I-Skills Zone - June 25, 2008

Beyond the Far Cliffs currently has the following “Preview CD’s” that provide detailed information on specific programs.

• Performance-Based Hiring

• Organizational Culture

• Communications

• Testing - Assessment

• Joel Barker’s Strategic Exploration

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Select the Preview CD You Would Like to Receive Please select…Performance-Based HiringOrganizational CultureAssessment-TestingCommunicationsStrategic Exploration

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Letters from the image at right:

The powerful concept of Emotional Intelligence is related to programs we offer for training, selection, assessment, individual and team development.

• Emotional Intelligence Hiring Matrix

  • Tied to the Performance-Based Hiring process, the Emotional Intelligence Hiring Matrix, cross tabulates five specific elements of Emotional Intelligence to the specific Peformance Objectives for a position.  A structured scoring system is built into the system.

• Assessment

  • A Wide Range of Assessment for Selection, Training, and Development
    • Baron EQ-I
    • 16PF
    • Leadership/Impact
    • Emotional Intelligence Profile

Free Emotional Intelligence Profile

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Profile Request Please select…Emotional Intelligence Profile

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Taught by Masters — Trained by a Legend — Degreed by the Mouse

Dr. James W. Schreier’s customer service experience began the day that the very first Kohl’s Department Store opened in Brookfield, Wisconsin.  He was there, working under the guidance of one of the finest managers ever, influenced almost daily by the customer service philosophy of the founding members of the Kohl family.  After seven years, during which he actually developed the first ever training program for employees at Kohl’s, he launched into further education that would always keep in touch with this solid foundation. 

He was trained in Ken Blanchard’s Legendary Service program, by the program authors and customer service experts, Rick Tate, Gary Heil, and Ken Blanchard.


Jim first visited Disneyland in California one year after it opened — and years later become one of only 100 people to earn his “Mouseters Degree” in Disney Management from the Disney University.  He participated in the first “Disney Approach to Customer Service” program, the “Disney Approach to Customer Loyalty” program, and five other Disney University programs

Beyond the Far Cliffs offers its own unique brand of experiential training in customer service for management and frontline employees.

• Customer Service Training for Frontline Employees

  • Service Pro
  • Dealing with Difficult Gustomers  

•  Customer Service Training for Managers

  • Service Leadership
  • Culture for Quality Service 

• Train-the-Trainer Program

  •  Unique program that teaches your managers to present training sessions on a variety of customer service topics.

Free Online Customer Service Profile

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Profile Request Please select…Customer Service Commitment Profile

Letters from the image at right:

Here are some great resources on brain work and resources for the exploding field of brain exercise, brain research, and related issues.

The Premier Communication Skills System for Companies

The ability to understand and communicate positive solutions to critical situations is essential to work well in a fast-paced, complex, competitive, and an often high-pressure business environment.

The “I” in I-SkillsZone stands for:

      •      Resolving Important Issues with Information
      •      Influencing others
      •      Operating with Integrity
      •      Managing Self — what “I” bring to each situation
      •      Increasing Interpersonal effectiveness

The “SkillsZone” provides 6 talking and 5 listening skills — constructive choices — for dealing with any issue, effectively and productively.

Do Business in the I-SkillsZone

Businesses spend large sums of money on hardware and software to build “common operating systems” for connecting computers throughout their organizations. Yet it is the people that make the difference — how well they process and communicate information. With the I-SkillsZone system in place throughout an organization, a company’s culture becomes a “common collaborative human operating system.” This means people are on same page, sharing a common language and process for discovering, discussing, and aligning critical issues. As a result, they conduct more productive conversations and resolve differences, one-on-one and in teams, while building strong relationships up, down, and across the company. Customers benefit too. Profitability increases as folks operate efficiently within the I-SkillsZone.

Here’s what I’m reading now — what I’ve read recently — and a few that were on the wrong track:

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These are on the right track — strongly recommended.

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Here are a couple that are definitely on the wrong track — avoid the crash!

