As part of our pro bono development work for communities, Sheppard Moscow Asia Pacific delivered a very rewarding two-day workshop for the management team at Sunbeam Place, one of Singapore Children’s Society’s nine centres.

Background
Singapore Children’s Society helps protect and nurture children and youth of all races and religions, especially those who are abused, traumatised, neglected, and/or from dysfunctional families. Sunbeam Place is the Society’s only residential centre, and provides the children with a temporary home where they receive the care and support they need to help them through their difficulties then reintegrate into society.

How we helped
Sunbeam Place’s management team had undergone several years of considerable changes, including three Director changes, which was heavily impacting on its ability to run the organisation effectively. The team members and the Director were not interacting well and there was uncertainty about their focus and each other.

We were approached to help resolve the team’s difficulties, and initially met with the Director and each team member individually to diagnose the situation. Based on our findings, we designed a two-day team-building workshop, which we delivered in June.

During the workshop, it became very clear that in spite of differences between the team members, both as individuals and in terms of their ideas, what they had in common was a deep commitment to helping the children. The workshop helped them appreciate and recognise these differences as well as their strong shared values, and with our help, they jointly developed a common vision for the residential home, the children and their team, and pledged to each other to make it work. They also began learning how to interact and relate to each other during stressful times, with relationships significantly improving during the two days and the group growing much closer. The Director felt a lot more positive and confident about the entire team, and was able to communicate to the group that she was aware that her leadership style needed some development. The team in turn committed to helping her achieve this.

We revisited the team at Sunbeam Place four months later to check on progress and keep the momentum going. During this time further changes had taken place within the team, however members were now better able to support each other and maintain their sense of unity and purpose.

Commenting on the positive benefits of the workshop, the Director of Sunbeam Place said:

"Thank you so much for this team-building workshop that tailored to our needs. It was excellent and I came away with quite a few new learnings. Following the workshop we have continued to practise and build on what we learned about ourselves and each other. We have seen its impact on our relationships and the effectiveness of the team in the workplace. On behalf of Sunbeam Place, I deeply appreciate Sheppard Moscow's wonderful work. Thank you".

For more information about Singapore Children’s Society go to www.childrensociety.org.sg

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