Sonoco NZ Limited

The client

Sonoco New Zealand Ltd is a manufacturer and supplier of paper based tubular packaging products. As a US owned company, it has a particular emphasis on operational health and safety. It employs 25 people in its Auckland based factory. Denise Baxter is the Plant Manager.

The challenge

Many of Sonoco's supervisors had been with the company for years and had built good technical skills. However Denise and the management team recognised that some felt uncomfortable communicating at a supervisory level and hadn't developed the skills they needed to communicate effectively. This meant that the team wasn't working together as well as it could.

The solution

Sonoco asked Workbase to run a short workshop for all supervisors and managers. Its focus was on communication. This meant that the workshop participants had a range of abilities and educational levels but Sonoco felt that it was important for everyone to gain the same understanding of what good communication required. The workshop materials used were based on Sonoco's own health and safety policies and resources which made it relevant for all participants. The workshop included typical scenarios from the workplace and focused on speaking and listening skills, giving instructions and getting feedback.

The results

The workshop was successful on two levels. It acted as a bonding exercise between supervisors and managers which improved communication between them. It also showed everyone:

• how to instruct staff effectively
• how to structure feedback sessions to obtain improvements promptly
• how to give effective feedback (positive and corrective)

Denise noticed that the workshop made an immediate difference.  The participants started using the skills they learnt straight away and managers also noticed increased feedback from staff and a more positive environment within the workplace.