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Working with The Federal Government

Almost one year ago, LMA contacted an individual within the Employment & Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor. That phone call of introduction has led to an exciting and constantly changing contract to assist them in implementing the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) requirements around the establishment of a collaborative leadership group called the Policy Council.

The leaders in this $8B organization have always worked independently being responsible for their own product line. However, the purpose of WIA is to provide a customer-focused system. The most important aspect of the act is its focus on meeting the needs of businesses for skilled workers and the training, education, and employment needs of individuals. Key components of the Act will enable customers to easily access the information and services they need through the "OneStop" system; empower adults to obtain the training they find most appropriate through Individual Training Accounts, and ensure that all State and local programs meet customer expectations. This meant a lot of changes for ETA as now the formerly stovepiped product lines needed to work more closely together.

LMA initially conducted a needs analysis interviewing almost 25 of the senior managers. We created an in-depth report on the organization looking at everything from how the reorganization was working to perceptions about management and the Policy Council to the organization's culture. The purpose is not to surprise senior management but to create a common understanding of the "state" of the organization as viewed by its senior team.

What became clear is that the twelve members of the Policy Council needed individual coaching and they also needed to put a different structure and more definition around the purpose and scope of the Policy Council. Therefore we started an Executive Coaching process using a 360 degree negotiation skills feedback instrument and regular meetings to work with the behavioral side of the equation. We also partnered with MG Taylor and had the Policy Council members attend a DesignShop(R) Event to create a Policy Council structurally that would succeed.

We also had them participate in a 3-day customized Creating Collaboration workshop to further build their ability to work together effectively. We conducted a larger DesignShop Event inviting people from the regions, union leadership, and other critical leaders. The results were a powerful experience for the organization and a confirmation that the Baldrige Quality work was focusing on the appropriate areas. The next step was to pull people back in and to say based on the results of the Baldrige Assessment and the output from the DesignShop Event, on what areas do we need to focus? In two days, a group of 85 people analyzed the results and proposed to the Policy Council ten different areas of focus.

We currently are proposing using the Leadership & Change Workshop to enhance implementation of decisions around the quality program created at the Baldrige Kick Off Planning Session. It is a work still in progress and we are proposing to continue to support them in their development and growth as an organization. Feedback has been that they have seen very real changes in the ways that they work together and that they are more effective as a senior leadership team. An external consultant who has facilitated this group for years said the changes she has observed have been phenomenal. We appreciate the courage of this group of people to embark on a path around personal and organizational change which is hard work and sometimes painful but rewarding in the end result.