Why relationships at work matter
Interpersonal relationships are fundamental to our existence. Decades of research show that people with close, meaningful, satisfying social bonds tend to be healthier, happier and live longer.
Similarly, investing in relationships at work matters for your personal success and the success of your organization. Put simply, business gets done through relationships. When you say in a meeting, “I’ll speak to Finance to see if we can make it happen,” it’s a specific individual you’re following up with, not a faceless entity. Your ability to influence that person or achieve the outcome you want depends on the quality of your relationship: the trust, honesty, transparency, understanding, reciprocity, mutual support you have established.
What we know about working relationships
From our latest research into work-based relationships, we know people have high expectations when they start partnering together on an initiative. They expect there will be an exchange of ideas, that everyone involved will be equally dedicated to the tasks they are undertaking and that there will be transparency and candor between people.
While initial expectations are high and most of us believe we bring the same or more to a working relationship than the other person, partnerships often go awry. Breakdowns occur when one party fails to fulfill their obligations, when opposing views can’t be resolved and when trust is violated. In our research, 31.2% of people reported often having to hold back saying what they want to say when working with others. In fact, 40.6% of people in our study said that they typically achieve the same or better results working on their own than working in partnership.
Living in an age of highly matrixed, networked teams and organizations, there is an imperative for us to better understand and improve our working relationships.
The Unlocking Relationships Workshop
This is a highly experiential and interactive workshop. You will:
- Learn the secrets to great relationships and the power that comes from healthy, positive connections at work.
- Discover your own relational style and the positive and negative implications of your style for interacting with colleagues.
- Understand your team members’ needs in relationships and what this means for your team dynamic and effectiveness (for an intact team attending the workshop).
- Learn and practice techniques for building relationships order to achieve better business outcomes.
- Unearth your relationship-breakers and how to avoid these.
The workshop is suited to leaders and managers who want to develop their relationship building and partnering skills and for teams who want to build greater trust, openness, undertstanding, cohesiveness and candor between each other.
The Workshop Details
- One-day workshop.
- Delivered at your organization or offsite.
- Up to 20 participants per workshop.
- The workshop can be run for participants from the same team or function or with a mix of people from across your business.
- Contact info@mindsopen.co for more information or to arrange a workshop for your team or organization.
