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Our team working in New York
Training
Team development using a set in a film studio
Our purpose
Our purpose is to share knowledge about advances in leadership and team psychology in order to help teams and their leaders fulfil their potential.
Our approach
At the Centre for Team Excellence we have developed a methodology for improving team performance called Teamship. The approach has been successfully used by more than 40 organisations in more than 25 countries.
It has its origins in Social Identity Theory which explains why people behave differently when in a group situation than they do one-to-one. Since the first research was published in 1978 Social Identity Theory has been the pre-eminent cognitive explanation of group processes and the most researched internationally. It underpins our approach to developing motivation in teams and informs our understanding of the powerful team dynamics created by issues to do with inclusion, control and affiliation. Applying this theory enables us to help teams lay the foundations for high performance.
Our Teamship model also helps us understand the “dark side” of teams; these are the habitual patterns of behaviour that make a team stuck, unable to adapt or learn as the environment changes. Teamship helps a team to understand how common anxieties and fears can trap it in dysfunctional behaviour that derails it . Armed with this knowledge a team can unstick itself and becoming more flexible and better able to perform effectively.
Our history
The Centre for Team Excellence was founded in 1999, trading until 2005 as Paradigm Psychology Ltd. We changed our name to better reflect the kind of work that we were doing for clients and our growing awareness that poor team dynamics were responsible for many problems in organisations. To help our clients address these challenges we have relentlessly developed our expertise in two areas.
Firstly, we are experts in group processes, team dynamics and team psychology. You will know from your own experience that your behaviour changes depending on the company you are in and that being part of a team can bring out unexpected behaviours in people. In spite of this, almost all team development has been focused on individuals (e.g. personal Team Types / Roles) and driven by individual psychology (e.g. emotional intelligence). We know that belonging to a team actually changes the way you think and feel – it even changes who you think you are, your sense of identity. Therefore, attempts to create a winning team that is informed by individual psychology alone are unlikely to succeed. An understanding of team psychology will help you to predict and influence the actions of people in your team.
Secondly, we are experts in how people learn. Clients tell us that much development they have experienced fails to deliver the change that is promised because although it is theoretical, researched and rational, it does not challenge participants to experiment, or engage them emotionally. Participants may leave wiser, but lacking the confidence and motivation to put what they have learnt into practice. We use accelerated learning techniques to create a structured learning experience that works for everybody. At its heart is learning through discussion, doing and experimentation.
We are proud to work with some of the world’s largest and most successful organisations, many of whom are acknowledged as the best in their field.
Our values
We work by the following values, which guide our behaviours to each other, our clients and our delegates. As with all organisational values that mean something and really guide behaviour, this list was not generated by a marketing department, but by lengthy discussion process amongst all members of our team. As a result we are proud to live by them.
Respectful
We treat each other, our clients and all individuals with respect and show due regard for their feelings. Equally, we work to earn the respect of others, and build our own self-respect. We endeavour to be good colleagues.
Open
We will be frank and communicative with each other and receptive to new ideas, feedback and opinion. We will not conceal issues, or respond to issues without including those involved.
Enjoyable
We seek to enjoy our work in the belief that this is a worthy goal and that our well-being positively impacts others. We try to balance the important areas of our lives and encourage fun and humour at work and not to take ourselves too seriously.
Authentic
We are true to ourselves and who we are. Each of us will be respected, and respect others, for our need to be independent-minded, individual, unorthodox or to show idiosyncrasies.
Pioneering
We continually aspire to innovate, to be ahead of the game, to be brave and to move forward. We challenge ourselves to do better, to improve and to not be complacent. We know innovation carries risk but think it is better to try and fail than not to try at all.
Professional
We wish to be known and admired for our expertise, service and high standards and to build a reputation for our work ethic and integrity. We strive to maintain and update our skills and expertise and to apply these with professionalism.
Karim Benammar Ph.D.