 
The Cult of Personality: How Personality Tests Are Leading Us to Miseducate Our Children, Mismanage Our Companies, and Misunderstand Ourselves

* See my “one star” review!

 It’s Okay to Be the Boss: The Step-by-Step Guide to Becoming the Manager Your Employees Need

* See my “one star” review!

Beyond the Far Cliffs provides e-learning, training, and consulting services to organizations of all sizes, profit and non-profit, throughout the United States and around the world.

Beyond the Far Cliffs has presented programs in 40 of the 50 states. Our international work has taken us to Russia, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Moldova, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Switzerland, Japan, South Korea, Canada, the Dominican Republic, and China.

Our trainers are certified personally by the best of the business experts: Joel Barker, Edward de Bono, Lou Adler, Ken Blanchard, Albert Joseph, Scott Parry, Richard Nelson Bolles, Murial James, Robert Cooper, and Thomas Crum.

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Letters from the image at right:

This is my collection of leadership resources, including a video that I consider to be the best view of leadership. This list could have fifty items on it, particularly when you start including the “fun” titles, which I think are very good resources.

 Joel Barker’s LeaderShift, Five Lessons for Leaders in the 21st Century, (Video), StarThrower, 1999

This list is inspired by one of my early mentors, Dr. John L. Komives, whose library contained a special “one-foot” section of key books.  As John explained it, some of the books in this space would be there forever, a few would change over time.  This is my “one-foot” list of essential reads.

“Mr. Lincoln’s T-Mails” is a recent addition because of its phenonmenal insights on communications for managers in today’s electronic world.

Here’s a collection of book lists. This has been a major request from clients over the years. Now they’re here for everyone.  Several books will appear on more than one list because of their relevance to different topics.  There’s also a page dedicated to books that I’ve read recently, some that I’m eager to read next, and a few that I recommend avoiding.

• Recent Reads

• “My Favorite Gurus”

• Management Essential 12

• Leadership

• Thinking Skills

• Human Potential

• Human Resources

This is my collection of “favorites” from the management experts who have significantly influenced my work both personally and professionally.

Beyond the Far Cliffs provides a variety of testing and assessment services for selection, career counseling, and promotion decisions. We can assess individuals using a variety of sophisticated assessment instruments, We can create a testing program for your organization to administer. We can help with validity issues.

Key Benefits

• Improve hiring accuracy with additional objective information.
• Create participant motivation for leadership and management development programs.
• Provide objective evidence for career decision-making and counseling.

Capabilities

Emotional Intelligence: The newest and hottest topic in leadership and personal development, this is a high level of assessment. We work with several instruments including the BarOn EQ-I Emotional Quotient Index.

16PF - Human Resources Development Report: A classic personality instrument with high level reporting options for leadership, management, and career development.

Contact us for more information on Testing and Assessment Programs.

In 1996, Dr. James Schreier became one of only nine individuals selected to be personally trained by Dr. Edward de Bono as an Accredited de Bono Facilitator. With previous certifications earned in Six Thinking Hats, Lateral Thinking, and Direct Attention Thinking Tools, Dr. Schreier spent four days with Dr. de Bono directing presentations and practice sessions on how to use his thinking tools in a facilitative process.

Key Benefits:

• Improve meeting effectiveness with a Six Thinking Hats process.
• Hold a “creative retreat” to identify new products and/or services — or ways of reaching customers.
• Dramatically improve the quality and effectiveness of a strategic planning retreat.

Sample Facilitation Projects

Creative Retreat: Working with representatives from a fund-raising organization and a vendor of fund raising products and services, we facilitated a two-day creative retreat to examine new strategies and tactics for direct mail campaigns and donor services.

School - Faculty Conflict: Hired by a Teacher’s Union in cooperation with the Community School Board, we facilitated a series of exploratory meetings with teachers, parents, students, and administrators to identify and resolve a conflict that had grown beyond traditional grievance processes.

