Leadership Training at Bravida is Built on Collaboration and Flexibility

An internal leadership program must not be static. On the contrary, its ability to have a significant and noticeable impact in daily operations depends on its flexibility and adaptability to current challenges. This is the assessment of Bravida’s HR Development Manager, Dorthe Ulriksen. Read about Bravida's their collaboration with CfL.

By Nikolai Steensgaard, Business Journalist, November 2024

Ther world is dynamic and companies and organizations must constantly adapt to new challenges and strategies. Therefore, it is essential that internal leadership training also evolves and addresses the current issues faced by participants.

This is the view of Dorthe Ulriksen, HR Development Manager for approximately 3,000 employees at Denmark's largest technical installation and service contractor, Bravida. For this reason, she maintains ongoing dialogue with CfL, which assists with the company's internal training.

"We have a collaborative, dialogue-based partnership. You could say that CfL provides the tools, while we provide the substance and the real-world challenges we encounter daily. This ensures that our internal leadership training continuously evolves," she says.

A framework with room for adjustments

The idea is that the world is constantly changing, and addressing current, pressing issues helps make the training relevant and practical for participants. However, this doesn’t mean every training program is entirely new, she points out.

“Of course, we have a framework for the programs, but the collaboration and adjustments reflect what is happening in the world and within the company. If something significant happens, like a leadership or strategy change, we adapt the training accordingly—to ensure the content remains relevant to the participants' daily experiences,” she explains.

360-degree assessment

Bravida provides leadership training across multiple levels. At CfL, Strategic Leadership Consultant Lars Hemmingsen oversees the planning and implementation of Bravida's internal training program for department managers and leaders just below top management.

The most recent program for this group concluded just before the summer of 2024. It was a nine-month program with 12-13 participants, divided into six two-day modules. Key focus areas included:

• Situational leadership based on the theories of American leadership expert Ken Blanchard. CfL is a Certified Blanchard Partner.
• Psychology and self-awareness using classical theory, including Carl Jung’s personality types.
• Behavior-based development using the core quadrant model developed by Dutch leadership consultant and author Daniel Ofman.
• Inner goals and motivation with the GROW coaching model, which stands for Goal, Reality, Options, and Will.

Conclusion with a 100-Day Plan

The integration of theories among participants was ensured through dialogue and discussions, as well as via a 360-degree assessment. This process required participants to evaluate themselves both before and after the program, with input also gathered from their employees and supervisors. The goal was to enhance participants' self-awareness.

Additionally, the program concluded with participants developing and presenting a 100-day plan outlining how they would actively apply and implement their newly acquired skills in practice. These presentations were made before Bravida’s CEO, Christian Alsø.

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Stron professional skills

Bravida Denmark is part of a larger Swedish group. As a technical installation and service contractor, the company covers disciplines such as electrical, plumbing, ventilation, cooling, security, and fire and safety systems. It undertakes projects in buildings and infrastructure, including the Great Belt Bridge and ongoing efforts to electrify society.

These projects mean the company employs many staff with a trade education. Such employees possess strong professional skills, making them ideal candidates for the leadership responsibilities that frequently arise. However, this background also presents challenges, explains Dorthe Ulriksen.

“Many have a strong technical foundation for becoming leaders. For example, if you’re an engineer or an installer, you often lack insight into leadership disciplines. That’s why it’s crucial to cover all the fundamental steps, including self-awareness, leadership tools, and Bravida’s corporate strategy,” she says.

Networking with great value

This focus is essential in a large, multifaceted company like Bravida, where alignment is a key element of the training.

“Our structure is very decentralized, both geographically and in terms of self-managed units. For instance, plumbing managers in two neighboring cities might never communicate because they don’t work on projects together.”

“In practice, however, they perform the same tasks. During the training sessions, they can meet, exchange ideas, and build networks. This is highly valuable—both for the individual and the company,” she explains.

Long-term partnership with CfL

Bravida has partnered with CfL on leadership training since 2018. In practice, the training sessions are conducted with both a consultant from CfL and an HR representative from Bravida present. This approach aims to combine the best of both worlds, explains Dorthe Ulriksen.

“The long-term collaboration means the external consultant has insight into our company, but most importantly, they bring the right tools.Internally, we keep up to data and are aware of the needs, whether it’s addressing current challenges or implementing a new strategy,” she says, adding:

“That’s why dialogue between training sessions is so important. It’s during these discussions with CfL that we address current challenges. This is where I can ask, ‘Which tools should we focus on right now?’”

Active day-to-day mentoring

Bravida’s leadership training supports a goal of helping leaders transition “from managing operations to driving them.” This means that technically skilled leaders must learn to delegate tasks and focus on customers. They need to learn how to lead, and participants often gain additional insights during the program.

“Leadership as a discipline includes introspection. I’ve seen participants adopt healthier lifestyles after the program, focusing on sports and dietary habits. Quite a few have even started winter swimming,” she says, adding:

“Sometimes I also hear how participants connect with one another and actively use each other for mentoring in their daily work. It makes them better. They enjoy it. And honestly, that’s one of the things that leaves the biggest impression on me personally.”

Bravida Denmark

Bravida Denmark is the country’s largest technical installation and service contractor for buildings and infrastructure. The company provides comprehensive solutions in electrical systems, plumbing, ventilation, and other technical functions, as well as maintenance services. It is a subsidiary of the large Swedish group of the same name, with its Danish headquarters in Brøndby. Bravida employs approximately 3,000 people in Denmark.