I'm an old-school trainer. I love the simplicity of paper and face-to-face training. But after Style Matters had been out in paper for several years, demand for an online tool drove us to also develop a digital version. That was an eye-opener for me.
After dozens of hours honing our scoring algorithm, I couldn't deny that the score report our server spits out for each user mines the user data in ways I can't match in a workshop from a hand-tallied score summary. It would take quick thinking and 10-15 minutes dedicated to each participant for a trainer to come even close to the detailed insights contained in the 10 page score report generated by our server. That's just not realistic with 10-20 people in a workshop.
So I'm a reluctant convert to the digital version of Style Matters. We still sell the print version, but in my opinion the ideal approach in training is to have users take the online version before the workshop, print out the score report at home, and bring it to a live workshop. (Already, you've saved 20 minutes of group time that would otherwise be spent passing around paper forms, giving instructions, and waiting for everyone to finish!)
Then in a face to face setting take users through a learning experience (supported by this Powerpoint or your own sketch of it) that provides some input on conflict styles, reinforced by review and discussion of digital score reports in small and large group settings.
To assist this, I wrote an addition to our long-standing Trainer's Guide to Successful Conflict Style Workshops. There's a lot of trainer guidance in that guide, but it largely assumes the paper version.
The new guide presents a trainer's outline for a workshop using the score report from the online version, including links to a lot of resources to support your preparation. It'll be in the next edition of the Trainer's Guide, but don't wait. Take two minute to scan it now.two minute to scan it now.
Get the big Trainer's Guide to Successful Conflict Style Workshops. Compare Style Matters and the Thomas Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument.
