PRACTITIONER TRAINING

Well-known subject expert on adult sensory processing and PhD graduate, Dr Annemarie Lombard, is presenting an exclusive 3-day course in Cape Town and Johannesburg. The course will incorporate key theory, research and practise concepts of sensory processing for therapists, psychologists, counsellors and coaches to expand their knowledge, insight and service offering for individual clients.

The following practioners have completed the intensive training in Sensory Processing for Adults.

We are endorsing their sensory profiling and debriefing work with individual clients in coaching and therapy.

You may contact them if you require assistance in this area.

Sensory Intelligence Consulting® still reserves the exclusive and sole right for corporate training within groups.

Western Cape

Gauteng

Demands, tasks and deadlines have increased the daily frenzied distractions we are faced with in a 21st century workplace. Our brain circuits have become overloaded and we use all our energy to simply survive, doing as much as we can, as fast as we can and as best as we can, yet we don't always perform to our best potential. Despite our best efforts, our to-do lists, tasks, meetings and inboxes still grow exponentially and we are stretched, stressed, disengaged and worn-out. 
In the contact centre space we work in open plan office environments making it very difficult to escape the continuous bombardment of the senses.  As managers/leaders/supervisors you are expected to trouble shoot, problem solve, deal with people and technology issues, manage processes – all which require a high level of brain energy, thinking and reasoning.  For this you need time and space, which so often escape us. Research shows a vast increase in workplace stress and depression rated as the main occupational disease of the 21st century, placing our brains, health and self-esteems at risk. Although the brain works best with a certain amount of pressure and demand, there is a fine line between kick starting you versus throwing you over the edge.
•    Are you able to recognise your limits? 
•    How do you handle all the demands and distractions?
•    Being most efficient and resilient in the workplace takes knowledge, insight and guts! 
Workplace stress and distractions are real and constant; it cannot be avoided – it must be understood and tackled through practical, easy and effective strategies.
Understanding and reducing stress and distractions will result in better brain power, better performance and efficiency.  Business leaders owe it to their bottom line to tackle these issues and not expect employees to simply “shape up or ship out”.

Becoming Sensory Intelligent

Sensory intelligence is a fundamental, unique and innovative assessment and training platform based on brain science.  It is about understanding the senses in the primitive brain and  how this relates to the intelligence in the executive brain by acknowledging their impact and value on the way we work and engage with others.  There is a continuous back-and-forth process between how we perceive the world through our senses and how it projects action, behaviour and attention from the executive brain.  Tapping into this process has huge performance and health benefits.

Sensory intelligence is the insight and understanding of how the human brain processes millions of sensory messages on a daily basis in order to live, work and learn. We provide a platform for growth and implement fundamental and practical strategies based on core human behaviour and neuroscience to fast track the potential and performance of people.

Our vuvuzela, the “African Horn” became a proudly South African icon during our momentous World Cup Soccer!  This piece of (mostly) plastic has done what many leaders, organisations, people, groups, institutions, legislation, and many others failed to do for years.  It pulled our nation into a unity as never seen before – wow, that is powerful!

I believe that all South Africans are supporting the vuvuzela for this reason and were swept away by the energy, vibe and atmosphere of the soccer world cup.  And how we showed them!

The flip side to it is  the high noise levels and accompanied spit usually unwanted from various strangers in your immediate vicinity.

From a sensory level all the sound waves by the vuvuzela travel through our auditory channels to our brains to bring interpretation and meaning.   The vuvuzela is a noisy thing with increased decibels not very gentle on the ears.  I had to chuckle listening to various complaints of players, spectators, organisers, sport managers, etc. etc. blah blah blah on the noise levels.  The reality is that the human brain and senses are unique and work in a kind of unique way for all of us.  The brain picks up information via the senses based on your individual thresholds for each sense.  Think about pain thresholds; those with low pain thresholds feel and experience pain very easily; those with high pain thresholds are the opposite.  It takes quite a bit of poking and pinching before they feel and experience pain sensations.  Now all your senses work in kind of the same way.  For those of us with low noise thresholds the vuvuzela is really noisy, loud and uncomfortable to listen to.  For those with high noise thresholds, the opposite is true. Blowing and receiving vuvuzela sounds most definitely was constant music to your ears.  So there, thresholds are part of our genes, there is no right or wrong, so we will always have the vuvu-lovers and the vuvu-haters.  It’s all a matter of thresholds and brain works.  And then yes, we have the group with medium thresholds who have no specific aversion or love for the vuvuzela.   If we take this into consideration we should have more insight and compassion for the people around us.

