Telent specialise in the effective operation of critical national infrastructure and are at the heart of many of the UK’s and Ireland’s best-known brands.
They design, deliver and support solutions and services which enable organisations to create, improve and operate the ICT and communication networks that their businesses depend on. their industry expertise, technology partnerships, accreditations and committed teams make Telent the partner of choice for organisations at the forefront of the digital revolution.
Telent operate within various industry sectors including Transport, Emergency Services, Network Providers, Higher Education and Public Sector
Telent required a modular development programme for all mid-senior managers across the 4 divisions, tying into the themes and principles of the Leadership Programme that Raise the Bar had already delivered to senior teams. In involving both content and key advocates in the approach, we could further embed the learning and ensure all levels of buy in.
The Challenge
In 2014-2015, Telent acquired 3 major service providers to bolster expertise within their service offering. They recognised that they had 4 key areas that required significant upskilling if they were to continue to compete successfully for contracts within the competitive infrastructure and technology markets. After reviewing business needs and conducting employee surveys, they identified:
After an internal review of requirements and the current development offering, they recognised that they had no focused, company-wide development offering to upskill and enable their wider leadership population to sustain growth.
The Solution
Telent wanted a programme to achieve specific aims:
Steering group of senior leaders from all business areas designed outcomes with Raise the Bar, alongside internal needs assessments and culture audits, a bespoke 15 month programme with blended methodologies was designed, incorporating:
The Result
We identified questions within the employee survey to measure over time, and 20 leadership criteria to measure confidence levels. From these we saw the following impact in our engagement survey:
Since the programme started, enhanced leadership capability enabled the company to win a series of large infrastructure contracts within existing areas of national infrastructure expertise, and new areas including nuclear fuel. Many previous delegates now hold key roles on these programmes having been promoted internally.
Telent has acquired 4 new businesses and transitioned over 1,000 employees from Carillion, National Highways and City Fibre contracts, and moved up the Sunday Times Top Track 250 from 30th in 2016 to 16th in 2020.
During the 6 years of management development, Telent has also increased their staff development offering in the following ways:
The programme had the following impact on delegate performance and their capabilities:
We have partnered with Raise the Bar for many years on our management and leadership development programmes for first time managers through to strategic thought leaders. They understand our business and they have created 3 incredible programmes that not only give great content and skills to our managers, but challenge their thinking and get them to point the mirror at themselves.
There is definitely no sitting back on a Raise the Bar session and, through understanding our business, they are able to link models and ideas directly to our world. This really helps delegates to understand the messages and brings their learning to life. There is a real passion from the delivery team and strong relationships between the team who do a lot of the “behind the scenes” and the delegates. Every delegate knows that they won’t just turn up and listen – it will be a hands-on experience!
Jessica Farley
Head of Talent Development
The relationship we have with telent is a true collaborative partnership, and the programmes are embedded in a way that you wish every leadership programme could be. Not only is it ran solely by the steering group, which is made up of ex delegates of all 3 programmes, but the executive team fully support and sponsor it within their divisions.
It is truly transformative for the 400+ delegates who have graduated all the programmes, not only in their leadership approach, but in their careers and often personal lives too, and we see many returning for alumni sessions we run every 3-6 months, or as cohort mentors to support new delegates and keep the programme alive.
The team of 5 facilitators who signed up for this never imagined we’d be still delivering it 6 years later, but we love it and the team and the delegates are pleasure to work with!
Annabel Graham
Raise the Bar Consultant
I’ve managed to change my whole approach not just to my work life but also my personal life. This single-handedly has had the biggest impact to my development.
Programme Delegate
In terms of the quality of training MFS is without doubt the best management development programme I have been involved with.
Programme Delegate
Princess Royal Training Award
Telent were presented with a Princess Royal Training Award. The awards celebrate employers with outstanding training and skills development programmes which have been proven to have significant positive impact on their business or their staff and as such, Telent were recognised for their commitment to the training and development of colleagues across the business.
Telent’s success can be attributed to their work investing in managers and their career progression. The award recognises Telent most notably for its collaboration with Raise the Bar to introduce a management training programme to drive change and promote business growth.
Since launching in 2016, 172 managers have taken part in the programme, enhancing Telent’s manager capability and resulting in a series of large national infrastructure contracts being awarded.
The award further highlights the impact of Telent’s values and the behaviours that underpin them, which reflect its culture of continuous improvement, organisational strengths and long-term strategy.
This is a fantastic achievement and a reflection of the brilliant collaboration that exists within our Learning and Development team and Raise the Bar.
The programme continues to provide lasting impact on our manager population, and I’m thrilled that we have been recognised in this way.
Jemimah Parnell, Group HR Director