Strategic Planning Retreats: Working with our Strategic Planning services, we’ve assisted several organizations in the development of their vision, strategic thinking, and tactical planning. In all of these projects, we bring to the table the powerful tools of Dr. Edward de Bono to make the retreats more effective.

Contact us for our special Edward de Bono Catalog.

Leadership is influence and impact. So how are your leaders affecting your organization? Are they able to develop, and unleash the potential of, your human resources? To be effective, your leaders need to know if what they’re doing (and how they’re doing it) is moving your company forward. This involves understanding the influence or impact they have on their direct reports and others.

Key Benefits:

• Identify the need for leadership development, as well as a direction and strategies for change.
• Provide the foundation for an effective and thorough leadership development process.
• Help leaders understand the implications of their behavior, and adopt strategies that drive increased personal and organizational effectiveness.
• Measurement compatibility with the Organizational Culture Inventory.

Capabilities

Reporting Options: Individual, Group, Organizational
Research Validity: with several existing theories
Development Options: Self and Teams Options

Free Sample Report

The Leadership/Impact Report is almost 200 pages of personalized feedback and powerful information. Contact us with with complete mailing information and we will send you a full sample report.

Contact us for more information on the Leadership/Impact Assessment.

Beyond the Far Cliffs provides a variety of world-class assessment, strategic planning, and facilitation services based on the work of Edward de Bono, Joel Barker, and Human Synergistics. Beyond the Far Cliffs. is formally certified in these techniques and is a licensed distributor of products/services.

Organizational Culture

Beyond the Far Cliffs is an Associate Consultant with Human Synergistics International, author and publisher of the world’s best organizational culture and organizational effectiveness assessment tools.
[more]

Leadership/Impact

Leadership/Impact is a sophisticated 360o assessment of leadership effectiveness and style.
[more]

Strategic Planning

Beyond the Far Cliffs provides a number of services related to strategic thinking and strategic planning. Using Joel Barker’s strategic thinking tools, including the Implications Wheel®, Vision Web® simulation, Vision Album™, and Strategy Matrix®, we provide organizations with tools to prepare them for strategic decision-making. From vision to strategic action, our planning programs and retreats change organizations.
[more]

de Bono Facilitation

As one of only nine accredited de Bono Facilitators in the world, we provide meeting and retreat facilitation using the best of Dr. Edward de Bono’s tools, Six Thinking Hats and Lateral Thinking. We’ve conducted specialized “creative retreats” for fund-raising and non-profit religious organizations.
[more]

Selection - Career Testing

Beyond the Far Cliffs provides a number of assessment services to clients, ranging from leadership assessment to career assessment to selection testing using the latest in paper/pencil or online testing tools.
[more]

Organizational Culture, not mission, not vision, not values, and certainly not climate, is what makes it possible for an organization to succeed. A growing body of research-based information proves the relationship between a constructive culture and economic performance, quality, customer service, excellence, employee satisfaction, motivation, and retention. And contrary to the popular view of some, you don’t describe your culture by talking about what you want it to be – you have to scientifically analyze, diagnose, and work to create a culture of excellence.

The Organizational Culture Inventory, as part of an organizational culture audit and change process, can be used to:

• Provide a direction for organizational change and development.
• Promote organizational adaptability and facilitate strategic, technological, and structural change.
• Understand and manage diversity and international relations.
• Facilitate mergers, acquisitions, and strategic alliances.
• Monitor the impact of change efforts.

A typical organizational culture project involves completion of “ideal culture” inventories by the leadership team of an organization and surveying of a significant sample of employees throughout the organization to generate organizational culture profiles by sub-units and levels.

Getting to know your organization’s culture helps you determine if the behaviors expected of employees support – or detract from – high performance. Most importantly, assessing your culture brings to light opportunities for change and improvement that can nurture and sustain your high performers over time, making success a “sure thing” for your business…both now and in the future.