The spit is received via the skin, the touch receptors which picks up all information that lands on the body where skin surfaces are.  When on your clothes, your skin doesn’t necessarily pick it up but your eyes will most definitely identify the culprits and add further information to your sensory awareness.  Your brain will take all this information in to form a picture and decide its course of action.   Thresholds also relate to touch – those with low touch thresholds will be appalled by the spit parties but those with high touch thresholds might be more likely to miss or not notice it.

What does this mean for us further?  In Sensory Intelligence we continuously empower people to gain insight into their sensory systems, thresholds and responses.  If you are noise sensitive, the strategies you apply in your open plan office environment and among your noisy 3 and 4 year old at home is to understand your irritations and distractions and make the necessary accommodations for it.

For instance – at work sitting in the corner spot, away from the fax and copy machines, and as far away as possible from Bill with his vuvuzela kind of voice would be more conducive to your performance.  Sitting in a corner will also mean less traffic behind your chair and potential touch by others.  The blow of the air conditioner can also potentially overload a low threshold touch system; so change your seating.  The mere act of changing physical work space can turn on the magic at work! Using sensory self-regulators (i.e. breathing, walking and stretching) will also reduce your stress levels, make you feel more comfortable and let you work easier.

Our focus is thus on enhancing performance in the workplace, reducing stress and distractions and creating wellness at work.  At home similar strategies apply to assist with management of an easier family dynamic.

The magic is to have the necessary insight, stop labelling yourself and others, and make the most of it.  Insight and strategies apply to both low and high threshold individuals, there is no right or wrong, just understanding the human brain better and working with it, not against it!

Long live the Vuvuzela!

Senses on Call – our call centre recruitment product and related legislation

During the past few months I’ve had some interesting conversations and various questions with regards to how Senses on Call fits within the labour law legislations, in particular with employment equity.

In order to give you the answers, consideration should be given to the employment equity act, 1998; HPCSA regulations, the Professional board for Occupational Therapy and the

Professional board for Psychology.

Just some  information to recap on the background of Senses on Call for those of you who do not know the tool.

Senses on Call is a 60-point standardised questionnaire, determining the sensory preferences of individuals and how they respond to their environments.  Some example questions:  “Do you go over to smell fresh flowers? “;”I like to wear colourful clothing”;”I stay away from crowds”.  It measures sensory thresholds and resulted responses/behaviours and becomes a management tool to optimise work and living environments for individuals.  I’ve designed it specifically for contact centre recruitment  – using the standardised testing but then presenting a report result to determine sensory suitability and thus environmental fit for the contact centre industry.  It is not a skills, psychometric or competency test.  The nature of the contact centre industry has made this the perfect work environment for this tool; as it is traditionally busy, noisy and the role of an agent is rated as one of the top 7 most stressful jobs.  I am busy completing my PhD at the University of Cape Town, which correlated sensory profiles with performance, absenteeism and attrition within 4 different contact centres in South Africa.

The employment equity act, 1998, states:

Psychometric testing and other similar assessments of an employee are prohibited unless the test or assessment that is being used:

(a) has been scientifically shown to be valid and reliable;

(b) can be applied fairly to all employees; and

(c) is not biased against any employee or group.

Senses on Call is generated from the Adult Sensory Profile, a fully validated and standardised test, designed and researched by two USA Occupational therapists and owned by Pearson.  Sensory Intelligence has electronic licensing of the tool and the results and report format have been designed based on South African research results.

Senses on Call can be applied fairly to all employees as it does not ask culturally or gender biased questions.  The test is in English and the standardisation sample does include 3 different age bands, which are considered during testing.  The test is also used for adolescents and geriatrics, therefore the different age bands as sensory needs change when young or old, based on life roles.

Senses on Call is not biased against any employee or group.  It measures genetic sensory thresholds, which is  part of general neuroscience and the way the brain is wired.  It is not determined by socio-economic status, gender or race.

HPCSA regulations:

I am a qualified and registered occupational therapist with the HPCSA (Health Professions Council of South Africa) and bound by firm ethical and professional standards.  All healthcare professions are regulated by the HPCSA and the respective professional boards are regulated by the HPCSA.

