Table Of Content

Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers ● 20 activities to create great communicators ● Give your managers the interpersonal skills they need to be successful ● Teach managers how to make the most of verbal and non-verbal communication ● Practical, time-saving resource for the hard-pressed trainer Eddie Davies Acknowledgements We are grateful to the following for their permission to use copyright materials: Kogan Page Limited for the extracts from Transform Yourself? by Ros Taylor on OHTs 8.5 and 12.3; The Random House Group Ltd for the adaptation from Confidence in just seven days by Ros Taylor,published by Vermilion on Handouts 18.9 to 18.12;Oxford University Press for the definition from The Concise Oxford Dictionary 10th (revised) edition,2001 on OHT 15.1;Penguin Books Ltd for the definition from The Penguin Dictionary of Psychology by Arthur S Reber (Penguin Books 1985,3rd edition 2001) on OHT 2.3;Peter Honey Publications Ltd for the adapted material from The Learning Styles Helper’s Manual on OHT 1.2 The author and the publishers have taken all reasonable care to ensure that all material in this pack is original,or is in the Public Domain,or is used with the permission of the original copyright owner.However,a number of ideas and practices have become widely known and used within the training profession and their origin is not always possible to trace.If any person believes that material for which they own the copyright has found its way into this pack without permission,will they please contact the publishers who will act in good faith to investigate and remedy any inadvertent infringement. Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 Published by Fenman Limited Clive House,The Business Park,Ely,Cambridgeshire CB7 4EH Telephone:01353 665533 Fax:01353 663644 E-mail:[email protected] Website:www.fenman.co.uk Commissioning Editor: Angela Wilde Production Manager:Michael Stapleton Copy editor:Barbara Newby Text pages typeset by Norman Brownsword,Upminster Illustrations by Mike Edwards,Ely Text pages printed by Biddles Short Run Books,King’s Lynn Cover layout by Elizabeth Matthews,Royston Ringbinder cover inserts printed by Nightingale Press,Royston Ringbinders manufactured by Tennant PVC Limited,Nottingham British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN 1 903310 25 3 FENMAN ® registered trademark Contents About this resource vii A word about copyright ix How to use this resource x How to use the CD-ROM xii Action planning work sheet xv Making the most of this resource xvi About the author xix Further reading and resources xx 1. Let’s start at the very beginning This opening activity looks at how to establish an effective,safe learning climate within which participants feel confident to experiment with new behaviour. 2. Interpersonal skills audit Participants discover how interpersonal skills are central to achieving success at work.This activity gives them an opportunity to look at the relevance and importance of the interpersonal skills they currently employ and then produce an action plan to develop key skills. 3. So,what is my personality? In this activity,participants consider some of the basic principles of personality theory that underpin interpersonal skills.They explore the ways in which they interact with other people, based on their personality types,and examine methods of flexing their approach to understand and accommodate other people. 4. Ask a silly question The participants have an opportunity in this activity to experience the benefits of two-way over one-way communication.They also consider and practise the techniques required to ask effective questions. iii Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003 5. It’s not what you say,it’s the way that you say it! Participants investigate the role that tone of voice plays in communicating effectively with other people.The activity provides them with an opportunity to develop their own skills and enhance their competence as effective communicators. 6. Ma – he’s making eyes at me! In this activity participants explore the various components of body language and their own skills in being able to recognise and use body language effectively as an aid to improving their interpersonal communication. 7. Listen.Do you want to know a secret? Participants become aware of the traps that unwary communicators can fall into when involved in face-to-face discussion.The activity enables them to identify and develop the skills that will help them to listen actively in any interpersonal communication. 8 Hello.How are you? The participants define and examine the skills and attitudes necessary for building and maintaining effective relationships at work and in a variety of social settings. 9. Take your pick In this activity,participants study a continuum of five influencing strategies and the factors involved in making a choice of style. They then make plans for using influencing strategies at work. 10. Gunfight at the OK Corral? Participants explore different styles of interpersonal behaviour and their underlying psychological conditions in order to identify and practise the skills required to be assertive in interpersonal communication. iv Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003 11. Why did I respond like that? By examining the basic concepts that underpin their communications with other people, participants look at their own current level of knowledge and practise handling awkward encounters for maximum effect. 12. Different strokes for different folks The participants examine the concept of ‘stroking’ during interpersonal communication, consider how the theory applies to themselves,and then review and practise their skills in giving and receiving strokes. 