Hampshire Business Matters

Hampshire Business Matters - LEAP

Hampshire Business matters to LEAP, a local company that specialises in developing people, performance and productivity, which is delivered through teambuilding, soft skills training, CSR and leadership programmes. LEAP, founded by Paul J Stevens, is passionate about investing wisely in a company’s biggest asset – People.

Based in Lymington, near Southampton, his company Leap is a successful outfit that delivers a variety of teambuilding, training, facilitated events, motivational conference speeches and development programmes in the UK, Europe and Middle East to many well known clients. ‘We have been delivering memorable events and benefits for clients such as Dior, Lauder, Lloyds TSB, Shire Pharma, Tesco and European Central Bank for four years, under the LEAP banner. Yet,’ explains PJ Stevens, ‘by comparison, we are rarely asked to work for the Hampshire and Dorset businesses. In 2006/7 we delivered more programmes in Europe than UK, and worked more in Edinburgh than Southampton. It’s fabulous working for top clients and companies, we have a magnificent job, and it would be great to deliver increases in performance and productivity for other businesses and teams based in our home region.’

There are fabulous businesses operating in this central southern region in banking and insurance, property, drinks, pharma, marine, legal, travel, education, hotels and IT, all with something in common; people. ‘We are all in the people business, working with them, selling to or buying from them. Remember, it’s people that drive a business forwards, slow it down, or even put it in reverse,’ continues PJ, as he is widely known.

According to a number of surveys, the biggest reducible cost in business today is to be made in relationships. Some 25% of a manager’s time is wasted to unwarranted conflict and misunderstanding, whilst some 60% of performance issues have roots in people matters. LEAP delivers development programmes and teambuilding events which are designed to drive up trust, understanding, engagement, motivation, ownership and productivity whilst driving down the costs of sick days, poor management, unwarranted conflict, personality clashes, low morale and staff turnover.

Many clients measure the success of the programmes, on their own success. One Swiss client, noted that employee engagement doubled during the delivery of the communication and leadership programme to their entire 600 staff, of whom 98% rated the series of workshops, as Excellent. Whilst a Lloyds TSB client wrote of a recent programme, ‘Probably the best performance teambuilding programme I have been on in 18 years at the Bank’. Other LEAP clients have measured their success against the colour of their Olympic Medal, their increase in Sales, the number of Premiership Goals they score or the level of leadership in the team.

LEAP is concerned with, and prides itself on, helping people to do what they do, even better, so, whether you are part of a local football club or the business director for a well know Insurance brand, if you want to increase productivity for Points or Pounds, it is people that make the difference.

Current work for LEAP includes graduate development for a financial institution; helping a German oil company to grow its people and profit; coaching key people in a highly innovative Spanish film company; and running a series of fun and stimulating team building (leadership) workshops for a World Media Group. LEAP is currently engaged by two landmark Schools in Southampton, and this is a welcome and rare opportunity to work for local people. In his desire to grow Hampshire business, PJ is developing a strategy with Guy Robinson, HR & Business Services Partner at BDO, Southampton, to engage with local businesses.

‘The degree to which people manage their relationships is very often the degree to which they are successful,’ comments PJ. These words are born out by Guy Robinson, "Team working and communications are really important in today's competitive environment. It's not good enough to be professional; one must also have great soft skills. Individuals must be skilled at networking, communicating and building effective relationships. Many of these skills cascade from the HR policies adapted by an organisation, from their culture and values. My firm, BDO Stoy Hayward, accountants, participate with Bond Pearce, solicitors, and LEAP, the people development company, in an HR Breakfast Club meeting in Southampton, which uniquely combines HR, employment legislation and people development, leadership and team building, to help local businesses develop these skills through a combination of learning and sharing great practice amongst each other. Understanding legislation is one thing, but it is quite another to be able to apply it practically and in a way that develops the business and its people."

As JD Rockerfeller once said, The ability to work with people is as purchasable a commodity as coffee or sugar, but I'll pay more for it than any other ability under the sun.

Your people business matters to you, it matters to us, so make 2008 a LEAP Year to remember for you and your people. For an invitation to the Breakfast Club, or to engage directly with PJ Stevens at LEAP, call him on 01590 642 886 or email pj@leapplc.com