The Professional Board for Occupational Therapy:

The Occupational Therapy professional board took a firm stand on the use of standardised tests in Occupational Therapy and clearly stipulated regulations and tests accepted in Document, FORM 242.

“It should be noted that no professional group has the sole and exclusive right to uses standardised tests. Tests for functions that fall within the scope of a profession’s activities must be administered by that profession. This does not absolve that profession form being properly trained and qualified to administer those tests. Occupational

Therapists are properly qualified and will administer tests within their scope of practise.”

The following competencies are met during the training of Occupational therapists:

Have adequate knowledge and understanding of psychometrics, testing and assessment which informs and

underpins the process of testing.

Use tests in an ethical and professional manner.

Have appropriate contextual knowledge and skills.

Have good instrumental knowledge and skills in all aspects of the process of testing.

Have appropriate communication and interpersonal skills which underpin test administration, reporting and feedback.

Have contingency management skills.

The Adult Sensory Profile has been submitted to the Occupational Therapy Board for inclusion in their test list.

The Professional Board for Psychology:

The Psychology board has its own set of rules and regulations to rightfully protect their members and profession, while abiding with legislation in the business industry.  They have a test classification process by which instruments are added to the current approved list.  With the listing of a test instrument specific regulations are enforced; some of which are:

“Only persons registered with the Professional Board for Psychology under the auspices of the HPCSA may administer, score, interpret and give feedback on psychological tests. However, interpretation and feedback are limited to registered psychologists, and psychometrics’ registered in the category Independent/Private practice.”

In Summary:

Senses on Call is not a psychological test and not designed by psychologists but by Occupational

Therapists.  It is fully validated, standardised, not in any way discriminatory and belongs on the

Occupational Therapy Boards list of tests.

I hope the above information adds new insight and value and I am looking forward to your feedback.

Sensory Savvy Tips: 5 sensory steps to reduce overload and stress in open plan offices

Sensory neuroscience is understanding the brain and how it contributes to us working and living on a daily basis. Open plan office and call centre environments are traditionally busy, sensory overloaded, noisy with a high activity level.

The following are simple, yet effective strategies based on how the senses work in the brain at the level where it integrates with alert levels, stress, attention and emotion.

1. Taste: Sucking or crunching on healthy foods is regulatory for the brain (i.e. apples, nuts, carrots). The ultimate is the use of a spout water bottle – while sucking away, you will be hydrating your brain and your full bladder will mean more movement breaks!

2. Move: Movement is one of the best regulators for the brain. Stand up from your desk and take a movement break. Stretch and take a deep breath. Have lunch away from your desk! Do regular exercise!

3. Touch: Deep firm, hard pressure on the skin is calming and regulatory - that is why massage is such a great stress reliever. Put both hands on your head and squeeze down firmly for 5 seconds, relax and repeat. Fiddling with a stress ball and/or textured object are regulatory. Every wondered why some of us get such a kick out of doodling?

4. Look: Calming visual stimuli are: fish tanks, lava lamps, artwork, gentle colours and plants. Reduce clutter in your work environment as it keeps on stimulating the brain in the “background”! Reduce the amount of icons on your desktop, clear your inbox and use a structured electronic filing system.

5. Listen: Music has powerful effects on the brain. I advocate the use of an I-pod where practical and applicable. Use music that calms and regulates the brain. Play up-tempo and lively music when you need to kick start your brain, but more calming and regulatory music when overloaded and stressed.

The bottom line is: Take 5 - give your brain a break!

Corporate collisions in the workplace from a sensory perspective

Restructuring of teams, business operations and physical work space create uncertainty, stress and resulted performance issues which individuals manage differently based on type of sensory profile.

Sensory solution: Sensory Matrix for Work: Use your sensory profile results to plan and prepare for change according to personal needs and primitive drivers.

Conflict between team members:

The sensory diversity and resulted differences in habits, behaviours, operational style and managing of change impacts on team dynamics.

Sensory Solution: Sensory Team Profiling: Use the sensory profile results to gain a deeper understanding of team behaviours and habits, drop labels and embrace this necessary diversity.

High demand and high stress environments:

Your sensory profile will determine the intensity and frequency of your stress levels and impact on performance, health and wellness.

