Academia
Corporate
Financial and Insurance
City Government
District, State, and Federal Government
Healthcare
Non-profit

Academia

California State University:
System-wide Change and Customer Service Initiative

Situation: Coordination and communication problems between the Chancellor's office and the 22 campuses on major projects. Campuses (the customers) criticized processes and quality of service.

Process: Dr. Manning designed and administered a survey to all 22 campuses. She facilitated team processes, meetings, and conferences regularly for the system as well as for the individual campuses. She set up formal communication lines between the campuses and the chancellor's office, worked with union-management disputes to prevent litigation, coached and trained leadership teams in communications, customer service, and management practices.

Results: Improved communication lines, re-engineered procedures which saved money and time, increased joint planning, and minimized duplication of efforts.

University of California, Riverside:
Strategic Planning and Change Management

Situation: Administration needed the foundation and implementation of a strategic plan. Customers (students and faculty) asked for improved services.

Process: Dr. Manning helped design and implement continuous change and strategic planning process. She designed, facilitated, coached administrators and managers, and supervised large group processes. She also provided training and facilitation for specific teams in meeting management, presentation skills, teamwork, and group dynamics.

Results: Strategic-planning process was accelerated, an overall sense of team developed, and decisions were more service-driven.

University of Chicago Graduate School of Business:
Project Team Building and Conflict Resolution

Situation: Hiring firms gave feedback that MBA students needed more training in managing projects, group dynamics, team building, and conflict resolution.

Process: Dr. Manning, a regular visiting instructor, helped improve group dynamics, team development, and meeting management skills. She worked as a project management coach throughout the project teaching style assessment, diversity, and conflict management skills.

Results: Students developed process skills and a higher level of confidence. "Customer" service ratings improved.

Corporate

General Electric:
Work-Out Reengineering Initiative

Situation: GE was losing its market share with some of its businesses. CEO Jack Welch wanted to minimize the bureaucratic structure by increasing staff empowerment.

Process: Dr. Manning worked for two years on the GE Work-Out Team. This internationally recognized program was a company-wide change initiative that repositioned the company for greater profitability by focusing on customer service and eliminating nonessential work.

Results: All employees implemented essential tools for achieving sustained productivity through speed, simplicity, and employee self-confidence. It trained employees and management to utilize group problem-solving techniques, improved decision making capability, and rewarded creativity.

Cirrus Logic:
Company-Wide Goal Alignment Process

Situation: Company lacked overall clear, consistent direction. High level of internal competitiveness due to various divisions thinking as "silos" verses one company-wide strategy.

Process: Dr. Manning coached executives in communication and meeting skills. She assessed, designed, and delivered a change and goal alignment process to top level executives, which cascaded down throughout the company. She also wrote a facilitator's guide, and trained the internal trainers.

Results: The company realized increased profits. The executives gained skills in communication, presenting, and planning.

Symantec:
Customer-Centered Initiative

Situation: Company was rapidly acquiring many other companies and needed to integrate acquisitions into an overall cost and customer-centered focus.

Process: Dr. Manning helped design and implement an organization-wide change and strategic planning process with three initiatives. She designed, facilitated, and supervised the large group processes in California, Oregon, Toronto, and Europe. She provided executive coaching and training in dynamic presentations, meeting management, and team dynamics. The executive team enhanced their motivating and presentation skills.

Results: The change initiatives were fully integrated into the culture. The company strengthened its competitive edge.

Financial and Insurance

Information coming soon

City Government

City of Mountain View

Situation: Various departments and the City Council were experiencing internal conflicts and lack of teamwork.

Process: The Consulting Team worked in most departments, with City Council and various commissions. We provided assessment, ongoing communication groups, mediation, leadership coaching, problem-solving forums, and monitoring.

Results: Stability in departments and divisions, leadership enhancement, open lines of communication, and ongoing resolution of issues.

City of Tracy

Situation: Various departments had conflicts that adversely affected productivity.

