Testimonials

LaL has been incredibly helpful to me as a CEO and a husband/father over the past few years.

Throughout my career I have been provided the opportunity to participate in many leadership development seminars and have read countless books with a formula for becoming a great leader. Despite accumulating a vast amount of knowledge, my general leadership style didn’t change very much. On the surface, that hasn’t seemed to hurt my career. However, I have come to realize that certain counterproductive aspects of my style that I built up over many years were limiting my potential and the potential of our company. As an example, I now realize just how far I will go to be right and the impact that has on my co-workers, friends and family. Instead of creating a space for open dialogue and free exchange of ideas, when I perceive the threat of being wrong, I will compensate by diverting to a new topic, debating with people over things that don’t matter or seeking allies that will agree with me. Obviously, that isn’t the environment where learning can occur. I know that, and you know that, but what I didn’t suspect was how much I do it, why I do it nor how to change it.

That realization (and many others) was the direct result of a partnership Encore began with Learning as Leadership (LaL) in late 2005. LaL is an incredibly unique leadership program that has evolved over 25 years of empirical research, training, coaching and consulting. Many programs describe what leaders should do, but I haven’t found another program that helps me understand the root causes of my unhelpful behaviors, and then provides real, useable tools to change them.

They provide the venue, the tools and a tremendous amount of support and honesty for you and/or your team.

At our company, the top 20 leaders have gone through their executive program and we have cascaded the methodology down to another 100 or so leaders through their in-house program, called WeLead. The results are embedded in our financial returns, which have been quite strong despite the industry and macroeconomic headwinds. I’m realizing more and more how key business challenges are fraught with people issues, unacknowledged performance gaps and long-standing silos. Our partnership with LaL has led to the dissolution of a number of difficult “Us vs Them” dynamics, namely between IT and Operations and between different parts of our Collections business, a very significant uptick in our employee engagement numbers over four years ago and numerous unsolicited comments from new hires about the unprecedented openness in our culture compared to their previous organizations.

All this is without mentioning the deep satisfaction I’ve gotten from investing in my team in a way that really makes a difference in their lives. An employee once wrote me an unsolicited note some time back:

I want to genuinely thank you for investing in me and providing me with the LaL opportunity. In my opinion, it was the most impactful personal experience that I’ve had since my time in the Marines. I’ve learned so much about myself and I’m working really hard to incorporate what I’ve learned into my daily life. I am implementing a number of things that I would have never done prior to LaL. I will work hard to leverage the experience to its fullest.

In summary, both from personal experience and seeing the benefits for my team and the company, I highly recommend LaL.

I was skeptical that LaL would have a meaningful impact on how I interact with people, but it has. I waste far less time and energy on frustration. It was surprising—through this program, making these changes was not as hard as I thought it was going to be.

By the time any manager has reached an executive level, he or she has spent hours, days, months in countless training programs, little of which create lasting change. The LaL work is groundbreaking; it builds an understanding of root causes, rather than focusing on symptoms.

As our executive management team engaged in LaL’s one-year leadership development program, we developed a level of trust and communication unique to the LaL experience. During this time, even though we reorganized our entire business, we were able to retain key members of our team who were receiving competitive offers from Internet start-ups and to significantly increase our business revenue while the entire industry imploded around us. LaL’s involvement in these events (through seminars, in-house strategy sessions and coaching) was a very critical factor in our miraculous success.

One important observation regarding the investment of seminar time: we have experienced to conclusion that the best time to attend LaL is when you believe you can least afford to spend the time. Our return on investment in both time and money has been substantiated through the feedback of our employees, our vendor partners and our families.

LaL has played an essential role in our ability to build and run one of the largest tension leg oil platforms (TLP) in the world. Summarizing our learnings in a few words is impossible. I will say that as the leader of Ursa, one of Shell Exploration & Production Co.’s biggest assets, my leadership team and I have gained insights, skills and tools to achieve dramatic improvements in our communication and our commitment to each other, our team and our mission. The results speak for themselves:

•   Four-month acceleration in construction schedule, estimated $40 million in savings •   50% decreased operating costs from business plan •   Achieved “Best in Class” uptime performance of 99% •   Dramatically improved annual production performance by 12 million barrels (43% increase) •   Outstanding safety performance •   Ahead of targets and on path to achieving aggressive environmental goals •   Outstanding inspection performance by regulators (U.S. Coast Guard and Minerals Management Service) •   High morale among personnel, high rate of skill acquisition and advancement •   Ursa paid out in 26 months, the fastest for any Shell tension leg platform

If we had worked together for 20 years, our team would never be as successful as what we have accomplished with LaL this year. Since we began the 1-Year Leadership Training Program, we have expanded from four clubs in Hong Kong and Singapore to 10 clubs throughout Asia with 1,200 teammates and increased revenues of 250%. I am thrilled that our senior management team (a recently-assembled multinational group) has gone through LaL’s courses during this challenging time of high growth. LaL has taught us how to create a safe environment where we can discuss our issues and express what is normally unsaid. We are better able to listen to each other without reacting, and sustain a common vision. We have gone to the next level of individual and team performance, and now have many new tools to ensure we remain the number one fitness team in the world!

The personal revolution and growth I’ve experienced has had a major impact in both my personal and professional life. I am amazed at how much clearer my thoughts/processes have become and how that translates to growth. This is truly a remarkable life-altering program and one that I recommend highly.