Sensory Solution: Sensory Matrix for Work: Identify your sensory stressors within the environment, self-regulate more optimally and apply sensory ergonomics to optimise your work space.

Corporate Health and wellness

I attended the Corporate Health and Wellness conference of Knowledge Resources in Johannesburg a few weeks ago. I was also a speaker and my Topic was The Value of Sensory

Intelligence for health and wellness in the corporate industry.

Here are a few interesting and valuable outcomes I would like to share with you:

* Top Fortune 500 companies spend more on health and wellness than their profit!
* Direct cost of absenteeism for South Africa seems to be around 12-19 billion per annum!
* Stress remains to be a the biggest employee wellness issue
* There is a direct correlation between employee wellness and productivity in the workplace
* A lot of emphasis was placed on health risk assessments, the cost of health, health awareness campaigns, chronic disease management, EAPs and HIV
* The value of nutrition, diet and exercise were noted

My session based the concept of employee wellness on the synergy between the person, the environment and the occupation/work. Performance is optimised when these 3 main components are aligned with one another.

Sensory intelligence initially includes a sensory profiling process after which intervention is based at 2 main levels:

SYNERGY between person and work: sensory self-regulation and sensory diets

SYNERGY between person and environment: sensory ergonomics

The final SYNERGY is the responsibility of the employer to create an organisational culture of health and wellness.

Final thought: health and wellness is also an employee responsibility but where organisations support this actively the individual as well as the organisation benefit.

Sensory Savvy synergy for wellness

Sensory self-regulation are:

Strategies used daily to maintain equilibrium for the body and de-stress. Deep breathing and getting up from your chair to move around are both self-regulation strategies.

Sensory diets are:
Activities done outside of work to address the sensory needs of individuals and improve health and wellness. Regular exercise, sport or hobbies are all part of a sensory diet.

Sensory ergonomics are:
Subtle environmental changes to the environment to make it conducive for performance. Change seating away from the air conditioner, turn down ringer volume on phone, dividers between open plan office spaces is all sensory ergonomics.

Critical health and wellness issues within call centres

I recently attended a health and wellness conference in Johannesburg as a speaker but also had the opportunity to connect with leading health and wellness experts within the South African context. Some interesting research and findings were shared. A BPeSA event on wellness followed.

Top Fortune 500 companies spend more on health and wellness than their profit

Direct cost of absenteeism for South Africa seems to be around 12-19 billion per annum

Stress remains to be a the biggest employee wellness issue

There is a direct correlation between employee wellness and productivity in the workplace

The wellness industry is one of the fastest growing industries globally with a huge trend to get back to basics, to look at old problems in a new way. We will catch up eventually but are behind on strategy and implementation when compared to our global partners and competitors.

The key message is that health and wellness are critical issues to consider as it affects your agent pool, team leaders, productivity and directly your bottom line.

The sensory intelligence perspective on call centre issues and suggested solution:

Primary problem: High attrition rates?

Experts in the industry agree that there is definitely a certain type of person who is suitable to work as an agent. What is this type?

Our solution: Senses on Call, our recruitment offering to establish whether potential agents have the sensory thresholds to sustain the environment. Can they work distraction and stress-free amid the high noise, visually busy and small work spaces?

Secondary problem: High stress levels and low performance

A 2005, UK study found that call centres were part of the top 6 of 26 occupations to experience the most amount of on the job stress

Our solution: The Sensory Matrix for work, is our performance management offering to suggest simple, effective strategies for optimum utilisation of space; i.e. change the position your chair is facing to reduce visual distraction.

Secondary problem: High absenteeism

Although personal and social issues can play a role, absenteeism is often the result of too much stress for extended periods of time. Our solutions: Senses on Call - Recruit best-fit agents which will result in lower absenteeism.

Sensory Matrix - Re-space or make minor adaptations to ensure a better fit of the agent within the physical call centre space. What does your leadership and corporate culture prescribe? Go back to basics!

