KPMG
KPMG is a leading provider of professional services, working in fields of audit, tax and advisory. KPMG in the UK has over 11,000 partners and staff working in 22 offices across the UK and are part of a strong global network of member firms. KPMG in the UK was recently awarded The Sunday Times Best Big Company to work for 2008 – they have consistently been rated highly by their staff and have been ranked in the top three for four years running.
The Challenge
KPMG identified a need to develop the ability of their high performing senior managers to communicate with passion, impact and confidence. Their aim was to help prepare them for a potential future top leadership role within the firm. KPMG also wanted to incorporate the firm’s values and important current themes such as innovation, geo-political awareness and authenticity.
The Solution
Speak First worked closely with KPMG’s learning and development team to design and deliver a two-day event. The brief required Speak First to come up with creative ideas that would take the participants out of their comfort zones while maintaining and building their confidence. The design included a rich mixture of large and small group sessions, a physical activity and a final session that gave people the chance to demonstrate the changes they made during the programme in a fun, interesting and challenging way.
Critical to the event’s success were Speak First’s 20 years of experience in spoken communication and extensive expertise in emotional intelligence, language patterns, strategies for handling the media and understanding of how beliefs and values drive behaviour. As well as Speak First’s specialist expertise in this area, creativity, attention to detail and excellent project management skills were essential in ensuring a successful result – which means everyone ended up in the right place at the right time, despite a complex programme!
Speak First has now delivered this event for KPMG for five years – each year they work with the learning and development team to keep the experience fresh and in line with current business themes and issues.