At Berlineaton we’re celebrating 30 years serving alongside visionary leaders committed to delivering stronger futures for their organizations.
Looking Forward, We Reaffirm Our Ongoing Promise to You
Ethically Grounded
It has always been important to us to be truthful, honest, and responsible in all areas of life, in our professional work and in our personal lives, in the people we are, who we hire, and who we choose to work alongside. This will always be our anchor.
Data Driven
We aim to harness the power of data in all we do, and in the future use data and evidence more fully to inform our work.
Adaptive
We commit to continuous learning and improvement and building this into our work.
Making A Difference
At the end of the day, this is what keeps us going and why we exist. Without this, there would be no Berlineaton.
30 Years of Methodologies, Tools and Tips for You to Download.
Organizational Effectiveness
Organizational Effectiveness Model
Our first tool is our seminal model of Organizational Effectiveness which started everything off, 25 years ago. It provides a lens to see what creates organizational effectiveness and based on this, what interventions could be used to improve.
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People Development
Executive Coaching Approach
Our second tool is from our People Development Service Area. Here you’ll find out about our approach to Executive Coaching, our six steps of a coaching engagement and tips to get the most out of it!
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People Development
GROW Model
This is a tool we use with our Executive Coaching clients. We’ve included 25 questions you can use to get the most out of it!
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Continuous Improvement
The Power of Team Process Mapping
Our process mapping tool has been a staple in our set of tools. It has helped many of our clients come together in a fun, engaging, and objective forum to discuss process improvements, by looking at current processes, identifying areas of opportunity for improvement, and then redesigning the processes for implementation.
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Continuous Improvement
Continuous Improvement Methodology and Toolkit
Our Continuous Improvement Methodology has been in place for over 20 years, and we have developed many tools and templates to assist us with clients. While an entire process is more than 6 tools, we wanted to share with you some of the templates we use and invite you to try them out.
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Strategy Development & Execution
SWOT Analysis
At Berlineaton, we pair the analytical strength of a SWOT Analysis with an authentic opportunity to engage stakeholders and constituents to create collaborative SWOT Consultation Sessions. Alongside this framework, we’ve included questions you can use to facilitate your own SWOT Consultation Sessions.
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Strategy Development & Execution
Problem Solving Model
At Berlineaton, we adapted George Polyas’s 4-step model (c. 1945) into a more robust 7-step model, modernizing it for today’s workplace and challenges. It has helped us, and our clients solve problems, large and small and is adaptable for both. Alongside this model, we’ve included explanations about what to do at each step, and key questions that will help you use this model.
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People Development
William Bridges’ Transition Model
At Berlineaton, we use Bridges’ model as a foundation to guide leaders on how to best manage change. It has helped us coach leaders on how to recognize the human side of change and integrate people-focused strategies into change management plans.
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People Development
Communicating During Times of Change
When communicating change, we recommend leaders build the case for change, set the conditions required to make the transformation successful, and develop a communication plan that recognizes each person’s perception of what the change means them to them. At Berlineaton, we use a change communication matrix to help construct messaging that will address all audiences’ perceptions of the change that is happening.
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People Development
Tuckman’s Model: The 5 Stages of Team Development
Tuckman’s Model is a key tool in helping teams become high performing. We came across this model in the early days of Berlineaton, and it has guided our work for over two decades. Whether teams know it or not, they are moving through various phases. Sadly, some teams never get beyond “Storming”, and for those who have experienced this, they are very challenging situations. On the other hand, those teams that experience “Performing” have indelible memories about how great it was and seek to replicate this in their future teams.
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Collaborative Solutions
How to Host Better Virtual Meetings
One thing we all have in common is that we all attend a lot of meetings in our work day! Some are better than others. Since the onset of COVID-19, traditional in-person meetings have shifted to virtual platforms with individuals and organizations adapting the way they prepare for host, participate, and follow-up from meetings. In this post, we provide 10 tips you might find helpful when hosting or attending a virtual meeting.
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Collaborative Solutions
Best Practices and Tools for Effective Meetings
Given we spend so much time in meetings, it’s worth the investment to make them as effective as possible. At Berlineaton, we endeavour to model effective meetings consistently by paying attention to 3 key elements: (1) Preparation, (2) Delivery and (3) Follow Up. We use tools, including meeting agendas, action trackers and session evaluations to increase the effectiveness of these elements. In this post, we provide a series of best practices and tools to help make the meetings you attend more effective.
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People Development
Personal Strategic Plan
The turmoil of this pandemic has led many of us to reassess our personal, career, and financial priorities. As we make decisions about our future, it is essential to have a north star to guide us. A personal strategic plan is a powerful tool to define your north star for 2022, and beyond. We have taken our organizational strategic planning methodology and revised it for personal use. Give it a try and see if it helps you gain clarity during these uncertain times.
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Strategy Development & Execution
Strategy Development & Execution Methodology
For the past 25 years, Berlineaton has been helping leaders set a bold course, with an aspirational vision, unique purpose, guiding values and effective strategies. Using our highly engaging and collaborative 6-step Strategy Development & Execution Methodology, we’ve helped hundreds of clients design exciting, bold and courageous futures, coupled with achievable, well-executed plans.