Some Research Resources:

* Benner, C., Lewis, C., & Omar, R. (2007). The South African Call Centre Industry: A study of strategy, human resource practices and performance. (Part of the Global Call Centre Industry Report).
* Brown, C. (2001). What Is the Best Environment for Me? A Sensory Processing Perspective. Recovery and Wellness. The Haworth Press, 115-125.
* Deery, S., Iverson, R., Fraser, S., & Walsh, J. (2002). Work Relationships in Telephone Call Centres: Understanding Emotional Exhaustion and Employee Withdrawal, Journal of Management studies, Vol. 39, pages 471-496.
* Houlihan, M. (2001). Managing to manage? Stories from the call centre floor. Journal of European Industrial Training, Volume 25, Issue 2/3/4, Pages 208 – 220.
* Johnson, S., Cooper, C., Cartwright, S., Donald, I., Taylor, P., Millet, C. (2005). The experience of work-related stress across occupations, Journal of Managerial Psychology, Volume 20, Issue 2, Pages 178 – 187.
* Kandel, E., Schwartz, J., & Jessell, T. (Eds.) (2000). The principles of neural science (4th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill.
* K. A. Lewig, K.A & Dollard ,M.F.,(2003) Emotional dissonance, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction in call centre workers, European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, Volume 12, Issue 4, Pages 366 – 392.
* Phil Taylor, P., Baldry, C., Bain, P & Ellis,V. (2003). A Unique Working Environment: Health, Sickness and Absence Management in UK Call Centres  Work, Employment & Society, 2003, Volume 17, No. 3, Pages 435-458.

Call centres: a scary work place?

I was looking for the craziest, wildest, busiest, most sensory overloaded and insane work environment ... I clearly found it in the call centre, OK, contact centre industry. The first time I walked into a call centre I was blown away. Although absolutely electrifying for me, and certainly switching on an extra few brain wires, I immediately knew with certainty that this environment would be a recipe for disaster for about 20% of the population.

Local and international research shows that 20% of the population are highly sensory sensitive to information derived from the environment. This means that their DNA and brain circuits have an over-intake of sensory (see, hear, touch, smell, taste, move) information. Sensory overload is of utmost relevance to them as they experience the world as too loud, too bright, too fast, too tight ... plainly just too much. Needless to say the call centre environment is completely overwhelming for them and results in stress, absenteeism, performance issues and ultimately attrition. Even though they often manage to put effort into tolerating this environment, it often works for only a short period of time. Ever thought why the critical period for losing agents is usually within the first 90 days of being employed?

Although our sensory processing takes place in the unconscious parts of our brain functioning, it is critical for species survival. Intuitively we learn what works for us and what not, but mostly - and too often - through trial and error. Your sensory-sensitive call centre agents would only realise this when they have been recruited, trained and positioned on the call centre seat. And, suffice to say, thousands of rands later the realisation hits: I hate this job. Research also clearly corroborates the prevalence of high levels of stress within the industry.

However, when placed in data capturing, e-mail support, or quality assurance, these same individuals would most often perform at very high levels. Traditionally, these processes, are usually performed in more contained, less sensory overloaded sections and require awareness, attention to detail and rigid processing. Your 20% unsuitable front office callers are well suited for these roles.

My quest as an occupational therapist has been to prove that sensory profiles do correlate with work performance, absenteeism and attrition of call centre agents. Correlation results through my doctoral research clearly indicate that your 20% highly sensitive agents spend longer time on after-call work, have longer holding times and lower quality assurance ratings. The quest continues...

The four main pillars in the call centre industry are people, premises, processes and technology. They are obviously all crucial for sustainability and efficiency, but with the human resource allocation being the biggest hurdle. Your call centre agent is the key to delivering service, sales or collections, utilising your business process and operations to capture the essence of your client audience.

Occupational science is a body of knowledge about how we analyse work environments and the people functioning within them. Goodness-of-fit is the vital key to support the fact that matching your talent and workforce to the job description and work environment will ensure productive, less stressed, and sustainable employees. It just makes plain business sense to ensure a best-fit match for the call centre industry in particular. The industry is known for high training and operational costs, with agent attrition and absenteeism a common problem. This impact on the bottom line for the company, but also depletes corporate wellness for the individual.

Sensory intelligence has two main objectives for the call centre industry: Firstly, to ensure return on investments for companies. If you are spending R17264.00 (average industry figure South Africa 2007) on training an agent, shouldn’t you ensure up-front that they are suited for the position? Secondly, a mismatch in the industry impacts on wellness for the agents. Unsuitable agents end up with a high degree of stress and anxiety which have detrimental effects on health and wellness, and results in inflated health care costs. As many agents are young and often find themselves in call centres as an entry level job, the degree of failure and difficulty to manage have far-reaching impacts on their personal self esteem and confidence. Therefore, ensure you select agents with more care, and consider their sensory profiles to ensure sustainability in the environment.

