It’s just great to belong, BT managers discover

Nov 4 2009 by Iain Laing, The Journal

TWO members of the region’s largest business membership organisation have realised the benefits of belonging after working closely together to improve management skills through the downturn.

BT, partner members of the North East Chamber of Commerce (NECC), approached fellow NECC member John Edington, a personal and corporate development specialist, to provide a bespoke training programme to support their management staff through the downturn.

Derek Richardson, general manager for Openreach BT in the North East and Cumbria, was keen to take advantage of John’s expertise to provide 45 BT managers with practical techniques to manage change and to help create skills to enhance and support employee engagement.

The sessions, which were run over the course of a day, attracted very positive feedback from the managers in attendance.

Mr Richardson was delighted with the outcome of the training.

He said: “The training proved to be extremely practical, very relevant, interactive and most importantly fun. We have already observed positive key changes in behaviour as a result and have created a common language.”

John Edington was pleased that the two businesses had been able to produce such positive results, adding:

“The benefits of belonging to the NECC has proved to be invaluable to both businesses as it has allowed us to prosper while creating a more productive, motivated leadership team.”

NECC account manager Beth Stockdale said: “It’s fantastic to see two members working together to share business knowledge and improve their skills. ” To find out more about the benefits of belonging to the North East Chamber of Commerce (NECC), visit www.necc.co.uk/belong or call 03003 036 322.