Team, I was reflecting on Brooking’s comment on the fact that companies seldom train their employees in having difficult conversations, and remembered that I actually attended a Monitor Training two years ago on “productive interactions.” I included two marked-up handouts (above). The first presents a framework for thinking about the interaction (framing–>acting–>results) and differentiate between “unilateral” and “mutual learning” approach… The second highlights the importance between advocacy and inquiry in the conversation. I’ve heard lots of my colleagues reference this training during the merger as a powerful tool that helped them get through painful phone conversations… Anyways, hope it’s helpful!
I really enjoyed our time together today, Jess
Eugene Eric Kim is discussing.
Eugene Eric Kim 9:09 pm on October 30, 2013 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I don’t remember @brooking say that. I remember her commenting on the fact that we were doing these sorts of workouts in a place like Monitor, but I don’t think she was implying that companies seldom train employees in this stuff. In fact, I thought it was you who made the point that people are rarely given the opportunity to practice this stuff!
All that said, I very much appreciate you sharing this, Jess. I would go further and say that you are more likely to get training like this at a large company than at a small one.
And, this helps highlight why I think things like bootcamp are necessary. Frameworks are great, but they need to be reinforced by constant practice. The paradigm for this type of training is the one-off, where the focus is on teaching a framework, not reinforcing a culture of practice. People are left to their own devices to get the practice afterward. Whether or not a bootcamp is the right model to support ongoing practice, my hope is that all of you (and beyond) are inspired to make practice a more integral part of your… well, practice!