13. Oi! I want a word with you In this activity participants recognise that it is their responsibility to take the initiative when confronting poor or difficult behaviour in the workplace.It introduces participants to the essential elements of giving and receiving constructive criticism and feedback.They plan, prepare and engage in a practice scenario designed to help them expand their current level of skills. 14. Never mind the quality,feel the width Participants study the various sources and styles of influencing and exercising power over other people.The activity introduces them to assertive persuasion and provides them with the opportunity to practise and plan how to develop the necessary skills. 15. You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours Participants investigate the techniques required to negotiate successfully,review and extend their own skills in this area,and plan how they can use these skills on their return to work. v Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003 16. Let’s solve that problem together now In this activity,participants consider the joint problem-solving approach to interpersonal communication.They look at the skills needed to use this approach when resolving work- based problems. 17. Please,please help me! The participants define counselling and distinguish it from other helpful activities. They examine the difficulties they may face when counselling in a workplace setting and practise using their counselling skills. 18. I think I’m going out of my mind over you In this activity,participants consider the links between stress and personal perceptions and become aware of the debilitating effect of too much stress.They look at strategies for thinking positively and techniques that challenge cloudy thinking in order to adopt a constructive approach to problem solving. 19. Many hands make light work Participants look into the key interpersonal skills needed to help teams function effectively. They review their current level of these skills and construct an action plan for improving them in their work setting. 20. Let’s put it all together In this activity the participants examine how to manage their own difficult interpersonal encounters.They produce action plans that are based on a realistic assessment of their current knowledge and situation,what they are aiming for and a considered analysis of how they will get there. vi Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003 About this resource This Trainer’s Activity Pack brings together the key interpersonal skills into one easy-to-use resource.It aims to introduce users to the key concepts of interpersonal skills in clear,jargon-free terms. The activities focus on the power of interpersonal skills to achieve high performance and business success.Whatever their level of technical competence and expertise,managers need to be able to choose and use interpersonal skills effectively in order to achieve their business objectives. Each activity,even when used in isolation,is designed to help participants improve their self-confidence,productivity,motivation and self-esteem.The activities are constructed as self-contained modules that provide an introduction to each topic area.When combined,they provide a compelling experience that will enable participants and their teams to achieve organisational goals. Although the activities are numbered,they are not intended to be used in any particular sequence. The activities can be used for group training with managers and teams or as material for one-to-one coaching and development. Each activity concludes with a learning review session,during which participants write an action plan to secure the transfer of learning back to the workplace,thus ensuring full value for money and a return on investment in training and development. This Trainer’s Activity Pack will give trainers and developers tools to help them influence their organisation’s culture through the creation of energetic and transforming training events.The 20 activities have been tried and tested on a wide variety of training programmes. They are equally applicable if you are facilitating an in-company or open training event, whether you work for a large or small organisation,in the public or private sector,in customer services or production,in head office or on the ‘front line’ of the organisation. I strongly believe that people are the key resource in any organisation. Everyone in every organisation has to achieve results with and through the efforts of other people.My main premise when writing these activities is that,in order to use the interpersonal skills that enable you to work effectively with others,you need to develop insight into how other people feel,think and act.By exploring the behaviours that underpin most interpersonal skills,you will be able to understand how to motivate individuals and teams to maximise their performance. Armed with this fresh perspective,you can then manage your interaction with others so vii Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003 that they work with a sense of commitment rather than merely complying with the minimum needed to get by and not attract adverse attention. The activities are designed to be led by someone in the central role of ‘trainer’.My approach does not require a great deal of expert input;it is based more on acting as a facilitator,establishing a learning climate and encouraging self-awareness among the participants. As such,someone whose more usual role is that of a manager,coach,colleague or consultant can readily facilitate the activities. When used effectively,this pack should help you to: ● Assist learning by generating a safe and supportive environment. ● Encourage self-learning and self-development