I had the privilege of attending a two-day Leadership workshop “Leading Effective Teams for Heads of Department” in Hong Kong facilitated by Michael Iannini, an Acamis leadership facilitator, Council of International Schools consultant, and Search Associates HRM China advisor. This training was designed for aspiring middle leaders to enhance their capacity to lead effective teams. This exceptional opportunity brought together experts and leaders from various schools, each with diverse leadership experiences.
Throughout the course, participants were provided with ample opportunities to engage in collaborative discussions and activities. Prior to the course, participants completed the DISC assessment, which enabled the facilitator to group them according to their DISC style. This exercise not only allowed us to meet and connect with people who shared a similar style to ours, but also helped us to recognize and appreciate different styles of DISC.
During the training session, Michael Iannini elucidated the distinction between supervising a working group and leading a team. It will be intriguing to witness how can I implement and execute this in practice. In preparation for the course, I also had the pleasure of reading the book “Realizing the Full Potential of Teacher Leaders: Self-Guided Book Study,” which aided me in furthering my knowledge and readiness for the training.
Hardeep Kaur
Head of Subject - GL Mathematics
Alirio Melendez - Romero
Head of Subject - EPQ
This workshop was a 16-hour well-paced and highly enjoyable CPD, led by ACAMIS’s Leadership Development Facilitator Mr. Michael Iannini, to foster a highly collaborative department culture that facilitates and encourages team members to achieve the shared purpose. With 52 participants, all middle leaders from different schools in Hong Kong and mainland China, the facilitator provided a well-designed platform for all participants to explore and share valuable experiences in leadership. The workshop was designed to engage participants in an active learning process, bringing in experiences from school cultures, strategy plans, vision, and leadership style. A very pivotal part of the workshop was to foster collaborations to create a team culture, the use of psychological metrics, such as ‘DISC’, to group us in group with similar working-habits and inclinations helped to ensure emotional safety for everyone. This encouraged open and frank discussions from real leadership issues to generate constructive suggestion from our working team members. The facilitator, Mr was very dynamic and provided a wealth of material he had prepared, including his own book (Hidden in Plain
Plain Site: Realizing the Full Potential of Middle Leaders), and a wonderful work booklet he prepared, for us to work on with a set of very dynamic and effective activities he had created.
On a personal note, this workshop enhanced my understanding of different leadership expectations to ensure equity and foster interdependence, and to establish a shared purpose for the team that aligns with the school guiding statements. I also learned how to devise strategies to ensure the team works interdependently to achieve its goals, as well as to develop and foster strong relationships with other school teams, and the school SLT, to ensure the resources are provided to empower team members to reach their full potential as educators, as well as to provide the best possible learning environment for our students. Last, but not least, I would like to thank our ADP, Mr. Richard Driscoll for recommending this programme, it was a very valuable and enjoyable CPD/workshop.
This workshop was a 16-hour well-paced and highly enjoyable CPD, led by ACAMIS’s Leadership Development Facilitator Mr. Michael Iannini, to foster a highly collaborative department culture that facilitates and encourages team members to achieve the shared purpose. With 52 participants, all middle leaders from different schools in Hong Kong and mainland China, the facilitator provided a well-designed platform for all participants to explore and share valuable experiences in leadership. The workshop was designed to engage participants in an active learning process, bringing in experiences from school cultures, strategy plans, vision, and leadership style. A very pivotal part of the workshop was to foster collaborations to create a team culture, the use of psychological metrics, such as ‘DISC’, to group us in group with similar working-habits and inclinations helped to ensure emotional safety for everyone. This encouraged open and frank discussions from real leadership issues to generate constructive suggestion from our working team members. The facilitator, Mr was very dynamic and provided a wealth of material he had prepared, including his own book (Hidden in Plain Site: Realizing the Full Potential of Middle Leaders), and a wonderful work booklet he prepared, for us to work on with a set of very dynamic and effective activities he had created.
On a personal note, this workshop enhanced my understanding of different leadership expectations to ensure equity and foster interdependence, and to establish a shared purpose for the team that aligns with the school guiding statements. I also learned how to devise strategies to ensure the team works interdependently to achieve its goals, as well as to develop and foster strong relationships with other school teams, and the school SLT, to ensure the resources are provided to empower team members to reach their full potential as educators, as well as to provide the best possible learning environment for our students. Last, but not least, I would like to thank our ADP, Mr. Richard Driscoll for recommending this programme, it was a very valuable and enjoyable CPD/workshop.
