Working Well
Five part mix ‘n match
workshop series
Beginning in January 2025
values | communication | ownership | decision-making | mental health | conflict | feedback
From January through May 2025, get together with your team once a month on Thursday/Friday mornings for some face-to-face time with them and a dedicated workshop with me.
Our workplaces have changed since 2020. With all the options to connect in via Teams and Zoom these days, many organizations are actually experiencing a work environment that feels less connected.
We don’t see each other as much face-to-face. We can’t read body language as well over video-chat, and we don’t hang around after the meeting to chat. Stress and mental health difficulties have risen. And over time, some of my clients are noticing an increase in communication issues, difficulties resolving conflict, disengagement, and loss of institutional knowledge.
While we don’t necessarily want to go back to working in the office full-time, many of us are craving more quality time with our colleagues!
This workshop series offers five monthly moments to get together face-to-face with your colleagues and reconnect while learning about those critical development topics that we don’t always make enough time for.
What’s the format?
Each monthly workshop takes place on a Thursday or Friday morning from 9:00-11:15.
9:00 — your team meets over coffee and unpacks the workshop box (with agendas, materials, and snacks). You follow instructions for a brief activity such as a self-assessment quiz.
9:30 — you connect with me on Zoom for a dedicated session with your organization.
10:30 — break (snacks provided, including chocolate, I promise).
10:45 — discussion activity to close.
What’s included?
5 workshops
Complete slide-decks
A box mailed to you with agendas, hand-outs,
and refreshments for your morning breaks
What do we have to do to prepare for each workshop?
Just make the coffee!
Mix and Match - choose any five workshop topics:
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Working Well - Virtually
Teams increasingly collaborate online. Colleagues have far less face-to-face time with one another. How do we maintain the social dynamics we need for effective collaboration? A few simple norms can make an outsized difference.
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What's Your Communication Culture?
Using Erin Meyer’s Culture Mapping technique, we will explore your workplace's norms and patterns of communication, identifying a few to hold on to and a few to change.
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Optimizing Decision-Making
We often think of good decision-making processes as those that lead to correct decisions, but how long did the decision take to make? Was it actually implemented? We'll explore the options for decision-making and how to find the sweet spot.
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Mini "Values Audit"
All organizations have values, but in what ways are they "real" -- where are they brought to life in the structures, processes, habit and norms of the organization? We'll do a brief "audit" to figure out where your organization is aligned and misaligned with its values.
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Developing an Ownership Culture
What are the ingredients to develop ownership in your workplace, and how do we get more of it? How can we develop an ownership culture that's win-win for employees and managers?
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Giving and Receiving Feedback
Using the COINS method for giving feedback and the 4P’s tool for receiving feedback, this session will help you develop your comfort, skills, and appreciation for feedback.
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Healthy Organizations for Healthy People
We offer accommodations and resources to our employees for their mental health, but what about the stress and anxiety caused by our workplaces in the first place? Learn about best practices using the Healthy House model.
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Non-hierarchical or Just Confusing?
Want to reduce hierarchy in your organization? Learn how to avoid the “Laissez-faire” trap — widespread confusion about who is doing what. In this workshop you’ll learn how to create clear coordination and accountability mechanisms regardless of whether your organization is flat, hierarchical, or somewhere in between.
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Conflict in the Workplace
Understand the difference between healthy and unhealthy conflict; learn about your preferred Conflict Mode using an abbreviated version of the Thomas-Kilmann Instrument; and practise four conflict skills to successfully navigate conflict.
What’s the cost?
$3750
Not-for-profit organization (up to 25 people)
$4650
Team/department in the public sector (up to 25 people)
Sonya Nakoneczny, Policy Analyst, Environment and Climate Change Canada:
“A true pleasure to work with, Lise’s facilitation has sparked meaningful conversations and a bold new direction, with her principles continuing to resonate across our organization.”
Brittney Chabot, Executive Director, ECO-02:
"I loved learning about the COINS Method of giving feedback and how to incorporate it into my daily practice with my employees. Lise is a fantastic facilitator who knows how to listen, and anyone would benefit from this workshop!"
Noel Burke, Adjunct Professor at McGill University, Founder of NEXTSchool and the CLC Network:
"Having worked with Lise on a variety of projects over the past ten years, I can confidently name her a ‘world-class’ workshop designer and facilitator."
Barry Anderson, General Manager, Sector Analysis, New Zealand Climate Change Commission / He Pou a Rangi
“Lise’s workshop was a useful occasion to hit the pause button as a group and think about how we work on certain things over time, and why that might change. It was valuable time well spent.”
Andrew Woodall, Dean of Students, Concordia University:
“Lise gave us deeper understanding of what was happening and made it all fun. I would highly recommend Lise to anyone.”
About me
Lise Palmer is an experienced consultant specializing in workplace culture and strategy. With Master’s degrees in Organizational Anthropology and in Human Systems Intervention, Lise has run her consulting practice for over 14 years. She has clients in the not-for-profit and public sectors, as well as Fortune 500 companies, located across North America and New Zealand.