Tool 6 – Power Hour

The sixth tool is designed for managers to integrate regular discussions about what the team has learned and what they need to do next into the rhythm and routine of work.

It’s a simple ‘meeting in a box’  for line managers to hold team meetings that bring out the POWER of their team, unlocking their team’s:

Potential – by honouring the effort and interest of the team as we each take steps to improve
Outcomes – by encouraging sharing in pursuit of progress
Wisdom – by surfacing what we know so that we can become smarter in addressing challenges
Exploration – by providing permission and visibility to experiment and try something new
Relationships – by building relationships and trust as we help each other grow

 … and who wouldn’t want that?!

Principle: equip managers to do their job

It is one of the 9 plays outlined in the Playbook for enabling busy managers but we dig in deeper, providing templates and guidelines for you to adapt.

The tool kit provides:

• Ground rules for getting the best out of their Power Hour
• Steps to help managers and individuals prepare for the Power Hour
• A structure for the Power Hour that includes collecting stories (a great source of impact data by the way!)

Getting started

This tool aims to tackle the thorny application of learning. A great place to start will be to encourage its use over a fixed time period to support  a specific skills initiative. If it is useful, managers will continue to use the format to create a psychologically safe environment.

Fun Fact: I got the inspiration for this tool from a great skills initiative at Thomson Reuters back in 2011. Kelly Thomas, Global Head of Sales and Service Learning, introduced a Power Hour as part of a new sales academy to reskill their teams. It was part of a blend designed to shift behaviours and habits over time and the tool  helped managers coach and support new behaviours back in the workplace. You can read Kelly’s original story here.

A tool to help!

Use the Power Hour Tool when you want to help managers 

• carve out time and create rhythm
• build trust and create permission to learn and explore
• understand interests and create opportunity to practise
• accelerate results and create new pathways of success
• support self-directed learning – and create new habits for growth.

* The Power Hour Tool was created by Laura Overton as part of the Emerging Stronger toolkit to help L&D professionals thrive in the ever changing world of work. It was initially published in conjunction with our publishing partner Go1.