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Strategy Development & Execution
Strategic Framework
Our Strategic Framework serves as a “plan on a page”, and includes an organization’s Vision (desired future), Mission (unique purpose), Values (beliefs that drive behaviour) at the top. VMV are further articulated into Goal Pillars, which are broad results that when achieved move an organization closer to living its mission and fulfilling its vision. Under Goal Pillars lie Strategic Priorities, the handful of ‘must dos’ and the non negotiables required to achieve your goals. Nested under each Strategic Priority are key activities which articulate who will do what by when to achieve the Strategic Priorities.
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Strategy Development & Execution
Tactical Planning Template
Our Tactical Planning template helps execute the plan on the page, and turn words into actions and results by helping organizations to identify and define the key activities required to achieve the goals and strategic priorities that underpin their vision, mission and values. Key activities are an essential part of defining how each strategic priority will be achieved, including who will do what by when, resourcing, and its importance. While strategic priorities can endure over many years, tactics in a tactical plan are typically refreshed every 12-18 months.
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Data & Insights
Communicating Insights from Data
Data is critical to decision making. At Berlineaton, this is an area we continue to invest in, and encourage our clients to do the same. In 2020, we officially opened our Data and Insights practice and entered into a partnership with Qualtrics. This leveled up our abilities, and we haven’t looked back. Drawing insights from data is a skillset all on its own and requires a thoughtful blend of art and science. These five principles guide us in our work.
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Organizational Effectiveness
Board Governance Framework
Boards govern a multitude of organizations and yet, effective board governance is an ongoing quest. For the past 25 years, Berlineaton has been helping Board’s and the organizations they govern become more effective. Recently, we developed a Board Governance Model that outlines the drivers and attributes of effective boards. Our goal is to help Board’s self assess and then create action plans for improvement.
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People Development
Principles of Adult Learning
Andragogy, or Adult Learning Theory, recognizes that adults learn differently than youth or adolescents and require different approaches. We begin with 4 “must haves” for adult learning and provide 6 adult learning principles. At Berlineaton, we use these principles daily.
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Collaborative Solutions
Appreciative Inquiry
Appreciative Inquiry is a strengths-based approach to problem-solving. It involves the art and practice of asking questions that heighten positive potential. At Berlineaton, our approaches to solving complex problems consistently use Appreciative Inquiry.
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Collaborative Solutions
Open Space Conference
The Learning Organization Assessment (LOA) is one of our core tools for helping organizations assess their learning capabilities across three building blocks and ten dimensions, providing a practical starting point to analyze results and take meaningful action.
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People Development
Giving & Receiving Feedback
One of our most important tools came to us via our friends at The Roy Group, almost 20 years ago. It has stood the test of time and has had a profound impact on our work, how we do things internally at Berlineaton, and how we work with clients. It is the Feedback Model, and while simple, when applied well and consistently, this tool has the power to eclipse old ways of giving feedback and seed a dynamic, feedback rich culture that improves engagement, performance and results!
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Continuous Improvement
Deming’s PDSA Cycle and Principles of Continuous Improvement
Dr. Deming loomed large in Berlineaton’s early days. His work, beliefs, and principles guided the development of our Continuous Improvement methodology, which kickstarted our firm’s 25-year journey in March of 1996.
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People Development
How to Build a Learning Organization
The Learning Organization Assessment (LOA) is one of our core tools for helping organizations assess their learning capabilities across three building blocks and ten dimensions, providing a practical starting point to analyze results and take meaningful action.
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People Development
Creating a Team Charter
A Team Charter is one of our core tools for aligning teams around why they exist, how they work together, and what they aim to achieve, creating clarity that strengthens performance, collaboration, and overall team experience.
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Three Chairs Exercise
The Three Chairs Exercise is a practical and powerful coaching tool we use to help individuals explore challenges from multiple perspectives, creating space for reflection, surfacing deeper insight, and supporting clearer, more intentional next steps.
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Demings 14 Points for Management
Deming’s 14 Points for Management are a powerful framework that helps leaders strengthen systems, build a culture of quality and learning, and drive sustained organizational performance.
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People Development
Wheel of Life
The Wheel of Life is one of our core coaching tools, helping individuals step back and assess their level of satisfaction across key areas of life, creating clarity on where to focus for meaningful change.
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Clarifying Core Values
Clarifying Core Values is a reflective tool that we use in coaching to help coachees name what matters most, test decisions against those values, and choose actions that support greater alignment and integrity.
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People Development
The Johari Window
The Johari Window is a simple and practical model that we use to help individuals expand self-awareness, build trust, and improve communication by exploring what is open, hidden, blind, and unknown.
DOWNLOADThank you to all our clients for these 30 years, some of which are noted:
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Berlineaton staff are proud members of the Canadian Association of Management Consultants. In 2021, Shelly Berlin & Richard Eaton were awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award for their contribution to the profession.