Industry: Insurance
Challenge:
A global property-casualty insurer has an outstanding reputation for retaining the best talent in the industry; they intend to maintain it. As a result, they have committed to providing ongoing development opportunities to their pipeline of high-potential vice presidents and middle managers. Their objective is to provide “action learning” opportunities that develop leadership and communication skills while focusing on “real issues” the company needs to find answers to. They also want to enhance teaming with colleagues from different branches and different areas of specialization and provide the participants with greater visibility to the firm’s top executives.
Overview:
For over fifteen years, the company has called on The Executive Communicator to help it meet these goals. Our consultants, having coached several Senior Vice President’s and Executives of the firm, are familiar with the company’s culture and leadership style and have a solid grasp of the issues the organization and industry faces. This knowledge of the company combined with our expertise in presenting to executive audiences has lead their learning and development team to continuously engage us to join a prestigious group of thought leaders that they assemble for each “action learning” project. These projects have ranged from a group of VP’s readying their skills to move into Senior VP positions, to female talent they are honing for top positions, to AVP and Underwriters that the firm has identified as high-potentials. Each action-learning event culminates with a presentation the team gives to the firm’s C-suite where they share their findings as a team and propose a solution that they hope will be adopted. This is a very important presentation for the participants; an opportunity to gain visibility and build their credibility within the firm. The Executive Communicator is retained to train, coach and consult with the teams on the content and delivery of these presentations.
Outcome:
The Executive Communicator’s coaching and facilitation consistently receive high ratings and the company reports immediate improvement in content and delivery skills. The executive sponsors referred to The Executive Communicator as “a critical component” to the program’s success. The VP of Talent Strategy wrote: I wanted to thank you for all of your hard work and the time that you spent with the teams. The teams received rave reviews from the executive panel on not only their recommendations but their “polished” presentation style. They loved the humor and the confidence the participants exuded, and the overall skill at presenting difficult content and data. We continue to be amazed at the evolution we see in the participants you work with. Thanks so much.
Focus Areas:
Presentation Training, Team Coaching, Team Facilitation, Influence, Speaking at the Top