Introducing “A Culture for Ethics”

With the emphasis today on ethical conduct in the workplace, Human Synergistics has introduced a powerful new tool to examine your organization’s culture from an ethical viewpoint. Based the the same “Circumplex” as Human Synergistics’ Organizational Culture Inventory, this inventory can be an excellent self-examination or an in-depth organizational development program to increase awareness and sensitivity to ethical conduct.

Capabilities

Beyond the Far Cliffs has conducted numerous organizational culture audits for both profit and non-profit organizations in a variety of industries including fund-raising, health and fitness, healthcare, professional organizations, financial institutions, and entertainment.

• Assessment: We can take the lead in conducting an independent assessment of your organizational culture.
• Interpretation: Understanding culture is not always easy — because the old culture rises up to defend itself. We can help with the interpretation that’s beneath the numbers.
• Facilitating Organizational Culture Change: With a variety of tools and services, we can help make the culture change your organization needs.

Additional Information

Ten Reasons for Assessing Organizational Culture: A .pdf file showing the possibilities of assessing organizational culture for a variety of purposes.

A Tale of Two Cultures: This is the story (.pdf file) of two organizations, one which changed its organizational culture significantly over a three year period, the other where the culture got worse in the same three year period. A DVD presentation of this story, presented at the 2002 Human Synergistics International Forum is also available.

Contact us for more information on Organizational Culture Assessment, the Corporate Ethics Audit, and Culture Change programs.

Managerial Assessment of Proficiency

The Managerial Assessment of Proficiency is a comprehensive assessment of managerial competencies from Training House/HRD Press. Developed by HRD Hall of Fame member, Dr. Scott Parry, it assesses competencies related to Administrative, Communications, Supervisory, and Cognitive competencies. Beyond the Far Cliffs has facilitated MAP sessions involving more than 3000 participants since becoming one of the first individuals certified, by Dr. Scott Parry, to present the program.

Key Benefits - Managerial Assessment of Proficiency

• Objectively assess supervisors, managers, and professionals on 12 competencies and 10 measurements of personal, communication, and management style.
• Video-based, normed comparison to over 90,000 managers.
• Promotes objective feedback on competencies, identifies unknown strengths and weaknesses, plus detailed materials for development planning.

• 12 Benefits of Using MAP/EXCEL (pdf)
• MAP 5-Step Cycle for Management Development (pdf)
• Sample MAP Profile (pdf)

Contact us for more information on the MAP program.

Six Thinking Hats Lateral Thinking

Key Features - Six Thinking Hats:

• Replace One-Dimensional Thinking with Six-Dimensional Thinking
• Reduce Meeting Time — Improve Decision-Making
• Create a “Micro-culture for Creativity”
• Increase Teamwork and Collaboration
• Half-Day, Full Day, and Three Day Workshops
• Online Support — Practical Implementation Tools

Key Features - Lateral Thinking:

• Creative Results Require “Serious Creativity”
• Creativity Empowered by “Lateral Thinking Tools”
• Develop a Creative Hit List
• Creative Retreats
• Half-Day, Full Day, and Three Day Workshops
• Online Support — Practical Implementation Tools

Edward de Bono’s Meeting Accelerator

Beyond the Far Cliffs ntroduces the powerful software program that adds new dimensions of learning, control, and efficiency to a variety of settings. As part of Six Thinking Hats training program, or as part of de Bono facilitated Six Hats Meeting, the Meeting Accelerator can be demonstrated or used as an actual part of the program. The Meeting Accelerator provides planning of a Six Hats sequence, timing control for using the Hats, recording and reporting of information, and a built-in random word or random picture generator.

Contact us for more information on Six Thinking Hats and Lateral Thinking programs.

Implications Wheel®

Joel Barker’s Implications Wheel is a powerful “strategic thinking” tool that helps organizations answer the question: “Just what the heck are we getting ourselves into?” Designed to eliminate the “unintended consequences” of our decisions, the Implications Wheel gives team a quick tool for looking into the future.

Powerful Implications Wheel® software is now available for Creating and Reporting!