Process: The Consulting Team conducted department assessments of morale, stress levels, and productivity due to litigation. We designed and delivered appropriate training to address issues and conducted follow-up assessment. Services included assessment, training design, training delivery, and a report. Personnel received training in stress and change management, which included communications, diversity, and team building.

Results: Open forums were created for discussion of sensitive issues. Personnel felt listened and responded to. The departments stabilized and are working well as teams.

City of San Jose

Situation: The Mayor's office, Happy Hollow and Zoo, Human Rights Commission, Public Works, Finance, Building, City Clerk, Water Treatment, and HR needed help with organizational development and assessment, team building, strategic planning, conflict mediation, and stress and change management. The city also had complaints about customer service, diversity, and communication.

Process: We assessed customer service training needs, considering City values and priorities, designed customer service training for frontline personnel and managers, delivered training to pilot groups, implemented train-the-trainer sessions, with designed guidebooks and visual aides.

Results: Various departments stabilized and began working as a team, interpersonal conflicts got resolved, staff integrated communication skills through training, and overall human relations improved. Open forums developed for discussion of sensitive issues. Personnel felt listened and responded to.

District, State, and Federal Government

Monterey County Sheriff's Department and IS Departments

Situation: Both departments lacked sound planning processes and several teams were in conflict. Grievances existed between union members and management.

Process: The Consulting Team provided customer service, communications training, team building, strategic planning, conflict mediation, problem solving, and annual POST trainings.

Results: Stabilized teams and strategic plans implemented.

Santa Clara Valley Water District Engineering Projects

Situation: Various engineering projects and teams had complaints about weak teamwork, unclear direction, and low morale.

Process: The Consulting Team led several organization-wide projects addressing diversity, race, gender, team dynamics, conflict resolution, strategic planning, communication and human relations training, management-employee relations, performance management, and organizational assessment and development.

Results: Major value has been added in team strategic plans, resolution of conflicts, increased team performance, and enhanced morale.

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

Situation: The Agency was threatened with elimination. They needed to write a strategic plan and build a case for future funding.

Process: The Consulting Team facilitated strategic planning to reposition the Survey to be customer-centered. We assessed, designed, and facilitated intact and cross-functional team-building projects throughout the organization in California, Alaska, and Colorado. Participants took the Personal Profile, a communication style assessment, participated in a series of team building exercises, and strategic planning. We provided conflict mediation and leadership coaching.

Results: Teams developed vision, mission, priorities, objectives, and implementation plans. USGS survived and is thriving.

Healthcare

Watsonville Community Hospital

Situation: A national healthcare provider purchased this local hospital and hired out-of-state administrators to lead the hospital. The Consulting Team was hired to facilitate a smooth transition, strategic planning, and a leadership change initiative.

Process: We designed and facilitated off-site meetings with the executive and management teams, coached the managers to cascade the changes throughout the organization, and guided them in strategy, goal setting, and goal alignment.

Results: The new leadership team successfully integrated into the local environment. Trust, morale, and productivity improved.

Non-profit

Cupertino Educational Endowment Foundation

Situation: The foundation needed a strategic plan and process to guide them as the school district needs changed and evolved.

Process: The Consulting Team was hired to facilitate an internal and external environmental scan, create a mission and vision statement, define core values, identify strategic initiatives, and guide the writing of outcome-based objectives with timelines for the strategic plan. We worked with the CEO and Board of Directors.

Results: The Educational Endowment Fund completed a practical and useful strategic plan, which we help them update annually at their retreat.

Alumnae Resources

Situation: This organization was experiencing very rapid growth. They wanted to narrow their focus and adjust their resources and programs to accomplish their newly defined mission. They hired The Consulting Team to design and facilitate a complete strategic planning process.

Process: We worked with all stakeholders — Board, staff, teachers, clients, community, and donors — and facilitated the assessments, focus groups, Board, and committee meetings. We also helped them write a detailed strategic plan with specific timelines.

Results: The organization continued positive growth and was better able to serve their clients with their new focused mission and improved use of resources.

Contact us now:
info@theconsultingteam.com
650.965.3663