Karim Benammar is an experienced consultant and trainer specialising in creativity and collaborative thinking techniques, team development training and assessment. He speaks six languages and has worked for a wide range of global organisations across the globe.
Of mixed Dutch-Algerian ancestry, Karim grew up in Holland before studying philosophy in England (BA, Sussex University) and the United States (Ph.D. Pennsylvania State University). He continued his studies at the University of Kyoto and became Associate Professor of Philosophy at Kobe University, where he taught in Japanese. He returned to Holland in 2002, and was Director of Research for “Reflection on Action” at Amsterdam Polytechnic, where he developed thinking techniques for use in education, training, and curriculum development. He has been an associate at CFTE since 2006.
Karim is the author of Abundance (2005) and co-author of Reflection Tools (2006). His new book Reframing – the art of thinking differently will appear in 2012.
Favourite project
“My favourite project with CFTE was with the Royal Air Force. We worked on team awareness and collaboration with a group of base commanders under the leadership of the Air Vice-Marshall. The setting at an air base, the concentration and dedication of the participants and the insights we all gained turned this into an unforgettable experience”.
Personal accomplishment of which you are most proud
“Although most of my time is spent training and facilitating, the accomplishment I am most proud of is the feedback I gave during Development Centres CFTE ran in 2010 and 2011. The candidates achieved real breakthroughs in their understanding of their competencies and patterns during these coaching sessions. This gave them an opportunity for dramatic changes in the way they approach their leadership”.
Trisha Cochrane BSc MSc
I am a Business Psychologist who has been helping organisations to select the right people for the job, and helping those people develop their skills once in their jobs, for nearly 20 years. Core to these two strands is the ability to observe and assess people’s behaviour and to draw sound and objective conclusions. A robust assessment method is essential to this process and I have a masters degree in Occupational Psychology, and am qualified to use a wide range of psychometric tests and questionnaires. Another essential element of success here is my ability to listen and to provide sensitive feedback, recognising the impact of the message on an individual’s state of well-being. I have worked with people in many different roles, and in a wide variety of industries in different countries, including pharmaceutical, banking and manufacturing, as well as in the public sector.
Favourite project
One of my favourite projects has been working with procurement professionals in a global corporate organisation. I enjoyed working with people at an individual level, giving them development feedback to enable them to be even more successful in their roles. I also particularly enjoyed the fact that they represented such a variety of different nationalities and was fascinated to see how a large organisation pulls together their different skillsets and cultures.
Personal accomplishment of which you are most proud
Above all, I love working with people, and have gained huge personal satisfaction when they have given me positive feedback about my work with them. Using my knowledge and experience, combined with my ability to build rapport whilst asking challenging questions, I help people to arrive at new insights into their behaviour or thinking patterns. Such ‘light bulb’ moments have facilitated personal change, which ultimately allows people to overcome barriers and to add value both for themselves and for the organisation.
Henning Zorn
As international management and communication consultant I am committed to deliver personalised training and coaching solutions. The past 25+ years of my professional life I have supported the development of people and organizations working in an international environment.
My working areas include leadership and (project) management, cross-cutting communication, cooperation & negotiation, teamwork & remote teamwork, diversity & inclusion, global alignment, personal growth & (organisational) integrity. Depending on the situation, I take the role of actor, assessor, coach, consultant, facilitator or trainer.
I hold a master’s degree in corporate anthropology from the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, a drama teacher’s diploma from the Hogeschool Leeuwarden and a bachelor’s degree in psychology and education from the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen. Also, I took professional acting classes for 5 years.
Born and raised in Germany, I moved to The Netherlands in 1976 and with my family, I currently divide my time between Amsterdam, The Netherlands and Oaxaca, Mexico. I’m fluent in English, Dutch, German and fair in Spanish.
Favourite project
What I like about my work is meeting and connecting with people from quite different backgrounds. My intention and my strengths lie in co-creating opportunities and solutions that build on a sound understanding of participants’ ideas and challenges and the new perspectives I can add – in fact all my projects are about that.
