The

Engagement

Academy

An online programme that'll help you get your teams and stakeholders engaged in a change in 6 weeks. Guaranteed.

Starting 13th January 2020

Do you need to get people engaged in a change?

If you're a leader and you're reading this, the answer is Yes!— and a lot of it!

One of the most challenging needs for leaders today is engaging people in change, whether that’s engaging teams in transformation, customers in new products and services, or communities in a change to new ways of being and living.

If you’re a leader and a manager inside a changing organisation, you’ll know how this is. You’re excited about the change you’ll all be going through, and you genuinely believe this is going to be amazing. But it’s increasingly hard to get others to share your enthusiasm. It’s not that they’re bad people or bad at their jobs — they just don’t seem to care the way you do.

What makes engaging them even harder is that you can’t find the time to pause and just think about solutions, let alone implement something that’ll make this change happen.

And then to top it off, you don’t have someone you can speak frankly with about it all –  partly because they’re looking to YOU to be the ‘strong’ one.

…Does this sound familiar? Then maybe I can help.

What if…

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What if 2020 could be your most engaging year yet?
What if you had a clear vision of change that your team was fully behind in heart, mind and behaviour?

Engaged teams are 20% - 40% more productive, with higher levels of innovation, and a minuscule amount of turnover: exactly what you need to make change happen.

What if your customers were more loyal than ever, and constantly telling others about you?

Engaged teams make for engaged customers, and engaged customers make for more competitive organisations. Organisational units that optimise for engagement outperform others to a factor of 3.5x.

And what if all the value locked up in your communities was unleashed, and you had a volunteer arm on your hands?

Engaged community members are 8x more likely to feel connected to each other, which in turn leads to higher commitment to a common cause.

The Engagement Academy is a 6-week, online programme that uses tools like Zoom and Slack to help leaders to get their teams and stakeholders engaged around a specific change

Starting 13th January 2020

It's 6 Weeks

Short enough to focus on a sprint, long enough to do it right

It's Interactive

It's not a video course, it's an online group programme

It's Results

The focus is solely on getting engagement around a change

It's Guaranteed

If you don't experience transformation, you don't pay, simple as that

What this is NOT

This is NOT just another video course, NOT an informal online mastermind, and NOT a knowledge transfer programme. You don’t have time for that.

What this IS

This is about results.

It’s about hands on work that will tackle an existing engagement need, led by myself, Scott Gould — an author, speaker and consultant in engagement. It will teach you the skills and principles of engagement through the process of doing, so that you have both created the change you need, and learned the skills to do it again.

At the academy, participants will work on an engagement need that they have identified for the duration of the 6 weeks, thereby getting the engagement around change that they need, and learning how to do it again in the process

How does it work?

Each participant begins with a 1:1 call with me (Scott), where together we identify the engagement need that the participant will be working on.

Then, each of the six weeks builds on the previous, following the same structure:

  • Private podcast. Participants learn a new model and principle of engagement each week, along with the underlying psychological theory and triggers. It’s a podcast so that it’s convenient, rather than a video that you end up never actually watching.
  • Group session. In a cohort of 10, led by me, we run a leadership meeting. We look at each participants progress, examine how each one will apply the lesson from the podcast, and tackle any specific needs.
  • Apply actions. Participants agree their own actions from the group session, which they then put into action! (And for which they are accountable for.)
  • Self and other reflection. Participants take time to reflect upon their own practice, and then comment on others during the week.
  • Personal engagement challenge. Every week each participant has a challenge, which requires them to put the psychological principles of engagement into action in order to discover first hand how they work in real life.

After the six weeks, participants finish with a second 1:1 call with me, where we review their progress, and look at what their futures steps will look like.

What will I get out of it?

Three things, guaranteed:

  1. Transformation of a current engagement need that you will work on in real time during the course;
  2. Improved capability and skill in engaging, inspiring, motivating, challenging and leading people, along with the knowledge in engagement psychology and principles under the hood
  3. A small, potent community of fellow change makers that you can now draw on.

Research suggest that for many organisations the value of a change like this is worth at least £50,000 in terms of wasted future effort alone. The educational knowledge is such that can’t be acquired without years of practice or tens of thousands in coaching fees. The transformational benefit of actual results could enter into the millions of pounds / euros / dollars.

When does it start?

The first cohort begins on 13th January and runs for 6 weeks. The application deadline is 13th December.

What is the cost?

The Engagement Academy is a £3,000 investment. However for this first cohort starting on 13th January 2020, the fee is reduced to £1,500.

Limited to only 30 seats. Application deadline is Friday 13th December. No fees are payable until your application is accepted. 

Results are guaranteed. When I work with clients I offer them a money back guarantee that I will satisfy the results we have agreed to. The same stands for The Engagement Academy. I guarantee you’ll be satisfied. If not, I will refund your fee.

Do you want to chat with me first to see if the Academy is a good fit fo you? I’d be delighted: arrange a 15-minute call with me. This call is guaranteed no pressure — if I don’t think it’s a good fit for you, I’ll say so.

Also, why not do the Engagement Assessment as a little tester of my methodology?