Key Features:

• Implications Wheel Training or “Heavily Facilitated Wheels”
• Examine the “Implications” of a new strategy, a trend, or a proposed policy change.
• Yields surprising consequence, both positive and negative.
• Takes the traditional “what if” analysis to new levels.
• Powerful presentation and reporting software available.

Strategy Matrix®

Joel Barker’s Strategy Matrix is a powerful pre-strategic planning tool if individuals, teams, and entire organizations want to make better decisions. It helps groups effectively and efficiently process a large amount of information in a short time.

The Strategy Matrix works by carefully defining your organization’s key strategic objectives and characteristics. Then, emerging trends, innovations, policy changes, new strategic objectives — anything that may have an impact on the organization — is evaluated compared to key objectives and characteristics.

Key Features:

• Strategy Matrix® Training or Facilitated Sessions.
• Yields awareness of relationships previously unseen.
• Powerful presentation and reporting software available.

Vision Web®

As part of our strategic planning process, we are strong believers in the role that a powerful vision plays in the process. Introducing Vision Web®, Joel Barker’s power simulation exercise that illustrates the principles of his POWER of VISION and LeaderShift videos.

Vision Web is a powerful simulation exercise that illustrates the principles of Joel Barker’s The POWER of VISION and LeaderShift. In just about an hour, participants experience the ineffectiveness of an autocratic leadership style with no vision — immediately followed by the success of a clear vision with a group that is empowered.

Introducing Joel Barker’s Vision Album™

Joel Barker’s Vision Album is a group dynamic process for creating and evaluating “vision possibilities.” It is based on the “Vision Process” for creating detailed, specific scenarios.

The Vision Album process works best with diverse groups that “create” and “edit” detailed, visual “pictures” of the future of an organization. Using the metaphor of photography, participants develop new pictures based on the organization “now.” Then the pictures are exchanged with another team for “editing.” Pictures are evaluated based on “strategic priority” and “visual acuity.”

Strategic Planning teams can be trained to use the process on a continuing basis. Highly facilitated Vision Album programs can be run with a variety of stakeholder groups. The program has already been run very successfully with the entire staff of an organization and with a group of grade school and high school students.

Joel Barker’s Vision Album™ can be part of an integrated training program featuring Joel Barker’s best-selling video, The Power of Vision, and the experiential Vision Web.

I would highly recommend the Vision Album process. The process helps to identify existing strengths and weaknesses, focuses discussion to build on what exists, promotes new ways of looking at existing programs, and allows the opportunity to envision new approaches. -Deacon David Nagel, SCJ, St. Joseph’s Indian School

Joel Barker\’s Vision Album Fact Sheet (pdf)

Certification Training Programs Plus Highly Facilitated Workshops Are Available!

Contact us to receive a special packet of information on our “Joel Barker” programs.

Performance Based Hiring and Performance Based Retention are companion programs that prepare managers and organizations to hire more effectively, in order to get the best people at all levels, and then keep them. Beyond the Far Cliffs offers training, consulting, and implementation of Performance Based Hiring and Performance Based Retention principles.

Key Features

• Half Day, High-Impact Workshops
• Full Day and Two Day Training Available
• Implementation of hiring and retention strategies
• Custom Interview Guides for Hiring and Retention
• Online Support

Performance Based Hiring - The Principles

• Performance Profiles: If you want to hire superior people, first define superior performance.
• Objective Evaluation: Past performance is the best predictor of future performance.
• Wide-ranging Sourcing: Treat candidates like customers, not subordinates.
• Emotional Control: Performance and personality are both important — but you must measure performance first!
• Recruiting Right: Recruiting is marketing, not selling.

Performance Based Retention - The Principles

• Performance Profiles: If you want to retain superior people, update performance profiles regularly.
• Objective Feedback: Feedback is the breakfast of champions. It’s objective and it’s given often.
• World Class Culture: “OK” doesn’t cut it — you must create a culture of excellence and one that fights “retention killers.”
• Educational Excellence: Education starts before you hire — and never ends.
• Rewards and Recognition: Compelling Jobs & Outrageous Recognition = Improved Retention

Contact us for more information on Performance Based Hiring and Performance Based Retention programs.

