Building Teams

Leadership

Executive Leadership Coaching

The True North Leadership Group works with individual clients in a coaching capacity to develop targeted skills, a positive outlook, a personal vision for one's life and goal setting techniques:

Core Leadership Skills
A Positive and Inquisitive Outlook
A Positive and Inspiring Vision for One's Future
A Goal Setting Regimen to Practice the Skills and Realize Vision
Regular In-depth Focus on Key Challenges
360-Degree Feedback
Facilitated Meetings with Supervisor and Key Direct Reports (by request)
Facilitated Meetings with the Leader's Team to Raise Team Performance

For Teams

Customized Leadership Development Curriculum

True North Leadership does not take a one-size-fits-all approach to leadership training. While there are common themes and focuses relative to leadership training, we lean into building a custom approach based on the particular needs of an organization.

Our process:

Gather Data to Understand the Leadership Culture
Meet with Senior Leadership to Develop Personal and Team Goals for the Training
Customize Trainings and Team Coaching to Introduce and Establish Concepts
Follow-up Assessments at Six Months and One-year Completion Points

For Organizations

Strategy Facilitation

TNLG provides skilled facilitation for organizations engaged in comprehensive Strategic Planning & Management. We believe that it isn't enough to do strategy planning without the process being coupled with strategy management. The aggregate areas of planning and facilitation include:

Analysis and Assessment
- Understanding the current internal and external environments
Strategy Formulation
- High level strategy is developed, and a basic organization level strategic plan is documented
Strategy Execution
- High level plan is transitioned into operational planning and actions items
Evaluation or Sustainment
- Management phase; ongoing refinement and evaluation of performance

Why Strategy Management Matters

Most organizations invest heavily in strategy planning but neglect strategy management. Without the management phase — ongoing refinement, accountability, and performance evaluation — even the best strategic plans fail in execution. TNLG couples both to ensure lasting results.

Engagements

Public Speaking

TNLG faculty speak at large "onstage" leadership gatherings and company events on a wide range of topics. Send in a request form for a menu of subject matters, and a request for custom talks.

Request a Speaker

Speaking Topics Include

Ethical Leadership & The Integrity Gap
Building Cohesive, High-Performance Teams
Leading Through Change & Uncertainty
The True North Internal Compass
Accountability Culture in Organizations
Responsible Leadership Beyond the Bottom Line

Assessments

363-Everything DiSC

A New Kind of 360!

Finally, a 360 for DiSC^® users. But Everything DiSC 363^® for Leaders isn't just any 360. It combines the best of 360s with the simplicity and power of DiSC, plus three strategies for improving leadership effectiveness. The result is a 360 experience that's more productive and satisfying.

So How Is 363 Different?

First, we took the sting out of 360 feedback.

For many leaders, 360s can be a frustrating experience. At best, open-ended comments can be unfocused and unhelpful. At worst, they're a way to anonymously take a jab at a colleague. And ultimately, they can even derail the learning process.

With our exclusive selectable comments feature, CommentSmart, raters can give focused, balanced, constructive feedback — that the leader can actually use.

Then, we just made it easier to understand and use.

Everything DiSC 363 for Leaders isn't a collection of dry spreadsheets and charts. Instead, it combines clear visuals and a conversational narrative style to interpret and explain the data, making the report easy to understand.

And finally, we answered the "Now what?"

With a lot of 360s, the leader's response can be "Now what?" Everything DiSC 363 for Leaders answers that question by giving leaders their next steps with the three things they can focus on now — strategies to improve their leadership effectiveness that can be put into action immediately.

The Profile

22+ pages all about the leader
Research-validated model
Intuitive, easy-to-read visuals
Rich cuts of data and feedback breakdowns
Comprehensive listing of rater comments
Three strategies for improving effectiveness

Raters

Leaders can have unlimited raters in the following groups:

Direct Reports
Peers
Manager
Others

CommentSmart

Save time and reduce stress with CommentSmart, our innovative selectable comments feature that allows raters to choose from highly-tested, behavior-focused comments to give more richness, context, and depth to their feedback — without the potential for snide remarks.

"DiSC," "Everything DiSC," "Everything DiSC 363," and "Wiley" are registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Assessments

360-Degree Feedback

True North Leadership Group facilitates a range of industry-leading 360-degree assessment tools. All trademarks are registered to the Center for Creative Leadership.

BENCHMARKS^®

A comprehensive 360-degree assessment for middle to upper managers that measures 16 competencies critical for success, as well as five possible career derailers.

EXECUTIVE DIMENSIONS^®

Addresses the specific leadership challenges faced by executives at the top levels in the organization. These challenges can differ a great deal from those at the middle management level.

PROSPECTOR^®

Provides feedback in two areas of behavior: the skills most often found in successful leaders, and the learning behaviors needed to acquire those skills. Can be used with high-potentials, individual contributors, and managers.

SKILLSCOPE^®

A 360-degree assessment that provides individuals with straightforward, practical feedback on job-related skills necessary for effectiveness in a management role. An ideal first step for organizations new to the 360-degree assessment process.

^® A Registered Trademark of the Center for Creative Leadership

Team Dynamics

Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team

Cohesive Teams Are the Ultimate Competitive Advantage

Teamwork is the ultimate competitive advantage because it is so powerful and so rare. A high-functioning team can achieve its potential, resulting in a healthier, more productive organization. Additionally, improving teamwork is an important endeavor beyond merely helping organizations become more effective — it also reduces stress and dissatisfaction of the people who work in those organizations, which has a profound impact on the lives of their friends and family members as well.

What Are the Five Behaviors?

Based on the bestselling book The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni, the Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team is a model and development program that guides intact teams through a journey to improve in five areas key to productive team dynamics: Trust, Conflict, Commitment, Accountability and Results.

The Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team Model

1

Trust One Another

Members of great teams trust one another on a fundamental, emotional level, and they are comfortable being vulnerable with each other about their weaknesses, mistakes, fears, and behaviors. They get to a point at which they can be completely open with one another, without filters.

2

Engage in Conflict Around Ideas

Members of teams who trust one another are not afraid to engage in conflict around ideas that are key to the organization's success. They do not hesitate to disagree with, challenge, and question each other — all in the spirit of finding the best answers and making great decisions.

3

Commit to Decisions

Teams that engage in conflict around ideas are able to gain commitment to decisions, even when various members initially disagree. They ensure that all opinions and ideas are put on the table and considered, giving confidence that no stone has been left unturned.

4

Hold One Another Accountable

Teams that gain commitment to decisions do not hesitate to hold one another accountable for adhering to those decisions and standards. What's more, they don't rely on the team leader as the primary source of accountability.

5

Focus on Achieving Collective Results

Team members who trust one another, engage in healthy conflict, gain commitment, and hold each other accountable are more likely to set aside individual needs and agendas and focus on achieving collective results — ahead of career aspirations or ego-driven status.

The Most Complete Team Assessment Available

The Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team assessment gives team members a sense of their team's unique strengths and areas of improvement. It's a tool that evaluates the team's dynamic across the five fundamental behaviors so members can decide what improvements are necessary for becoming a higher performing team.

The assessment also serves as a powerful measurement for growth. The Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team includes a DiSC behavior-style assessment for each team member — with results presented on a single graph that plots the personality and behavioral "style" (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness and Conscientiousness) of everyone on the team. Gaining a better understanding and appreciation of each team member's style gives the team the ability to work together more effectively.