Testimonials

Given that the Engagement Academy is running for the first time in January 2020, I don’t have any testimonials from it yet. Therefore, what follows are a few testimonials and endorsements from my consulting, coaching, writing, speaking and events over the years:

Scott is my "go to person" for advice when I really need to find a way through a difficult situation. Needless to say his involvement in my company has had a direct impact on our effectiveness as a business that has a reputation for caring for their customers well.
Jesse Leach
Operations Manager, Riverford
I had the pleasure of starting my career in digital and social media under Scott's tutelage. His ability to break down complex leadership theories including modules on influence, vision and communication into practical and actionable steps is one of my great takeaways from my time studying under him.
Munyaradzi Hoto
CMO, Adfenix
His writing on the broad work of scattering, the cultivation involved in gathering, and ultimately developing long-term relationships that matter in people’s lives have been a helpful guide to me.
Sam Ford
Director, Cultural Intelligence, Simon & Schuster
Relationships matter. In the early days of Twitter we did all we could to build enduring connections with people – and it worked. Scott shows you how to do the same.
Claire Diaz-Ortiz
Silicon Valley innovator
Some of my clients have included:

Structure

Week 1: In The Beginning... — the universal rules of engagement

Week 2: The SPURS — making your 'IT" magnetic

Week 3: Scatter — communicating your message with clarity

Week 4: Gather — creating moving and memorable moments

Week 5: Matter — Making a meaningful difference

Week 6: The Sequel — Keeping IT strong through 2020

FAQ

Who is this for?

The course is designed entirely for the needs of change makers.

It is for anyone leading change inside or outside an organisation, regardless of industry or job function: those who are who are envisioned, bold, busy, empathetic, intelligent and passionate.

Job titles of those who would find this really suitable include: heads of department, social entrepreneurs, founders, directors of engagement, heads of comms, HR directors, marketing executives, team leaders, change managers, directors of services, OD managers, program leaders, senior officers, events managers – basically, people working on improving society through social impact, sustainability, education, technology, social justice, wellbeing, and other things such as related to the SDGs.

What’s the time commitment?

The Academy has been created to maximise your time and focus, with the aim of not having to ‘take time out’ of your busy week, but instead acting as an investment that will make you visibly more effective week-on-week.

This time investment has two facets; the direct time spent in course participation and the real-time integration of what you are learning into your existing working week. 

The course participation includes the one-to-one phone calls with me, listening to the private podcast, the group sessions, personal reflection, and the personal challenge. Most weeks this will take an average of 4 hours.

The real-time integration into your working week shouldn’t necessarily take more time but rather more intentional focus. However time spent thinking and planning will inevitably make what you are doing more effective and time efficient.

Like the famous adage attributed to Abraham Lincoln, “Give me 6 hours to cut down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe”.

When are the group sessions?

Every Monday or Tuesday. Participants will be split into groups of 10, meeting weekly at one of these times (with illustrative timezones)

  • Option 1: Monday at 2pm GMT (9am EST / 3pm CET / 4pm EET)
  • Option 2: Monday at 5pm GMT (12pm EST / 9am PST)
  • Option 3: Monday at 9pm GMT (4pm EST / 1pm PST / 8am AEDT / 10am NZDT)
  • Option 4: Tuesday at 10am GMT (11am CET / 12pm EET / 9pm AEDT)
  • Option 5: Tuesday at 2pm GMT (9am EST / 3pm CET / 4pm EET)

You can choose your preferred session time when applying, and we will do our best to allocate you to it. We will contact you if there’s any problems.

The dates of all the group sessions are:

  • Week 1: Monday 13th or Tuesday 14th January
  • Week 2: Monday 20th or Tuesday 21st January
  • Week 3: Monday 27th or Tuesday 28th January
  • Week 4: Monday 3rd or Tuesday 4th February
  • Week 5: Monday 10th or Tuesday 11th February
  • Week 6: Monday 17th or Tuesday 18th February

What is the application process?

First, fill out the application form. Once it is received, it will be reviewed within 48 hours.

If your application is successful, you will be notified and given a link to book your initial call with Scott for as soon as is possible. You will also be provided with an invoice for payment.

Along with this, you will receive access to the private podcast, group session instructions, WhatsApp group, and your first personal challenge!

What is the application deadline?

Friday 13th December 2019, for the first cohort starting on 13th January 2020.

How much does it cost?

The first cohort is an investment of £1,500. There are no other hidden costs, everything is included in this on-off fee.

Future cohorts will be priced at £3,000.

What are the requirements?

You must have a change that you need to get people engaged in, and be able to be at all the group sessions. 

Beyond that, no qualification, job role or particular career experience is necessary.

Can I check if this is suitable for me first?

Totally! You can arrange a call with me.

Where does the programme take place?

The group sessions are done online via Zoom. However, the programme “really” takes place in your daily life as you apply the principles and make things happen!

How do I pay?

Your organisation will be invoiced, and can pay by bank transfer or credit / debit card. 

What’s the guarantee?

I give all my clients a 100% guarantee that if you fully participate and apply the tools and knowledge learnt that you will see tangible results in your business.

If for whatever reason this doesn’t happen for you, you get a full refund, just like the rest of my coaching and consulting clients. (It hasn’t happened yet.)

There’s no refund if you decide to opt out, but if an unexpected life change occurs you can defer to cohort #2 for no extra charge.

I still have questions!

Still have questions? No problem! Please shoot me an email at scott@scottgould.me, or set up a call with me.

Apply

The time has come to push the button. You have two options:

You can apply right now.

And why not? It’s guaranteed engagement for you, and no fees are payable until your application is accepted.

Application deadline is Friday 13th December. For the first programme, seats are limited to 30. 

Or, you can have a call with me.

Pick a time for a no-pressure, 15-minute call to see what we could achieve for you, and if the Academy is the right fit. If you’re unsure about the Academy, do this, and get rid of any fear of regret.

Ok, so there is a third option:

Do the Engagement Assessment and find out what to do to improve your engagement. It’s a taster of what the Academy will be doing.