their staff and performance.