in your participants (and yourself). ● Develop greater empathy,rapport,listening and communication skills that your participants can use to motivate themselves and their teams. ● Foster a creative and energetic environment in your training events. ● Improve individual effectiveness by developing skills for handling people and problems in more productive ways. ● Help participants find sources of inspiration in themselves,their colleagues and their teams. ● Help participants promote a creative and energetic environment in their workplace. Each activity can be used to: ● Save time in researching and developing material by providing a variety of ideas and options. ● Fit into current training events on a wide number of topics (career and personal development,leadership,time management) at a variety of points (establishing core knowledge,developing skills,identifying actions). ● Combine with other resources currently in use (such as practice scenarios,objection handling,team building,and interviewing skills). ● Save on resources when carried out in the workplace,not just the training room,as most activities use a minimum of resources which are easily obtainable in any working environment. My aim is to give you exactly what you need to suit different situations and participants. viii Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003 A word about copyright 1 Reservation of rights This Trainer’s Activity Pack and its accompanying CD-ROM are copyright © Fenman Limited 2003. All rights reserved.No part of this Trainer’s Activity Pack or its CD-ROM may be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including,but not limited to,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recording or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of Fenman Limited except strictly as permitted under paragraph 2 below. 2 Limited licence to copy 2.1 THE LICENCE IN PARAGRAPH 2.2 BELOW: (a) ONLY APPLIES TO CUSTOMERS WHO HAVE PURCHASED THIS TRAINER’S ACTIVITY PACK AND THE ACCOMPANYING CD-ROM FROM FENMAN LIMITED (OR ITS DULY AUTHORISED AGENT OR RESELLER) and does not apply to anyone else.If you have purchased or otherwise obtained this Trainer’s Activity Pack and/or its CD-ROM from the original purchaser,you do not have any licence to copy any or all of this Trainer’s Activity Pack or its CD-ROM (even if you are a company in the same group as the original purchaser or otherwise closely related to the original purchaser) and must apply to Fenman Limited if you require one. (b) DOES NOT APPLY if this Trainer’s Activity Pack and accompanying CD-ROM have been made available to you on hire or for the purpose of preview. (c) IS CONDITIONAL UPON and only applies with effect from payment in full of the purchase price and all other sums due under the contract for supply of this Trainer’s Activity Pack and its CD-ROM. (d) APPLIES ONLY TO PAGES OF THIS TRAINER’S ACTIVITY PACK AND CD-ROM MARKED WITH AN O K ICON. You TOCOPY may not copy any other pages. 2.2 Subject to paragraph 2.1 above,you may make copies,both in electronic and hard copy,of pages of this Trainer’s Activity Pack and of its CD-ROM which are marked with an O K icon and distribute TOCOPY them: (a) to employees of yours who are attending any course that is being run using this Trainer’s Activity Pack,but not to anyone else;or (b) if you are an independent training consultant (but not otherwise) to employees of your client who are attending any course that is being run using this Trainer’s Activity Pack,but not to anyone else. ix Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003 How to use this resource This information gives you an overview of the resource and guidance on how to prepare for and use it. Activity notes,background information and Trainer’s Tips (based on my own experience of using the activities) are provided where necessary to ensure that you are fully supported and can use each resource with confidence. For each activity there is a section describing: ● the aims and purpose of the activity ● an overview of the activity ● the approximate time for each activity (including essential review time) ● the materials and resources required ● a list of OHT masters you will need to prepare ● what essential preparation to make before running the activity ● what to do – how to run the activity from start to finish ● Trainer’s Tips – additional ideas based on experience of running these activities with over 200 organisations. Each activity follows the established learning cycle,although not always in a strict sequence.You encourage the participants to have an experience,then help them review what happened.During this review,they interpret the experience and relate what happened to their previous experience (and/or the established theories of people management).Finally,you assist the participants to integrate what they have learned from this new experience with their own behaviour in subsequent activities and with their real teams back at work. Each activity concludes with an action plan in which the individual participant identifies how they can use their new skills,knowledge or insight back at their workplace. Always make available enough time to enable the participants to review each activity,and record not only what they have learned,but also what use they intend making of it. Activity 20 deals with action planning in more detail.If you just want to use a quick (but effective) method,there is attached a pro-forma action plan you can use at the end of any of the individual activities (see page xv). All the activities involve the participants in high-energy exercises.The emphasis is on fun and enjoyment as well as learning and development. x Essential Interpersonal Skills for Outstanding Managers © Fenman Limited 2003