Our Mission
To be a worldwide influence in establishing teamwork, trust and honest communication as the basis for interaction. We embody and teach respect, courage and closure as the means to enhance peace and productivity within people and organizations. |
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The following
success stories represent Learning Center contributions to it's 3 major
customer niches.
Interop: Success through alignment in a start up.
Interop was a 25 person organization
when LC began work in 1991. Founded by high-tech visionary Dan Lynch with the
goal of creating an organization that would rival industry leader Comdex, Lynch
had two major challenges. First, how to get his talented executive team to
collaborate, second, what strategy to follow to build the company. Through a
combination of foundation executive team programs and course of action
intensives for his key vp's, Lynch achieved a tight and highly functional
executive team. By using Learning Center's Stages of Team Growth material,
Interop arrived at a focused (vs opportunistic) growth strategy that resulted
in Interop building to the point where it genuinely does rival Comdex in the
Industry. Lynch became a multimillionaire when he sold Interop to
Ziff-Davis.
This is what Lynch said
about the Learning Center:
"For the past 15 years, your
organization has helped me in many different ways. It's hard to describe what
you guys really do because of the breadth of your capabilities.
In the past few years I have
found myself creating a new organization that has very little apparent
bureaucracy, but is comprised of strong-willed individuals. Somehow I knew the
Learning Center could help me, but not in the usual public seminar way. Your
organizational development sessions and private advise were key in helping us
focus on focusing instead of trying to grow in every opportunistic
direction.
Today
we are a very successful business, growing carefully, often remembering the
cycle of natural development that you taught us. As we grow, I look forward to
working again with you in ways I cannot yet imagine."
Envirotest Systems Corporation:
Leveraging Performance In a Turnaround Situation in a mid-sized growth
company.
Envirotest was a
$100 million company running turnkey womb to tomb smog control programs to
assist states to meet Clean Air Act standards. Learning Center conducted custom
programs for both a key state (Washington) program and for the corporate
executive team. The state programs were challenged to do more with less by
achieving increased performance under tight budget constraints. Achievement of
financial targets was paramount to the Corporate goal of increasing the stock
market value of the company as part of a strategy of positioning the company
for sale. Learning Center's work with the Executive Team focused on 7 key
initiatives crucial to the business valuation and getting the company ready for
sale process. Execution was paramount.
This is what Perry Ludy,
VP of Operations, said about Learning Center's contribution:
"Please use this letter as
documentation of my opinion of the two training programs conducted by the
Learning Center for Envirotest Systems Corp during 1997 and 1998. Both training
programs were performed extremely well and the results have been much higher
than expected in both scenarios (e.g., our WA program continues to perform
above expectations and the performance of our company is indicative by our
successful turnaround, as documented by our performance in the stock market
(increase from 2.5 to 15 during this period). We remain appreciative of the
results and would recommend Learning Center to other peers and
associates."
Note:
In September, 1998 a successful sale was concluded to Environmental Services
Products in Connecticut.
IBM: Renewing Leadership and a Core Value within an Industry
Leader.
In the early
90's, IBM was reeling from changes in the computer industry. Long held
advantages were disappearing and with them, long held cherished beliefs were
being tested as never before. IBM was a classic prisoner of it's past success.
As it hit the wall, programs put forward to help the company survive were
viewed as takeaways by a workforce that had incrementally become "entitled".
Leaders were unable to obtain buy-in to crucial change initiatives vital to
overall success. The result was unhappy leaders and workforce, both trapped in
a paradigm that no longer worked, but which neither knew how to overcome. One
visible result of this dilemma was a precipitous decline on IBM climate surveys
on one of it's core and most closely held values: respect for the
individual.
In
consultation with IBM's northwest division management development, Learning
Center created a half-day module on change and renewal: Ball and Change, which
it subsequently facilitated for over 750 IBM managers. It was the first time
IBM had ever let an outside firm work on an IBM core value. The program won a
coveted company-wide award on innovation in training.
Here is what the leader
of that team, Chuck Blodgett, said about the program:
"You helped us fulfill our desire to
develop and deliver a module entailing IBM's Basic Belief of Respect for the
Individual. You assisted us in development of a novel approach with your "Ball
and Change" idea. This module was facilitated with over 750 managers from the
nine Northwestern states with year with measurable success. . . Your module
offered an innovative approach to renewing an IBM core value. Thank you for
your contribution to a very successful year."
IBM Worldwide. Later, but still early in
IBM's turnaround, Learning Center designed a two day course called
ChoicePoints, How To Optimize Risk. Completely customized, this course
effectively taught managers how to eliminate undue risk-aversion in a culture
then needing to respond to a competitive market place in a new way. Learning
Center provided all training materials and collateral, then successfully
trained IBM's Master Trainers worldwide to deliver the course.
Mergers. UC Medical
Center.
After UC Medical
Center acquired Mount Zion Hospital, both organizations faced classic merger
issues of combining different cultures, systems, and management.
The cultures could not have been
more divergent. UC was research-oriented and prided itself on "state of the
art" process and technology; Mount Zion was the prototypical client-centered,
heartfelt hospital. In addition to this challenge, leadership quickly
determined that costs would have to be cut by $30 million by combining services
in the new organization. Director William Kerr wanted his new leaders to make
these difficult calls and contracted with Learning Center to provide a
customized Task Force Team Leadership program to achieve three imperatives. 1)
help pull the new team from "them and us" to one team, 2) successfully effect
the organizational restructuring, and 3) significantly cut operating expenses
without compromising quality.
This is what Kerr said
about the Learning Center intervention:
"I am happy to provide you with this
feedback on the program you presented for us. The program was attended by over
100 UCSF Medical Center management and staff who were members of Task Forces
created to implement the first phase of a Financial Improvement Process
intended to reduce expenses by $30 million within a two year period. The Task
Forces were charged with developing plans during a 10 week period for meeting
assigned expense reduction targets. Each Task Force was comprised of members
from different departments which would be affected by any
changes.
The
Effective Meetings training program was structured as the kick off meeting for
each of the Task Forces. We received excellent feedback on both the content and
format of the Program and feel it contributed to the accomplishments of the
Task Forces, which identified $20 million of expense reductions. We
particularly appreciated the efforts you and your staff made to understand the
Medical Center organization and objectives to allow you to tailor the Program
to us."
Dr. Arky
Ciancutti now conducts some leadership workshops at his
award-winning
lodge in Mendocino, California. Contact Learning
Center for details.
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