Healthcare can be an intense, high-stress career field, no matter the size of a work group. That’s why a small team from Genoa Healthcare met with us at the Embassy Suites Seattle-Tacoma International Airport hotel for a DiSC® training workshop.

Genoa Healthcare’s Emphasis on Improving the Workplace

Corporate training doesn’t have to be dull. And one size hardly ever fits all. When the manager of a team of 9 called Magnovo for a DiSC® workshop tailored to their needs, we prepared a 4-hour morning workshop. It was specially designed to improve communication, minimize conflict, and build a supportive workplace. Our facilitator met the team in a small conference room at a nearby Embassy Suites hotel. Hosting the workshop off-site worked well because it provided a neutral territory, and minimized the ordinary office distractions and interruptions.

DiSC® Basics

The workshop opened with a brief introduction to DiSC®. For nearly 100 years, this theory of behavior styles has been studied and refined so that our assessment tools can accurately measure how someone’s personality aligns with one of the four behaviors: Dominant, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness. Once someone knows their behavior style, they can better understand the inherent strengths and talents that go along with it. When a group as a whole has a good grasp on DiSC®, they can work more effectively and productively. This is because they all understand how each individual’s strengths contribute to the team effort.

All of the Genoa employees took a brief behavior assessment, which the facilitator reviewed on the spot. Then we had a conversation about the four behavior types, and the common characteristics of each. People interjected when they realized that someone strongly aligned with one type or another (“Hey, Keith is really good at making sure we keep the bottom line – he’s definitely a Conscientiousness type!”). Everyone warmed to the idea of finding themselves in these personality styles, and becoming more self-aware of how their own minds worked.

DiSC® in Action

Then we moved on to a specially curated series of games and activities designed to enhance understanding and provide opportunities to practice what they’ve learned about how the various behavior types work together. Our emphasis was on helping folks communicate more precisely and effectively. We also helped people learn to navigate conflict to minimize disruption. At times, we divided the group into teams, and had them work collaboratively and in competition with each other. We gave everyone’s new knowledge of DiSC® a real workout!

There was a lot of laughter and signs of revelation as people really began to apply what they learned. The short debriefing session that concluded the workshop provided very positive feedback. Participants felt like they learned practical and actionable information that would serve them well in the day-to-day workplace. Genoa Healthcare’s manager already booked her company’s training with us for next year!