What would you do if you had a monumental capital procurement programme ahead of you but your team was short of skills, mismanaging time and lacking in self-confidence? When we faced that situation at Transnet – which owns and operates South Africa’s railways, ports and pipelines – the answer was a boot camp.
The concept is based on the “mini-MBA” programmes that are available in North America. It is designed to be an intensive training intervention that focuses on technical skills development, company-specific methodologies and staff motivation. We wanted to ensure that our staff were introduced to skills that would prepare them for the upcoming challenges and give them the confidence to cope with stressful demands on their time and capabilities.
Our first boot camp was a joint effort with another organisation and involved 40 “cadets” from senior management from both parties. The cadets were purposely given little information about the event to maximise confusion and insecurity. Over the eight-day event, we sequestered them in an unknown location, gave them late-night assignments and banned cellphones and laptops during training.
After the first day, which focused on teambuilding, choosing teams and understanding their personal profiles, the cadets started their days with a presentation on an assignment given to them the night before followed by six hours’ training, an hour’s teambuilding and another assignment. An awards ceremony marked the last night.
Constant pressure was applied by focusing on timekeeping (late arrivals were locked out of the auditorium), ensuring cadets moved around at a fast pace and monitoring performance at the team and individual level. The cadets were given the message that anything was negotiable except time, making for some unique requests.
The cadets became self-confident and independent, making crucial staffing decisions and brokering deals. As most of them were drawn from a public enterprise background, this was unexpected. More importantly, they generated excellent ideas for future strategic sourcing events and opportunities for collective go-to-market strategies.
We have since run another boot camp and have learned the following lessons:
1. Make your event a fitting length
Ensure that the duration of the event suits the audience. If it’s too short you won’t build and maintain pressure; too long and they will sleep in the aisles. We found eight days was suitable for general practitioners but the second boot camp was for capital expenditure purchasers, so it lasted five days.
2. Follow a theme in your syllabus
Ensure the syllabus is balanced and follows a specific theme. The trainer should not be the same person as the leader. Ensure you have numerous instructors, internal and external, whom you’ve checked out before the event.
3. Ensure there is a cultural fit
If mixing organisations, make sure there is a cultural fit. It is difficult to run an event focused on meritocracy if the other organisation is geared towards rewarding the few. Make sure the rewards reflect the effort that the cadets will put in. The reward for our cadets is participation in the CIPS Learning in Action programme. The rewards must be exclusive to create a demand for the training.
4. Protect against stress
We had a ratio of four cadets to one facilitator. The facilitator was responsible for ensuring cadets got the support they needed and that no one would suffer from excess stress. We had a psychologist on call just in case, but a doctor would have been more useful as the “desk jockeys” suffered bodily injuries during the teambuilding events. We also had an impartial cross-organisation panel that provided a critique of presentations and kept track of scores.
5. Find a suitable location
The location is critical. You need an intimate location where the cadets can find places to work in small groups, the food must be good and you need to be able to bus cadets to and from the camp so they are not tempted to drive home for a quick visit with their families.
6. Pick a ‘tough love’ leader
You need a tough leader who will provide suitable pressure and drive the cadets through the process. The leader needs expertise in procurement as well as the ability to motivate. A loud voice doesn’t hurt either!
Monique Petit (monique.petit@transnet.net) is strategy manager, supply management, at Transnet in Johannesburg