Other considerations to ensure workforce optimisation are also to ensure you have a well set up call centre with good equipment, enough space, air, ventilation, chill rooms (not glorified tea rooms), leadership that thinks and acts laterally, and ongoing coaching and development.

The call centre business model works, locally and abroad, with unprecedented growth and has huge job creation opportunities for South Africa.

How sensory intelligent is your call centre?

References:

Emotional dissonance, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction in call centre workers
K. A. Lewig; M. F. Dollard , European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 2003, Volume 12, Issue 4, Pages 366 – 392

Managing to manage? Stories from the call centre floor
Maeve Houlihan, Journal of European Industrial Training, 2001, Volume 25, Issue 2/3/4, Pages 208 – 220

A Unique Working Environment: Health, Sickness and Absence Management in UK Call Centres
Phil Taylor, Chris Baldry, Peter Bain, Vaughan Ellis, Work, Employment & Society, 2003, Volume 17, No. 3, Pages 435-458

The experience of work-related stress across occupations
Sheena Johnson, Cary Cooper, Sue Cartwright, Ian Donald, Paul Taylor, Clare Millet, Journal of Managerial Psychology, 2005, Volume 20 , Issue 2 , Pages 178 – 187

Work Relationships in Telephone Call Centres: Understanding Emotional Exhaustion and Employee Withdrawal
Stephen Deery, Rick Iverson, Simon Fraser, Janet Walsh, Journal of Management studies, 2002, Vol. 39, pages 471-496

What Is the Best Environment for Me? A Sensory Processing Perspective. Recovery and Wellness. Brown, C., (2001). The Haworth Press, 115-125.

Some research results of sensory intelligence within call centres?

Senses on Call is our web based selection tool for the call centre industry. It takes 15 minutes to complete and generates an instant report.

The development of Senses on Call is based on research results from my doctorate degree at the University of Cape Town (in progress) and my 20 years of clinical and training experience. The study correlates sensory profiles with performance, absenteeism and attrition within call centres.

My study sample included:

* 226 agents in a service inbound call centre, financial industry, Cape Town
* 53 agents in a service inbound call centre, financial industry, Johannesburg
* 78 agents in a sales outbound call centre, Cape Town
* 113 agents in a collections call centre, Johannesburg
* The total sample consisted of 470 agents.

Terminology explained:

Suitability or best-fit of agents for the call centre industry are measured against their genetic sensory thresholds. This is the unconscious process by which the brain and body respond to busy, overloaded environments in either a positive or stressed manner. Being in the industry you will agree to it being a highly stressed and overloaded environment with many management challenges. Sensory thresholds are part of our genetic wiring, cannot be changed much and are unknown to most of us. The test used to determine thresholds is a USA based tool, the Adult Sensory Profile, with solid validity and reliability.

People with low thresholds (high scores for quadrant 3 and 4) get distracted and stressed in busy environments and are not well suited to the industry. They are however very well suited to be accountants, lawyers, HR managers, to just name a few. They also work well in back office processes.

People with high thresholds (high scores for quadrant 1 and 2) have the unconscious ability to filter out excess information and work well in busy environments. They are well suited to the industry.

Some of the service inbound results (performance correlations):

* Unsuitable agents, identified by high scores on quadrant 3 and 4 on the Senses on Call test have lower quality assurance ratings:
* Correlations: Sensory Profile Quads with performance data
* Quad 3 & QA rating (n=59); Negative correlation, significantly related, p= 0.0049
* Quad 4 & QA rating (n=59); Negative correlation, significantly related, p= 0.0219
* It means as quadrant 3 and 4 increase (most unsuitable group), QA ratings decrease
* Unsuitable agents identified by Senses on Call have lower QA ratings

Unsuitable agents, especially identified by high scores on quadrant 4 on the Senses on Call test have longer ACW (after call work):

* Correlations: Sensory Profile Quads with Raw Performance data (average after call work in seconds)
* Quad 4 & Avg ACW in seconds (n=112); Positive correlation, significantly related, p=0.0074
* It means as quadrant 4 increase (most unsuitable group), ACW increase as well
* Unsuitable agents identified by Senses on Call have longer ACW (after call work)