Performance Based Hiring + Retention

The Performance Based Hiring and Performance Based Retention “half-day” and “full-day” programs are based on Lou Adler’s POWER Hiring. These are the programs that revolutionize hiring and retention.
[more]

The Implications Wheel®

Joel Barker’s Implication Wheel® is a powerful strategic thinking tool that gives your team a new way of thinking about “just what the heck have we gotten ourselves into?” Evaluate trends, new ideas, policy changes, or strategic initiatives and turn “unintended consequences” into clearer paths to the vision for your team.
[more]

Six Thinking Hats - Lateral Thinking

Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats and Lateral Thinking workshops are powerful tools for changing the thinking within an organization. Six Thinking Hats is a powerful tool for changing thinking and improving communication and meeting effectiveness. Lateral Thinking provides powerful creative thinking tools.
[more]

Managerial Assessment of Proficiency

The Managerial Assessment of Proficiency (MAP) is a comprehensive, video-based assessment of twelve management competencies and ten assessments of management, personal, and communication style. From Training House and HRD Press, MAP creates the foundation for our most successful management development programs. [more]

Beyond the Far Cliffs announces a new partnership with HRD Press to provide a complete screening and selection process using the powerful First View, Counterproductive Behavior Index, and Prevue Assessments. Beyond the Far Cliffs is a member of the HRD Performance Technology Group.

From this page, you can view brochures, request sample reports, access tests for individuals you want tested, request a sample test, and access the Total Applicant Processing System.

Total Applicant Processing System (Total-APS) enables you to list job openings, administer screening tests, and direct candidates through an application process that produces a ranking score. Total-APS can be used through Beyond the Far Cliffs or as a private job board that acts as a career site for your organization. [PDF]

Assess a job candidate’s abilities, interests, and personality traits against a highly valid and reliable benchmark for high performance. TotalView provides a measure of “total fit for the job.” [PDF]

In fifteen minutes a hiring manager can review information that predicts the behavior of a job candidate in any of 15 job categories. This assessment is ideal for quickly screening out candidates who don’t fit the job. [PDF]

A new low-cost screen for entry level positions that identifies the chronic problem employee. Expose the 6 deadly sins of a bad hire: undependability, workplace aggression, dishonesty, drugs, computer abuse, sexual harassment. [PDF]

Contact us for more information, sample tests or reports, from Prevue, First View, or CBI.

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Address:
12605 W. North Avenue, Suite 320
Brookfield, WI 53005

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Letters from the image at right:

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Welcome to Beyond the Far Cliffs, Learning and Consulting. Our educational, training, and consulting services are based on world class materials from the best authors and developers in the world. Join us for an exciting journey!

Mission

Our organization was founded on a simple philosophy, stated clearly in Richard Bach’s Jonathan Livingston Seagull: He flew way out Beyond the Far Cliffs. He learned more each day.

There are a number of special books that have been highly influential in our work.  They have not been our personal gurus — but their influence through these pages is still significant.

Driven by Strengths — Taught by Marcus Buckingham — Inspired by a Trombone Player

• Research on Strengths and Careers at HR Tracking

Like many, I love quotes.  There are hundreds that appear in my presentations and writings.  But there are several that are very special — each for its own reason.  Here they are:

Neither a wise man nor a brave man lies down on the tracks of history to wait for the train of the future to run over him. (Dwight Eisenhower)

He flew way out beyond the far cliffs.  He learned more each day. (Richard Bach)

Here’s a test to find whether your mission on earth is finished.  If you’re alive, it isn’t.  (Richard Bach)

In times of drastic change, it is the learners who inherit the future.  The learned are equipped to live in a world that no longer exists. (Eric Hoffer)

Management is now where the medical profession was when it was decided that working in a drug store was not sufficient training to become a doctor. (Lawrence Appley)