We hope you enjoy this issue and, as always, look forward to hearing from you at cpp_insider@cpp.com.
- Eugenia Wright, Editor

CPP Launches MBTI^® Team Performance Accelerator

On May 19, 2008, CPP announced the release of the MBTI^® Team Performance Accelerator, the newest training program based on the MBTI^® assessment.

Developed in response to customer feedback, the MBTI Team Performance Accelerator program offers a flexible framework for addressing team-specific needs and providing tangible, measurable results. The Team Performance Accelerator addresses six of the most significant challenges facing teams including successfully navigating organizational change, effectively managing conflict, and leveraging the strengths of individual team members. The program gives unprecedented focus to team-building as a skill, process, and area of organizational development, and helps organizations that want stronger team cohesion to analyze their behaviors in greater depth than ever before so they can develop targeted action plans to improve their performance and productivity.

For more information about the Team Performance Accelerator program, click here

Managing Conflict in Teams

Conflict is bound to occur when working on a team. But how effective is your team at managing conflict and regaining cohesiveness? The answer will determine whether your team will sink or rise above to become a high-performer.

In order to handle conflict constructively, you must first understand your individual team member styles of conflict as well as your own. Then, you should identify your overall team’s style for dealing with conflict.

Each team member has a predominant conflict style, and different conflict styles are adopted because people experience conflict in different ways and have different guiding principles and values regarding conflict. Each style can contribute to an essential aspect of the team's process:

• Advocating positions that have merit (competitor)
• Finding innovative win, win solutions (collaborator)
• Managing time costs (avoider)
• Building goodwill and cohesiveness (accommodater)
• Providing moderation and balance (compromiser)

You can deal more effectively with styles other than your own by:

• Guarding against overdoing your style with behaviors that create problems
• Using your dominant style only when it seems appropriate
• Interacting constructively with teammates who have other styles

Your team's style provides certain strengths and challenges. It is important that your team be able to switch to other conflict-handling modes when different issues arise. Below are recommendations for any team to increase its effectiveness.

• Raise the conflict issue
• Identify team members' underlying concerns (the thing they most care about that is at stake in the issue)
• State an integrative goal (the win-win goal of finding a solution that most fully satisfies the concerns of the conflicting team members)
• Generate a range of possible solutions
• Pick the best (most integrative) of the solutions by evaluating their consequences

To be an effective team, you must reach agreements on goals, make good decisions about how to achieve those goals, and help each other accomplish activities, despite differences.

Learn more about tools that can teach you to appreciate the value of your own conflict style and those of others.

New From CPP, Inc: Introduction to Type^® and Project Management

Since projects exist in every aspect of our lives, it is important to be effective project managers. The success of any project manager depends on their ability to determine the project type and align it with their own personality preferences. In the latest book, Introduction to Type^® and Project Management, Jennifer Tucker brings together the science and art of project management with MBTI^® personality type.

You can see all this for yourself by taking advantage of our special promotional offer for this launch of Introduction to Type^® and Project Management. If you purchase by Monday, August 4, 2008, you will receive a 20% discount on all 10-pack purchases of this new book. Use the promotional code: PM08 when ordering online or by phone at 1.800.625.1765.

Click here for more information on Introduction to Type^® and Project Management

Now What Went Wrong In That Conversation? By Nancy Barger

This is the first article in a four-part series written by Nancy Barger, MBTI expert and accomplished consultant and trainer, that will focus on applying psychological type in three everyday situations:

• How we communicate
• How we give others feedback in the communication process, and
• The conflicts that can arise when we don’t understand the styles of another person

Nancy begins this series by exploring the communication differences between Extraverts and Introverts.

Click here to read Nancy's article

Boomers Make Way…The Millenials Are Here Future Pharma Magazine, April 2008 There is a new generation entering the workforce that is dominating today's talent pool. This generation, known as the Millenials, has a reputation for being tech savvy, peer-oriented, and tenacious. As a result, organizations are beginning to customize training and learning programs to meet the needs of these younger workers. Future Pharma Magazine conducted an interview with CPP's Senior Organizational Development Consultant, Sarita Bhakuni, PsyD, on why today's Millenials require a completely different approach than yesterday's baby boomers. Read the full interview		Down Economy Offers Upside Opportunities Workforce Management, April 21, 2008 Talent management is proceeding as a central issue for today’s organizations worldwide and has established itself as a key business strategy in any economic season. It can create a means for surviving a depression while creating a sustainable competitive advantage. The simple fact is that companies continue to hire-even in a recession (according to Workforce Management). When recruiting during these tough economic times there are four key areas to focus on. Read the full article		Building a Learning Culture Chief Learning Officer, April 2008 The phrase “learning culture” is being used quite frequently in the HR field these days. Research shows that high-impact learning organizations that have fostered learning cultures achieve the highest business value. So, what exactly is a learning culture? A learning culture is a culture that is built upon performance-driven learning programs that focus on solving timely and urgent business issues. In order to implement a successful performance-driven program, your organization must possess certain competencies and abilities. Read the full article

High-Performing Executive Teams Hospitals & Health Networks, April 10, 2008 Building a successful executive team is one of the most important responsibilities for senior leaders, but also one of the most challenging. From hiring individuals whose values align with those of the organization to identifying and developing leaders from within, creating high-performing executive teams takes a great deal of time and ongoing commitment. Learn how to overcome the dysfunctions of your team and how to work successfully towards a common goal and purpose. Read the full article		Management: You're a Star American Executive, June 1, 2008 Since finding, nurturing, and retaining superstar employees is a true art, many executives oftentimes do not make the best judges of talent. A person may look capable because of their good looks, winning smile, or sharp skill set, but looks can be deceiving. Workplace coaching experts say that companies can improve their odds by keeping high-potential employees motivated and rewarded, while re-recruiting superstars to keep top employees from leaving. Read the full article

What If? Short Stories to Spark Diversity Dialogue by Steve Long-Nguyen Robbins

In today’s global environment, diversity and inclusion training is no longer an option. Implementing strategies to attract, build, and leverage a diverse workforce is a must if organizations want to get the most value out of their human resources and gain a competitive advantage.

Diversity and inclusion training could allow your organization to gain the following business benefits:

• Generating more creativity and innovation
• Using more people’s skills and talents
• Increasing employee engagement and enthusiasm
• Widening customer reach
• Avoiding discrimination lawsuits
• Boosting competitive advantage
• Enhancing organizational learning
• Maximizing cognitive flexibility
• Increasing employee adaptability
• Preparing organizations for a 21st-century world
• Enhancing trust and teamwork

If you want to discover how diversity and inclusion training can improve your organization, check out What If? Short Stories to Spark Diversity Dialogue by Steve L. Robbins, a workshop-in-a-book to get leaders, managers, and employees thinking and talking about everyone’s perspectives for the good of the organization.

Click here to learn more

* MBTI^® Professional Development Conference: October 30-31, 2008, Ottawa, ON. Learn powerful, new strategies from today’s leading type authorities at the MBTI^® Professional Development Conference. This bilingual conference is the first of its kind to be held in North America. Set the stage, and register today. Click here for more information

CPP will be in attendance at these 2008 events, and we hope to meet you there. Also, don't miss CPP's 2008 MBTI^® and Strong Combo Workshop series.