Projects

Leadership Development at General Dynamics

General Dynamics Canada engaged Leap! Corporation and Key Consulting to develop a program that would result in leaders with more self awareness, more knowledge of how to lead performers of different preferences and outlooks, and the ability and confidence to step up to tackle critical business opportunities and problems.  The program sought to create a community of leaders who would trust and rely upon each other across organizational boundaries.

We started by exploring, with groups of existing leaders in the company, the core competencies needed to lead within General Dynamics Canada. We created a leadership framework for the company and designed a 360º feedback tool based on that framework. The results of the 360 º tool and a behavioural tool, called DiSC™, launched each individual on his and her personal leadership journey, supported by professional coaches who we provided.

We designed three, three-day learning sessions that engaged participants in conversations that explored what leadership meant for each participant,  what it meant to be a leader responsible for leading the performance of others, and what it meant to lead change within an organization. Through the last two elements of the course, teams of participants tackled issues of concern to the Executive Committee of the company and engaged with them to seek support for a way forward on those matters. The program offered a diverse learning experience that included individual reflection, conversation, research, instruction, and peer and professional coaching.

As a result of this and other initiatives within the company, General Dynamics Canada has been recognized as a Financial Post Top 10 Employer in Canada, a Top 100 Employer in Canada for 5 consecutive years, and an Ottawa Top 10 Employer for the past six years.


We have also designed leadership development programs for the Canadian School of the Public Service and Citizenship and Immigration Canada.
Alan Sobel is listed as a roster coach to executives in the Canadian federal government under Standing Offer# CSPS-RFP-07110FB01

Strategy Development for the Federal HIV/AIDS Initiative

In October 2000, we facilitated a meeting of more than 125 participants to forge directions for the Canadian Strategy for HIV/AIDS. Participants came from diverse backgrounds and, often, competing interests. Scientists, policy makers, leaders from Aboriginal communities, the gay and lesbian communities, intravenous drug users, and men who have sex with men, among others met for three days to discuss concerns, generate possibilities and set priorities. As a result, all participants agreed on 10 directions for the Canadian Strategy.  They said it couldn’t be done.

Following this meeting, we had the privilege of facilitating many more meetings to support the strategy, including a follow-up meeting in Montreal in 2002, and meetings to support the Federal Initiative on HIV/AIDS. More recently, we have supported the Office of HIV Vaccines to forge partnerships with stakeholders from industry, the voluntary and philanthropic sectors, provinces and territories to combine skills and resources towards developing a vaccine.

Negotiating the Price of Industrial Eggs

We were hired to work with the Canadian Egg Marketing Agency and the Canadian Poultry and Egg Processors Council to help them to explore ways to break through an impasse in their contract negotiations. In dispute was the price of industrial eggs; but in supply-managed marketing arrangements, price is just the tip of the iceberg. We worked with both sides in the dispute. We helped Council members to agree on a negotiating approach that would benefit all members, and we helped the Egg Marketing Agency to see the issues faced by processors from a broader perspective. As a result of our intervention, both sides were prepared to see more facts, more clearly towards an agreement on price.

Building a Safer Canadian Ice Industry

The manufactured ice industry is highly differentiated both in terms of product and capacity. Block ice, for instance, must conform to different safety standards than must cubed ice. There are small firms and medium sized firms. Some operations draw water from municipal sources, while others rely on groundwater drawn from private wells. And each plant has engineered a particular process for ice making that is appropriate for their market and operating circumstances.  Regardless of size and circumstances, all Canadian ice manufacturers were united in their desire to institute a safety protocol called Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) to the industry. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency supported their initiative, and Leap! Corporation was asked to facilitate a design, test and implementation process over two years that led to a generic HACCP approach that could be easily implemented by all members, regardless of size or operating design.

 Mediating Medicated Feeds

Cows, turkeys and pigs (but not chickens) are all fed medicated food, but through very different delivery mechanisms. When the Canadian Food Inspection Agency wanted to re-write the medicated feeds regulations, they needed input from producers and the feed industry to ensure that the regulations would be strict enough to ensure animal health and food safety, but flexible enough to allow producers to elevate their standard of delivery. There was considerable disagreement around the table. But over several meetings, we helped all stakeholders to develop the principles and guidelines that would lead to an appropriate regulatory framework for medicated feeds. 

Re-designing the Canadian Air Force

When the Canadian Air Force was asked to develop a new capability scenario, we facilitated an intensive, five day brainstorming and planning session with generals and colonels with air, ground and sea commands.

An Elevated Value Proposition for a Contracts Group

A group responsible for managing contracts in a private sector firm was relegated to a paper shuffling role. Contracts staff were frustrated because they felt they were being undervalued and disrespected by projects staff. Project leaders also were unhappy because they felt that contracts staff were unresponsive to their requirements. Critical, time-sensitive tasks were being performed “by the book” and without regard to client needs. And the total resident expertise within the contracts group was unavailable because project leaders had access only to their assigned contracts specialist.

We worked with executives and domain leaders over several months in this organizational change project that has resulted in:

We have worked with many more functional groups within the private and public sector organizations to help them to define their strategic value to their organization and find ways to exert that value at the senior leadership table.

 A Membership Strategy for Scouts Canada

Working with Board members and volunteer representatives from across Ontario, we helped Scouts Canada to design a strategy for recruiting and retaining members and volunteer leaders to their Movement. As a result of this workshop, Scouts Canada developed a clear statement of its value offering to members, leaders and to all Canadians. Participants also identified the key community-based channels that are already available to Scouts for communicating its core messages.

Renewal for Small Community Synagogues

Jewish communities in small towns face overwhelming challenges to their survival. Children have moved to large centres like Toronto and Montreal. Young families that move to town tend to be liberally-minded. They seek religious services and community programming that will be meaningful to their young families. Meanwhile, the families that have lived in town for many generations, built the synagogues and continue to lead the services are often more traditionally minded. They resist the ideas and preferences of the newcomers. Yet, they need their membership and participation to remain as a community.

We have worked with several Jewish communities in small Ontario towns to help members to adapt and adjust towards building a vibrant Jewish community that will persist for many years to come.

Health Human Resources Strategies for First Nations, Inuit and Metis Peoples

We worked with the Association of Faculties of Medicine, the Indigenous Physicians Association of Canada, Health Canada, and the deans of Medical Schools from across Canada to develop concrete strategies and action plans that would increase the number of Aboriginal physicians working in Canada.

In another project, we worked with the Aboriginal Nurses Association of Canada, the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing, Health Canada and the deans of Nursing Schools from across Canada to develop concrete strategies and action plans that would increase the number of Aboriginal nurses working in Canada.

We continue to work with the Aboriginal Nurses Association of Canada and nursing schools to help them to develop culturally appropriate learning approaches and curricula.

A Conflict Resolution Seminar for North American Leaders in Agriculture and Agri-Food

We designed and delivered a workshop for leaders in the agricultural and agri-food sectors to introduce them to the foundation skills required for understanding and resolving conflict. We taught them specific frameworks and processes for helping parties to resolve conflict. As a result of this seminar, participants were able to: