- Title: AUSTRALIA: A corporate leadership course uses horses to mirror staff behaviour
- Date: 22nd March 2008
- Summary: *** NO SLATE INFORMATION *** (L!2) O'CONNEL, NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA (RECENT) (REUTERS) MEN RIDING HORSES DOWN THE COUNTRY SIDE COURSE ATTENDEES LISTENING COURSE INSTRUCTORS NEXT TO HORSES COURSE ATTENDEES SITTING AND LISTENING WOMAN LISTENING COURSE ATTENDEES SURROUNDING HORSE COURSE ATTENDEES PATTING HORSE (SOUNDBITE) (English) RESEARCHER, PROGRAM FOUNDER, BETH DUFF SAYING: "The reason why we work with horses in preference to other creatures for this particular work is that if you look at the system that operates in a herd of horses, the leadership is based on respect and trust. With dogs for example, it is about who feeds them, so if you're feeding a dog, even if you're beating it up, the dog is still going to come back. Unless you have respect and trust and show that, the horse's going to go away so they are looking for the kind of leadership that in fact has been looked in the workplace today." COURSE ATTENDEES DOING EXERCISE WITH HORSE HORSE COURSE ATTENDEES KNEELING NEXT TO HORSE COURSE ATTENDEES HOLDING ONTO LEG OF HORSE (SOUNDBITE) (English) RESEARCHER, PROGRAM FOUNDER, BETH DUFF SAYING: "In this exercise the horse is very much like the customer and therefore here Fly is actually being quite thoughtful and hasn't shuffled around a great deal, but quite often the horse's just keep moving all the time, because they are bored and people not paying attention to them so again it is that fact that is living an actual giving feedback." HORSE LOOKING AT THE CROWD COURSE ATTENDEES SURROUNDING HORSE (SOUNDBITE) (English) COURSE ATTENDEE, PETER HARRISON SAYING: "It is really a memorable experience, you know, to discover something in the presence of a horse is something, you know, being from the city it is not an every day occurrence so it's not likely to be forgotten very quickly and I guess the other thing would be that I agree with another thing they say you are quite calmed and it's quite a sort of bodily experience with the horse which is quite an intense sort of learning environment as well." HORSES ON FIELD HORSE WALKING
- Embargoed: 6th April 2008 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Australia
- Country: Australia
- Topics: Environment / Natural World,Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
- Reuters ID: LVA7A8ANHTOMOQW4ODMLH3B5HME3
- Story Text: A corporate leadership course in Australia helps managers understand how they impact their team with the help of horses as listeners.
Deep in the Australian bush, leadership trainers Jerry, Fly, Hope, KC and Sultan put a group of managers through their paces. While lacking formal qualifications, the trainers use good old fashioned horse sense to teach their students management, leadership and communication skills.
Ranging from a chestnut Arab mare to hardy stock horses, the 'trainers' are the star attractions at what is believed to be Australia's first equine leadership course.
Horses have been used for years in various types of therapy, including psychotherapy and helping handicapped children. The use of horses for management training is a relatively new field but it already has a track record of success.
Beth Duff, a doctoral student who observed the course for her research on learning with horses says horses are good in understanding the human's body language, and they respond to it as well.
There are also other reasons that make the horse a good choice to train managerial skills Duff says.
"The reason why we work with horses in preference to other creatures for this particular work is that if you look at the system that operates in a herd of horses the leadership is based on respect and trust.
With dogs for example, it is about who feeds them, so if you feeding a dog, even if you beating it up the dog is still going to come back unless you have respect and trust and show that, the horse's going to go away so they are looking for the kind of leadership that in fact has been looked in the workplace today," says Duff Students spend up to seven hours a day with their horses, taking part in both individual and group activities, but they never actually ride the horses. Instead, they work in groups of three carrying out seemingly mundane tasks such as getting the horses to move from one end of a paddock to another without touching the animals.
Graeme Phillips, who runs the course with his wife Annie at their property about 200 kilometres (125 miles) west of Sydney, believes horses are great teachers as they give honest feedback on people's body language and behaviour.
It's easier said than done and requires keen communication skills and team work.
Peter Harrison, one of 20 managers who was invited to the premier course, hopes it will help him improve his communication skills and be a more effective manager in his coffee roasting business.
"It is really a memorable experience, you know to discover something in the presence of a horse is something you know being from the city it is not an every day occurrence and is not likely to be forgotten very quickly and I guess the other thing would be that I agree with another thing they say you are quiet calmed and there is quiet a sort of bodily experience with the horse which quiet an intense sort of learning environment as well," said Harrison.
Graeme Phillips insists the course is not scripted, they don't train their horses to behave like that, it is natural for the animals who live in the Australian outback surrounded by Rolling hills, a gum tree forest, sheep and kangaroos grazing. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
