PROGRAMME INTRODUCTION
The growing relevance of the Generation Y workforce necessitates a unique corporate approach and provision of distinctive training opportunities to attract, develop, and retain this increasingly prevalent employee segment. More and more employers are now being confronted by the challenge of preparing and empowering Gen Y personnel to operate successfully in today’s challenging and volatile global markets.
Gen Y talents’ strong drive to create positive social impact, desire to work abroad and requirement for professional flexibility are essential pillars of our “Global Challenge” programme. In this way, we are able to help our clients to attract and retain the top graduates and junior talents in their respective industries.
During a “Global Challenge” assignment, young talents are grouped into teams of 3-5 people with the responsibility for completing a challenging 3-4 week social business project. Work is undertaken in collaboration with local social enterprises in India or the Philippines and focuses on a concrete business challenge aligned with participants’ professional areas.
These social business projects, which are designed to stretch participants’ comfort zones in unfamiliar cultural environments, provide impactful lessons and valuable personal skills – enhancing adaptability, strengthening persistence and influencing skills and improving cross-cultural communication – while providing the freedom to experience diverse peoples and cultures.
Programme to develop and engage Gen Y high-potentials
Takes place in an emerging market (e.g. India or the Philippines)
Out-of-comfort-zone business project with a local social enterprise
“Progress is impossible without change and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” -George Bernard Shaw
PROGRAMME MODULES
Business projects involve social entrepreneurship (supporting social cause in a financially sustainable way) in either India or the Philippines.
The programme takes usually 3-4 weeks and is constructed around the following core modules:
Throughout this initial journey, participants are challenged by the need to effectively communicate within the foreign culture, forming the basis of their learning platform and building skills for overcoming communication challenges in an unfamiliar environment.
The foreign environment reinforces the need to efficiently reconcile differences and develop consensus decisions in the face of ambiguity, stimulating adaptability and preparing participants to overcome unforeseen challenges.
Participants must embody persistence and ingenuity in developing influential solutions as a result of the foreign cultural and social norms that they must operate within.
Facilitation by a certified coach helps provide a framework for participants’ learning throughout their project journey and stimulates learning consolidation at the programme conclusion.
LEARNING OUTCOMES & BENEFITS
DISTINCTIVE GEN Y DEVELOPMENT & ENGAGEMENT TOOL
- “Global Challenge” projects satisfy the unique interests of Gen Y employees – such as social impact, working abroad and professional flexibility – thereby increasing their engagement and value within your organization.
- “Global Challenge” programme positions your graduate programme as a unique opportunity for high potentials in the market, helping your organization to attract higher numbers of more-desirable applicants.
PERSISTENCE & ADAPTABILITY
- Overcoming challenges beyond their comfort zone instills a sense of pride and confidence in participants, preparing them to perform successfully in unfamiliar situations and environments.
- Participants learn that traditional means of problem solving are not always suitable, driving them to explore innovative solutions and influencing stakeholders to take action.
- Participants develop an increased understanding of their behavioral strengths and areas for improvement in extreme situations.
CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION
- Participants gain increased sensitivity to alternate points of view.
- Participants understand the need to collaboratively overcome challenges and build team skills while reinforcing their need for personal openness in approaching work with others – regardless of origin, gender or personality.
“The programme provides us with intercultural awareness combined with sustainability, exposes our employees to a challenge in a different country within another company and brings them out of their comfort zone. LITS Global really does a great job and we are pleased to have a partner that holds everything in its hands.”
PROGRAMME EXAMPLE: LUFTHANSA SOCIAL IMPACT PROJECT
CHALLENGE
Lufthansa has established a focus on achieving cultural change across their entire organisation. A group of twelve junior employees were carefully selected to become part of this new mindset. Lufthansa came to LITS Global in search of a solution that would equip the group with the necessary skills (e.g. persistence, influencing, sustainability mindset etc.) to drive the necessary changes in their upcoming years with Lufthansa.
SOLUTION
The Lufthansa group embarked on a four-week journey to New Delhi, India where they completed three Social Impact Projects. Separate teams of four colleagues each worked within different social businesses at Tambul, Drishtee and B-ABLE in the areas of sales, communication and social responsibility.
The projects followed the established LITS Global programme framework. Insights from the field trip and the introduction day were compiled (week 1), then analysis of project-specific challenges was performed (week 2), followed by preparation of requested tools and outputs (week 3), leading to project handover where action plans and outputs were ultimately presented to project owners within the respective social businesses (week 4).
SAMPLE PROJECT
Tambul produces biodegradable disposable dinnerware through various community-owned micro-enterprises. The Lufthansa team recommended changes in Tambul‘s positioning and sales strategy to facilitate their entry into the Indian, German and Swiss markets. Due to the unfamiliar culture and environment, Lufthansa employees needed to adjust their perspective and assimilate local knowledge before providing business recommendations that would be viable in the emerging world.
“Tambul Plates has been looking into getting into the international market, the outputs of the team are going to be a huge influencer on our policies towards that.” – Anirban Gupta, CEO of Tambul Plates
PROGRAMME RESULTS
85% of participants have found that the programme provides experience that is directly relevant to their professional environment and thus would recommend it to others in their network.
84% of participants said their project helped them learn how to be more adaptable and operate more effectively in uncertain situations.
91% of participants report their appreciation for LITS programmes in helping them to build a strong and adaptable platform in effective cross-cultural communication skills.