Tailored team building with cbm New Zealand
Industry
Christian charity and international development organisation.
Location
Auckland
Website
cbm New Zealand
“After doing Puzzle People, I had fantastic feedback from all four types of communicators in our team.” – Judi Jones
“The training facilitator, Carley Nicholson, had great energy and provided relevant insights, which contributed positively to the team’s experience and engagement during the course.” – Judi Jones
cbm New Zealand is committed to helping prevent sight impairments and support people with disabilities in some of the world’s poorest places, but when it came to developing the local team’s communication and collaboration skills, the organisation turned to the EMA’s skilled Learning team and Facilitators for a tailored solution.
cbm (Christian Blind Mission) is a charity and international development organisation working to transform the lives of people with disabilities living in poverty.
Founded by German Pastor Ernst Jakob Christoffel in Turkey in 1908, it now spans the globe providing preventive, medical, rehabilitative, and educational services in 46 countries.
cbm opened in New Zealand in 1990 and focuses on fundraising as well as hiring, training and supplying skilled medical professionals to the country offices in some of the world’s poorest nations.
As the name suggests, cbm specialises in the treatment of eye conditions, such as cataracts, trachoma and river blindness but also conditions such as obstetric fistula and the provision of prosthetic devices to help those who’ve lost limbs in conflict.
It has been involved in working with Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh where more than a million people live in refugee camps after fleeing persecution in Myanmar.
Closer to home, it has been heavily involved in Papua New Guinea where mountainous terrain and limited infrastructure add to the challenges of providing healthcare. It’s also a member of the Suva-based Pacific Disability Forum, which works across 22 Pacific countries and territories.
As part of cbm’s commitment to staff development, it discussed a number of training options with the EMA’s dedicated Member partner to build communication and collaboration skills.
With the assistance of EMA Learning and Experience Manager Kate Suhonen, they developed a tailored version of the EMA’s popular Puzzle People – Effective Communication Model.
This one-day course focused on improving communication by teaching participants to understand and adapt to the four different communication styles, improving team interactions and effectiveness and creating a common language.
It helped to identify team strengths and gaps, providing strategies to boost team performance and cohesion. Learners gained skills in handling conflicts and managing stress, fostering a more resilient work environment.
cbm Finance and Operations Director Judi Jones organised the course for the organisation’s 21-strong New Zealand team, which was held at venue down the road from its North Shore headquarters.
“After doing Puzzle People, I had fantastic feedback from all four types of communicators in our team,” she says.
“For some, it was a whole new world of self-awareness and getting to know ourselves. For others, it was a beautiful opportunity for us to grow and better serve others through how we communicate.
“The training facilitator, Carley Nicholson, had great energy and provided relevant insights, which contributed positively to the team’s experience and engagement during the course.”
cbm‘s chief executive Murray Sheard was equally impressed and felt the course was all the better for Nicholson’s “energy, wisdom and highly relevant asides on wellbeing”.
“It was a great course and will be super useful for us. We’ll look at ways to take it forward. Our team was really happy.”
Jones says she wants the team to do a tailored version of the EMA’s Conflict Resolution course next.
“Because of the type of organisation we are, most of us are harmonious and non-confrontational, which can be a challenge if you don’t deal with little things when they arise.”
The Conflict Resolution course offers practical tools and techniques for managing and preventing disputes effectively. Participants learn about the core variables of negative conflict, the benefits of using third parties for resolution, strategies for handling emotional challenges, and skills for effective conflict resolution.
cbm has been an EMA Member since 2003, and has used various services over the years, including the Member AdviceLine, online courses, HR policies and business updates.
“The EMA is like a security blanket insurance policy, just knowing it’s there in terms of employment relations and compliance areas,” says Jones.
“It’s good to know that there’s a backup if anything has changed or we need to be aware of any new legislation.
“The EMA AdviceLine helps with the HR side as well, because although I look after some of the HR, I’m not a specialist – I’m an accountant!”
Jones says cbm looks forward to continuing its journey with the EMA and she particularly likes the option of having training conducted in-house.
“The tailored training is the way to go for us because of the distances people have to travel. We’re mostly based on the North Shore, so it’s easier having the training at our offices.
“Ideally, once a year, we’d like to run a training course where it’s the whole team, so that we build on team unity and growth.”