LaL has played an essential role in our ability to build and run one of the largest tension leg oil platforms (TLP) in the world. Summarizing our learnings in a few words is impossible. I will say that as the leader of Ursa, one of Shell Exploration & Production Co.’s biggest assets, my leadership team and I have gained insights, skills and tools to achieve dramatic improvements in our communication and our commitment to each other, our team and our mission. The results speak for themselves:

•   Four-month acceleration in construction schedule, estimated $40 million in savings •   50% decreased operating costs from business plan •   Achieved “Best in Class” uptime performance of 99% •   Dramatically improved annual production performance by 12 million barrels (43% increase) •   Outstanding safety performance •   Ahead of targets and on path to achieving aggressive environmental goals •   Outstanding inspection performance by regulators (U.S. Coast Guard and Minerals Management Service) •   High morale among personnel, high rate of skill acquisition and advancement •   Ursa paid out in 26 months, the fastest for any Shell tension leg platform

I was skeptical that LaL would have a meaningful impact on how I interact with people, but it has. I waste far less time and energy on frustration. It was surprising—through this program, making these changes was not as hard as I thought it was going to be.

As our executive management team engaged in LaL’s one-year leadership development program, we developed a level of trust and communication unique to the LaL experience. During this time, even though we reorganized our entire business, we were able to retain key members of our team who were receiving competitive offers from Internet start-ups and to significantly increase our business revenue while the entire industry imploded around us. LaL’s involvement in these events (through seminars, in-house strategy sessions and coaching) was a very critical factor in our miraculous success.

One important observation regarding the investment of seminar time: we have experienced to conclusion that the best time to attend LaL is when you believe you can least afford to spend the time. Our return on investment in both time and money has been substantiated through the feedback of our employees, our vendor partners and our families.

The personal revolution and growth I’ve experienced has had a major impact in both my personal and professional life. I am amazed at how much clearer my thoughts/processes have become and how that translates to growth. This is truly a remarkable life-altering program and one that I recommend highly.

LaL has been incredibly helpful to me as a CEO and a husband/father over the past few years.

Throughout my career I have been provided the opportunity to participate in many leadership development seminars and have read countless books with a formula for becoming a great leader. Despite accumulating a vast amount of knowledge, my general leadership style didn’t change very much. On the surface, that hasn’t seemed to hurt my career. However, I have come to realize that certain counterproductive aspects of my style that I built up over many years were limiting my potential and the potential of our company. As an example, I now realize just how far I will go to be right and the impact that has on my co-workers, friends and family. Instead of creating a space for open dialogue and free exchange of ideas, when I perceive the threat of being wrong, I will compensate by diverting to a new topic, debating with people over things that don’t matter or seeking allies that will agree with me. Obviously, that isn’t the environment where learning can occur. I know that, and you know that, but what I didn’t suspect was how much I do it, why I do it nor how to change it.

That realization (and many others) was the direct result of a partnership Encore began with Learning as Leadership (LaL) in late 2005. LaL is an incredibly unique leadership program that has evolved over 25 years of empirical research, training, coaching and consulting. Many programs describe what leaders should do, but I haven’t found another program that helps me understand the root causes of my unhelpful behaviors, and then provides real, useable tools to change them.

They provide the venue, the tools and a tremendous amount of support and honesty for you and/or your team.

At our company, the top 20 leaders have gone through their executive program and we have cascaded the methodology down to another 100 or so leaders through their in-house program, called WeLead. The results are embedded in our financial returns, which have been quite strong despite the industry and macroeconomic headwinds. I’m realizing more and more how key business challenges are fraught with people issues, unacknowledged performance gaps and long-standing silos. Our partnership with LaL has led to the dissolution of a number of difficult “Us vs Them” dynamics, namely between IT and Operations and between different parts of our Collections business, a very significant uptick in our employee engagement numbers over four years ago and numerous unsolicited comments from new hires about the unprecedented openness in our culture compared to their previous organizations.

All this is without mentioning the deep satisfaction I’ve gotten from investing in my team in a way that really makes a difference in their lives. An employee once wrote me an unsolicited note some time back:

I want to genuinely thank you for investing in me and providing me with the LaL opportunity. In my opinion, it was the most impactful personal experience that I’ve had since my time in the Marines. I’ve learned so much about myself and I’m working really hard to incorporate what I’ve learned into my daily life. I am implementing a number of things that I would have never done prior to LaL. I will work hard to leverage the experience to its fullest.

In summary, both from personal experience and seeing the benefits for my team and the company, I highly recommend LaL.

By the time any manager has reached an executive level, he or she has spent hours, days, months in countless training programs, little of which create lasting change. The LaL work is groundbreaking; it builds an understanding of root causes, rather than focusing on symptoms.

If we had worked together for 20 years, our team would never be as successful as what we have accomplished with LaL this year. Since we began the 1-Year Leadership Training Program, we have expanded from four clubs in Hong Kong and Singapore to 10 clubs throughout Asia with 1,200 teammates and increased revenues of 250%. I am thrilled that our senior management team (a recently-assembled multinational group) has gone through LaL’s courses during this challenging time of high growth. LaL has taught us how to create a safe environment where we can discuss our issues and express what is normally unsaid. We are better able to listen to each other without reacting, and sustain a common vision. We have gone to the next level of individual and team performance, and now have many new tools to ensure we remain the number one fitness team in the world!