Friday, June 12, 2015

Build a Safer Workplace with Mandt System



Employee On-Boarding Specialties would like to help employers build the safest workplace environment possible. With that in mind, the Mandt System is a simple, but proactive method to help build a staff that encourages and supports the understanding of personal safety beginning with the individuals in management, and carrying on to each of the employees working there. Mandt System Training was originally developed to address difficult behaviors found in dealing with the mentally ill, and physically handicapped in institutional settings, but is so much more important than that. We cannot honestly believe that institutions are the only place we find difficult behaviors. Our daily lives can be full of stressful situations, both at work and at school. We can find people with difficult behaviors all around us. Some might even be family! The Mandt System’s ultimate goal is a safer workplace in all settings.

The use of Mandt System training for key members of your management can help to empower your whole staff through positive behavior supports that help build and support the dignity, respect, honesty, and trust among co-workers.  One way this training allows your staff to develop healthy relationships within the workplace is by teaching them that when a mistake happens, it is just that, a mistake. Your staff is taught that it’s not who’s to blame, but rather what went wrong and how, as a team, you can come up with a solution, and support each other to prevent the mistake from recurring.

The ultimate goal of the Mandt System is to create a safer work place by teaching concepts and skills that enhance the quality of workplace relationships.  There are three modules in the full training: 1) relational skills, which focus on the foundation of recognizing qualities needed to build a healthy relationship, and the building blocks that help us to recognize and react to a situation before it escalates into a traumatic event; 2) conceptual skills, which build on the foundational skills learned in module 1, adding a deeper understanding of positive behavior intervention and support, the effect that previous traumatic events may have on behavior, and legal considerations against physical behavioral control systems; and 3) technical skills, which teaches techniques for support and redirection if necessary.

Think of the modules as a house you are trying to build. The first module is the foundation for the house. Your staff will learn to work on building relational skills, and how to recognize and respond to difficult situations, which could be someone who may be angry, and unable to deal with anger in a healthy manner.  These relational skills are a must have for anyone in a management or supervisory position in the workplace.  It requires a full day class that focuses on building the best foundation possible, and a must for anyone looking to build a great relationship with those they work with.

 The second module builds up from the foundation that was set by then giving you a greater understanding of many things that can be the root of the problem, and how to approach effecting a change in the behavior by recognizing the triggers causing it. It encompasses healthy communication within the office environment by teaching your staff how to read both verbal and non-verbal cues.  Module 2 has now become the walls of the home you are building. This is a half day class that is recommended for anyone who wants a deeper understanding of the root cause of behavioral issues.

 The third module teaches technical skills that completely support module 1 and 2. By using the skills learned in this module, the staff would be able to support or redirect a difficult person without causing a physical confrontation, along with how to stop an altercation should it happen. It works by taking the knowledge gained in the first two modules, reading the verbal or non-verbal cues and teaching intervention methods that de-escalate rather than antagonize the problem. Module 3 composes the roof, and encloses the home to bring it all together. This module is recommended for all who work with populations that have a high likelihood of seeing physical confrontations.

Depending on your workplace environment, you may want your staff to take the foundational module only, which will teach them the skills to recognize and respond to difficult situations with greater effectiveness. Upon gaining that knowledge, an employer may decide that all three modules would be beneficial to give them a solid understanding of how to avoid or contain a problem in their work environment, should that happen. In learning to control our own behavior and not giving in to the temptation to overreact we can affect a change in the outcome. The focus is on showing dignity, respect, and honesty towards even the most difficult people. This creates an environment where your staff feels they can say “In this place and with these people, I feel safe.”  The Mandt System helps to teach the concept of “it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it” that either escalates or de-escalates a situation.  With this training your staff will be able to recognize and respond to difficult situations that may arise at work, helping to keep a more peaceful environment overall. 

Make Cheyenne a safer place to live and work. Join EOS in empowering your staff, give Kat a call at 307-640-1560 to schedule a class.

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