Project Description
DX Delivers
DX (Group) plc is a leading independent logistics and parcel distribution company operating throughout the UK and Ireland. Established in 1975, DX provides next day delivery services for mail, parcels and heavier items requiring 2-Man services.
Last year, DX delivered in excess of 200 million items for both public and private sector companies to both businesses and residential addresses nationwide
Learning Cog Training Programme
DX contacted LearningCog to discuss a training programme for their team of Operations Managers. Specifically, they required a workshop designed to facilitate Operations Managers in delivering beneficial, mutually respectful, commercial decisions, across all aspects of their role. A critical part of the training was to impart an appreciation as to how each decision they make affects the commercial aspects of the business and ultimately reduce costs across the operation.
With his background in logistics gained working as Head of Learning and Development at City Link for 5 years, Ric Hayden was well placed to develop and run the training and designed a 2 day workshop that was run over 6 weeks in 6 DX locations throughout the UK.
The workshops comprised a blended approach to learning and included presentations and discussions as well as a half day ‘development centre’ based exercise whereby delegates completed tasks designed around a fictional parcel delivery company – ‘Fast Fleet’
Developing Team Performance
The development centre tasks included an in-tray exercise, a coaching role play and a series of group exercises designed to test and expand delegates’ ability to understand, interpret and calculate figures from a large body of financial information as well as to work in a team. Each delegate’s performance in the tasks was observed and individually evaluated by Ric and a Co-Facilitator. Learning Cog provided individual feedback reports on performance on each of the exercises, which highlighted strengths and areas for future development. Reports were delivered to each delegate individually by their General Manager, with the idea being that they would then support them in writing an action plan to fill any development areas identified.
LearningCog commissioned an independent evaluation of the workshop to understand how it was received and the changes that participants intended to make as a result of attending. The research was conducted by Emma Newman Consulting Ltd, an independent market research company by means of a short online survey. 26 of the 50 delegates (52%) who attended the workshop completed the survey. The delegates reported finding the workshop highly relevant to their day to day role as the Figure 1 below demonstrates.
Figure 1.
Average relevance ratings for individual workshop sessions (where 1 = not at all relevant and 7 = extremely relevant)
Respondents described the workshop as being engaging, informative and varied, with a relaxed and friendly atmosphere that encouraged them to be open and honest
Training Programme Results
The research found participants to have planned to change in the way that they approached things in their working day as a result of attending the workshop. These included taking cost into account more in their day to day decisions, better prioritisation of tasks, paying more attention to detail as well as making changes to their management style such as delegating more tasks and involving staff more by providing more detailed team briefings.
“For me it has changed the way I focus my day, giving more to others to do, to better managing my time and allowing for the commercial aspects of my day”
“The in-tray exercise brought home the relevance of prioritising Issues with in the role we complete as Operations Managers”
Many articulated how enlightening and enjoyable it had been to meet other people from DX, in particular members of the senior management team. Delegates enjoyed finding out about other people’s roles and how they approach situations and deal with issues that they themselves face.
“The training was interesting as it made you think more about the bigger picture rather than one aspect.”
“The one to one interviews pushed my comfort zone and I learned from it.”
“It kept me engaged for the full two days.”
Perhaps your team would benefit from a tailored workshop to improve their day to day approach. Development centres are often used by companies, particularly during times of change or re-organisation as well as to assess current levels of competency within teams and identify areas for development. LearningCog offer a variety of training courses for a wide range of small and medium sized establishments to large, global organisations. You can find out more about the open programmes and bespoke in-company programmes that LearningCog can provide here or by contacting LearningCog directly info@learningcog.com
This case study was researched and prepared independently by Emma Newman Consulting Ltd, a UK based organisation that specialises in training evaluations and market research. Further details can be found at www.emmanewman.co.uk