Personal accomplishment of which you are most proud
To combine behavioural learning with deeper learning.
Generally speaking, most development efforts in business are designed to alter behaviour from the current style to a more effective one. However, to make learning stick we need to go beyond ‘how’s’ and (short term) ‘why’s’ by relating the persons values and ambitions to his organisation’s vision and strategy.
In such a way, we can combine personal and professional development, explore learners’ strengths and stretch them in line with future requirements. Participants tell me that they take away personal growth and hands-on tools from my interventions.
Julia Knight BSc MSc C. Psychol.
Julia is a Chartered Psychologist who has over 15 years experience working extensively with organisations in the public, private & third sectors. Julia has a wide range of consultancy experience, focused primarily in the areas of selection & assessment, management development and training. Recent projects include coaching senior managers in the NHS, designing tailored selection exercises for Director level roles in a large outsourced service company, and facilitating development centres for a Logistics organisation. Earlier in her career Julia spent 3 years at the Post Office where she worked in a multi-disciplinary internal consultancy. She has also lectured in Occupational and Organisational Psychology at the University of Northumbria, Sheffield University and Aston Business School.
Favourite project
My favourite recent project was to design and facilitate a professional development workshop on the use of improvisation in organisations for other psychologists. The reason I enjoyed this was because it offered the opportunity to combine my professional skills and experience as a comedy improviser.
Personal accomplishment of which you are most proud
The personal accomplishment of which I am most proud is passing my Grade 8 singing exam in 2006, after only taking up classical singing 6 years previously.
Kevin Nind BSc. MSc. C.Psychol
I am an Occupational Psychologist, who has served with several consultancies and test publishers. One of my main specialisms is employee assessment; and I consider myself an expert assessor for many and varied roles at different organisational levels, including 9 seasons with the Civil Service Faststream. I enable organisations to make more effective selection and recruitment decisions based on evidence-based evaluations and then give constructive feedback to participants. I have delivered full assessment centre projects for many clients, including initial research and exercise design.
Favourite project
I greatly enjoy my work as facilitator and coach; developing managers’ leadership skills through experiential workshops. Over the last year, I supported Parker, a global engineering company, with the delivery of part of their European leadership curriculum and am proud of my role with enabling nearly 50 professionals to graduate through their foundation leadership programme.
Personal accomplishment of which you are most proud
Another important strand of my work is training HR professionals and line managers to become competent assessors and accredited test users. Over the past 25 years, I am proud to have trained over 1200 people to use simulation exercises, personality questionnaires, structured interviews, ability and situational judgement tests.
Diane Aitchison BA MSc, CPsychol
I am a Chartered Psychologist with 17 years’ experience working with public and private sector clients. Over that time I have gained a great deal of experience in assessing the skills, capabilities and motivation of employees at all levels. I design and use a wide range of assessment tools and instruments and train managers to use psychometric tests and other tools to objectively assess their staff. I work with a number of organisations to develop the leadership skills of their managers. I design and deliver engaging and thought-provoking experiential workshops and support participants’ on-going development with coaching. I work with teams to clarify their vision, explore their effectiveness and improve their performance.
Favourite project
My most rewarding work has been helping managers to understand their impact on the people they manage. For a public sector organisation I helped managers to develop the skills, confidence and courage to challenge poor performance and to encourage and nurture good performance in their teams; enabling them to evaluate situations and choose how to respond effectively, rather than simply reacting. Using actors, participants re-created their own challenging leadership scenarios and practiced a range of skills to deliver more effective outcomes. Helping participants to see for themselves the impact the change in their behaviour could have was very rewarding.
Personal accomplishment of which you are most proud
Maintaining an effective work-life balance! I am fortunate to be able to do rewarding work, support a local charity that offers counseling to young people, sing in a local community choir and train for sprint triathlons.