Between the Lines - August 2012

1. Volume 5
Aug 2012 | People & Change Consultants India
Between
the Lines
The Six Disciplines of Breakthrough Learning
By Calhoun Wick, Roy Pollock, Andrew Jefferson, and Richard Flanagan
In this issue
1. Define business outcomes - Link program objectives to business
needs - Agree on definition of success - Define what participants will do  The Six Disciples of
better.
Breakthrough
2. Design the complete experience - Include what happens before
and after the classroom - Redefine the finish line from the end of class
Learning
to the generation of results
3. Deliver for application - Show how content relates to current  A Culture of Positive
business issues - Give participants time to reflect on how they will
apply. Relationships by
Birjendu Gupta,
4. Drive follow through - Actively manage the process - Involve
managers - Ensure accountability. Director,
5. Deploy active support - Provide ongoing support from facilitators, Pricewaterhouse
coaches, and managers - Provide practical how-to guides to facilitate
transfer
Coopers
6. Document results - Collect credible data on the outcomes - Report
results to management and use to market program.  A tête-à-tête with
Parijat Thakur, HR
“A silly question is often the first intimation Head, Jones Lang
of some totally new development”. LaSalle

2. Mr. Birjendu Gupta heads the Talent development function
at PwC Pvt. Ltd. He has a rich experience in sales, operations,
business development, learning and organizational
development in various large corporates. In his various roles
Brijendu has enabled organizations to develop and retain a
strategic focus on learning and development as a core
function. In this article, Brijendu shares his views on how PwC
focuses on the two basic tenets of coaching and relationships
skills to connect with its people.
You can contact Mr. Brijendu Gupta at: biju_gupta@yahoo.com
Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be
- John Wooden
Coaching and Relationships at the Core of
Connecting with People – Brijendu Gupta
Over the last few decades workplace individuals and these exchanges foster a
dynamics has been changing at such a rapid relationship. An experience of positive
pace that it is becoming increasingly relationships helps to develop a connected
challenging for the 20th Century managers to workforce.
manage the 21st century workforce. PwC is one of the big four professional services
Traditional command and control leadership firms globally. In India the firm has been in
style has given way to a more “leaders existence for over hundred years. Our service
develop leaders” approach. Organizations are culture thrives to provide the PwC experience to
resorting to innovative individualised our clients as well as people. Given below is the
developmental initiatives rather than a one diagrammatic representation of how we provide
size fits all training approach. Coaching as a a distinctive experience to our people and client
concept which focuses on individualised in four dimensions. In order to provide this
development became popular since the time experience there are ten core competencies that
International Coaching Federation was has been identified to develop our people. In a
formed sometime in the year 1995. Since business that has supremely intelligent people as
then it has become globally a $2billion its asset the organization has an intense focus in
industry (see research by PwC and ICF at training the managers and above level of staff in
www.icf.org). Like any new change initiative, two basic tenets of connecting with human
in India it is travelling a bumpy ride. At the beings viz. (A) Coaching and (B) Relationship
core are social exchanges between Skills.

3. PwC Experience – Our behaviours
PwC Client Experience PwC People Experience
We focus on
We focus on
Enhancing the value
client value
of our people
We put We put
ourselves in our ourselves in each
clients’ shoes other’s shoes
We share and We share and
collaborate collaborate
Service
culture
We invest in We invest in
client teams and
relationships relationships
PricewaterhouseCoopers Private Ltd
small provide value to both set of stakeholders.
Globally the firm practices the 70:20:10 principle This approach helps the firm to follow the
of developing an individual where 10% of an 70:20:10 principle and attempt develop a culture
individual’s development happens through of positive relationships.
formal classroom or learning sessions, 20%
happens by working with seniors, coaches,
mentors and 70% happens on the job. Though
there are classroom training workshops in
Coaching and Relationship skills there is a
constant endeavour to practice the 20 and 70 of
the development i.e. working with seniors,
coaches and fostering on the job learning.
Over the past few years several hundred
managers and above category of staff has been
trained in relationship and coaching skills. Post
There are a few, if any, jobs in which
training an attempt is made to ensure that the
ability alone is sufficient. Needed also
learnings are practiced at workplace. This is done
are loyalty, sincerity, enthusiasm and
by reinforcing the key messages through focused
team play. – William B. Given Jr.
group discussions around how coaching and
building relationship with our client and people
will help us

4. Mr. Parijat Thakur is currently a part of the HR leadership with
Jones Lang LaSalle, India. In his role, he spearheads HR efforts
for the IFM (Integrated Facilities Management) business. The
role entails strategic responsibilities which enables the function
to align with business growth. The IFM business today has 4000
employees on Jones Lang LaSalle rolls. Parijat’s earlier stints
include KPMG, PwC, Thomas Cook and IMS Learning Resources.
He brings ten years of corporate HR experience to the table and
notably has been in intense business partnering roles since 2007.
Does your organization believe in lateral hiring conducted by the L&D function.
or believe mostly in developing leaders from
within the organization? Help us understand how you structure your
leadership development initiatives.
This would be a mix of both. A hiring situation is
dependent on certain factors. There could be a The following goals help us to that.
specific need which would prompt us to go - Enable a succession plan for the first line of
external and launch a search. Alternatively defense
there would be sparks whom we would have - Understand the potential of talent embracing
picked up and invested in. We have allowed different roles
internal talent to participate in evaluations for - The above stem from the 9 cell mechanism. A
senior roles and extended opportunities tool which identifies the stallions from the rest.
accordingly.
What are some of your hallmark initiatives?
How does the training team partner in
- Structured programs around soft skills. The top
developing leaders?
100 people go through these programs every
L&D plays an advisory role in essentially leading year
the way from a road map perspective. The - Technical training
business and Human Resources may have ideas - Managerial Excellence programs
about lending and equipping leaders with - Industry related certifications
relevant skill sets or introduce interventions - OD interventions
which will propel them to the next level. But - Online training modules covering different
the ammunition and the tools to enable the subjects
process will come from L&D. All diagnostics are

5. What challenges do you face while How much do you depend on external
implementing the development roadmaps? organizations to deliver your initiatives?
Budgets can be areas of discussion in these This is again dependent on the kind of
economic times. We are lucky on that part as programs. It's a mix of internal training wherein
the organization is committed to investing in we would have in house trainers who would
our people. The larger picture of retention and have gone through a “train the trainer module”.
holding on to our top talent has to be kept in These trainers would be a mix of Business and
mind. Human Resources. Depending upon the
complexities some programs or interventions
would be managed externally.
How do you measure effectiveness of your
initiatives?
Feedback mechanisms and surveys.
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