Shelly Applegate
HR Director, Life Technologies

"We had a major corporate initiative being driven by one of our teams of Ph. D. scientists.  This team is incredibly smart, but less than incredibly appreciative of the importance of teaming and / or the impact of true organizational leadership.  It was difficult to get this type of team to be open enough to be willing to learn something about the “soft skills” associated with a high performing team; however, the need to increase team performance was clear to all.  When I was referred to Michael, I was impressed by his way of thinking, his experience in life sciences with this type of population, and his credentials.

Michael met with me and the leader of this team who was not yet convinced that “team building” would do any good.  Michael reframed his belief about team building to be more of a team development process….  Michael dispelled his beliefs about some kumbya session, or ropes courses, etc.  Rather, Michael’s approach was based on pre-assessment of the core issues, an agenda built upon inclusive dialogue, and objectives that were measure-able.  The team development process changed many of the key leaders’ approach to teaming and leadership.  Michael has a unique ability to communicate with highly educated and tough executives, so much so that we now leverage Michael for similar types of work with other groups.  It is meaningful to me when a member of the team that we worked with over a year ago refers to something Michael covered with that team.  I appreciate Michael and his firm, and they are a trusted partner for us at Life Technologies.   Michael’s facilitation skills and pragmatism helped many of our teams go from “performing” to “high-performance."

Vince Cook
EVP & CFO, AccentCare

"After several years of exceptional growth, it became important to pull our executive team together to refocus our strategy and commitment to teaming. We determined that an outside consultant would be helpful to facilitate this process and create a clear and concise agenda. We sought input from a number of trusted partners in the Orange County market, and Brainard Strategy’s name came up again and again.

Michael met with our CEO and me to discuss the outcomes and options for the process. We sought to both develop our executive team’s ability to work better together and to develop/refine a set of strategic objectives that would guide the business over the coming two years. Michael interviewed all of the team members, and then worked with us to refine the agenda and outcomes while offering the benefit of his insight. Michael then facilitated a series of meetings that resulted in a set of strategies that we are successfully implementing today. Michael introduced us to a team functioning assessment that gave us a starting point for the team development process. That model and language have been immensely helpful to our team.

Michael’s blend of assessment skills, facilitation capabilities, and pragmatism helped our team and company to gain ever more focus on the highest value activities and have helped us to work better together."

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Team Building & Executive Alignment

Team Building

At Brainard Strategy real team building - the kind that creates lasting behavioral changes that work - requires commitment, training, and practice. Our approach is designed to promote interaction and provide insight into the way in which we as individuals think, communicate, solve problems, and manage conflict. By gaining a better understanding of ourselves and the other members of our team, we can enhance our ability to interact and increase the effectiveness of our communication. The result is increased commitment, positive behavior, improved working relationships, and superior team performance.

Executive Alignment

Executive alignment involves facilitating an understanding and appreciation of team member roles and responsibilities and how these fit into the overall functioning of the organization. When individuals are strategically aligned, their skills and expertise are fully utilized for synergistic results. Brainard Strategy helps clients create alignment across functions, teams, and/or individuals to maximize performance

MORE TESTIMONIALS

	Shelly Applegate HR Director, Life Technologies
"We had a major corporate initiative being driven by one of our teams of Ph. D. scientists.  This team is incredibly smart, but less than incredibly appreciative of the importance of teaming and / or the impact of true organizational leadership.  It was difficult to get this type of team to be open enough to be willing to learn something about the “soft skills” associated with a high performing team; however, the need to increase team performance was clear to all.  When I was referred to Michael, I was impressed by his way of thinking, his experience in life sciences with this type of population, and his credentials.                    Michael met with me and the leader of this team who was not yet convinced that “team building” would do any good.  Michael reframed his belief about team building to be more of a team development process….  Michael dispelled his beliefs about some kumbya session, or ropes courses, etc.  Rather, Michael’s approach was based on pre-assessment of the core issues, an agenda built upon inclusive dialogue, and objectives that were measure-able.  The team development process changed many of the key leaders’ approach to teaming and leadership.  Michael has a unique ability to communicate with highly educated and tough executives, so much so that we now leverage Michael for similar types of work with other groups.  It is meaningful to me when a member of the team that we worked with over a year ago refers to something Michael covered with that team.  I appreciate Michael and his firm, and they are a trusted partner for us at Life Technologies.   Michael’s facilitation skills and pragmatism helped many of our teams go from “performing” to “high-performance."
	Sarah Gunhouse VP of US Sales, Biosite Diagnostics Inc San Diego, California
“We realized that while we were having great business success, in order to continue at our current rate of growth we needed to assist our Regional Sales Directors in the development of certain skill sets. We sought to strengthen their own leadership and management awareness, and then provided them the opportunity to build their own teams in a much more effective manner. Brainard Strategy took our team through a 360 degree assessment and the DISC assessment. These were valuable tools for both our sales management team and our sales representatives, as they helped us to better understand ourselves and lead our teams. Going forward, we were able to link the assessments to our own sales training. This has helped us build stronger leaders and has enhanced our effectiveness with our customers.”

Robert Nascenzi CEO, Claritas Software San Diego, California

Our business was mature and our brand was strong, but we had been through a couple of mergers and the executive team was a mix of past competitors. Our Teamwork had broken down and the company was under increasing pressure from outside sources. Alignment among the executive team was critical. Michael Brainard provided an effective method to diagnosis the team, which helped me to restructure the team and helped the executives themselves achieve greater alignment across functions. His process centered approach, business acumen, facilitation skills, and pragmatism helped us over the course of 6 months to work better as a team and to renew and gain focus around our Mission, Vision, Values, and core functional strategies."

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