The Boston Advanced Operational Management Programme

This day introduces core management functions and distinguishes them from leadership, while exploring foundational skills required for modern management practice. The topics covered will include:   

Defining the Unique, Essential and Noble Functions of Management

• Clearly Differentiating Management from Leadership
• Rediscovering the Critical Importance of Effective Management: Traditional vs. Contemporary Views
• Inappropriate Metaphors of Managers: The Need to Change Mind-sets
• The Key Management Functions: The Q-OPD Full-Range Management Model©

The Four, Over-arching Core Skills for both Managers and Leaders

• Developing Personal, Social and Organisational Awareness
• Tailored, Multi-channel Communication
• Powerful and Targeted Influence and Persuasion
• Emotional Intelligence (EI) & Political Intelligence (PI)

This day focuses on directing operations, delegating effectively, and solving problems using rational, creative, and soft‑system approaches. The topics covered will include:   

Operationalising & Directing

• The Manager’s Crucial Operationalisation Remit
• Translating the Strategic Plan into an Implementation Plan
• Powerful Processes to Direct Your Staff
• Using Goals, Objectives, Outcomes and Behavioural Metrics

Delegating & Problem-solving

• The Delegation Imperative: Making Yourself Dispensible, Creating New Leaders and Succession Planning
• Relinquishing Authority and Responsibility: Setting Your Staff-up for Success
• Creative, Rational and Soft-system Problem-solving Approaches
• Deciding between Alternative Solutions whilst considering the Operational and Political Dimensions of Your Actions

This day covers resourcing, supporting and monitoring team performance and capability development.
The topics covered will include:   

Resourcing & Supporting

• Identifying the Resources Available to Your Staff and Using Them to Develop their Capability
• Selecting Staff for their Talent and Potential
• Supporting Your Staff: Engagement and Empowerment
• The Five Essential Support Needs of Your Staff to Ensure their continuing Discretionary Effort

Monitoring & Controlling / Coordinating

• The Essential Nature of Monitoring and Controlling
• Soft and Hard Processes: Individual Development and Goal-achievement
• Deciding on Your Key Metrics: ‘What you measure is what you get!’
• Designing Monitoring Systems / Performance Dashboards

This day explores feedback, reporting, and redirecting behaviours, and how managers can act as catalysts for organisational engagement and strength. The topics covered will include:   

Feeding Back / Reporting & Redirecting

• The Value of Timely, Relevant, Actionable Feedback
• The 3 Feedback Principles and Structuring Motivational, Developmental and Critical Feedback
• Re-directing Behaviours and Setting-up Positive Responses
• Harnessing the Power of Activators, Behaviours and Consequences

The Manager as Catalyst

• Understanding and Appreciating the New Management Paradigm
• Using the Gallup Q-12 to Powerfully Manage your Staff
• Playing to your Staff’s Strengths and Helping them Manage their Weaknesses – as a Team
• Managing Employee Aspirations by Helping them Find their Ideal Roles

This day focuses on personal career planning, identifying values and motivators, and building a strategy for managerial career advancement. The topics covered will include:   

Managing Your Own Career as a Manager

• Planning in the Emerging, New Employment Reality: The Changing World, Workplace and Corporate Governance
• Identifying Your Specific Career Anchors: What you are good at? What you value and what motivates you?
• Constructing Your Personal Career Advancement Strategy
• Prioritising and Engaging in the Important Career Advancement Activities
• Becoming Politically Adept