Unsuitable agents, identified by high scores on quadrant 3 and 4 on the Senses on Call test have longer average hold times:

* Correlations: Sensory Profile Quads with Raw Performance data
* Quad 3 & Avg Hold time in sec (n=112); Positive correlation significantly related, p=0.0106
* Quad 4 & Avg Hold time in sec (n=112); Positive correlation significantly related, p=0.0383
* It means as quadrant 3 and 4 increase (unsuitable group), Avg hold time also increase
* Unsuitable agents identified by Senses on Call have longer average hold times

Unsuitable agents, identified by high scores on quadrant 3 and 4 on the Senses on Call test have longer average handle times:

* Correlations: Sensory Profile Quads with Raw Performance data
* Quad 3 & Avg handle time in hours(n=110); Positive correlation, significantly related, p=0.0210
* Quad 4 & Avg handle time in hours(n=110); Positive correlation significantly related, p=0.0036
* It means as quadrant 3 and 4 increase (unsuitable group), Avg handle time also increase
* Unsuitable agents identified by Senses on Call have longer handle times

These results are only the tip of the iceberg! Analysis of data continues and I will be posting results on a continuous basis.

Are your teams sensory intelligent?

The business world is rapidly changing and our worlds are being turned upside down due to the economic climate. It has never been more crucial for companies to ensure that their teams are effective, can manage the stress of the current climate, are utilised effectively, and can lead with confidence, making relevant and strategic decisions. Talent management with regard to knowing who your teams are and what they do best is now crucial.

The reality is that the recession is pushing us outside of our comfort zones. The business world measures of stress, uncertainty, anxiety have hit the roof. Our worlds are becoming sensory overloaded while demands and expectations increase, often with support structures lagging behind.

Are your teams prepared for this? Can they now function better than ever?

Organisations should now more than ever ensure that they identify their talent, keep them close and look for hidden talent in their midst.

What then is sensory intelligence and what does it have to do with teams and talent? Well, teams and talent are people: am I right? The more you know about the humans occupying the central/key structures of your business, the better you are equipped to ride through these uncertain times. People remain the best resource within organisations, and investing in human capital still delivers the best long-term returns.

Sensory intelligence is a powerful way to get back to basics, i.e. the human body and brain. The human brain has stayed exactly the same through the centuries; it is a matter of making sure that we use it wisely and optimally within our changing world. Every person has a particular sensory profile, in that the core body-brain connections are wired uniquely for each individual. Sensory intelligence takes this down to the subconscious and survival parts of the brain. We experience the world through seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching and moving. This is the entry level where the brain absorbs the world, responds intuitively and then releases the higher function of the brain (often called the CEO of the brain) to perform accordingly. The survival and entry level functions of the brain drive what happens later with regards to our attention, emotion and behaviour.

Sensory Intelligence uses a standardised methodology to profile teams to determine their entry level, survival and unconscious brain responses. Remember a time when you responded without thinking? Or only a split second too late realised that you had acted inappropriately? Well, this is the sensory brain, responding intuitively to that input and preparing you for fight/flight/fright responses without first checking with the upper parts, the CEO. That is basic human survival and is very necessary. But, yes, often it lands us in hot water. Based on individual thresholds, we respond differently to environmental stimuli. Individuals with low thresholds over-respond, since their brains absorb information faster and more intensely. They don’t miss a thing and are most certainly the persons you need checking your finances and human resources: but, inevitably, they are often seen as finicky, difficult and pedantic. They respond to the environment faster and more intensely, hence recognising disaster a mile away. On the other hand, extremely high threshold individuals under-respond, since their brains absorb only what is perceived as relevant and most prominent. They have the ability to work in crazy environments, driving change and diversity with resilience. Diversity – yes, conflict – yes, necessary – absolutely yes.

Sensory intelligence will connect individuals in teams with their core body-brain comfort zones. They will know intuitively what they do best, drop unnecessary labels acquired due to misunderstanding behaviours, and ultimately bring balance to a team. By capitalising on this level of sensory diversity, individuals will be assigned roles they are intuitively driven to.

It also unfolds conflict in teams on a different (more acceptable) level in order to drop negative labels and acquire positive ones. When team members understand each other based on their sensory coding, it shifts understanding and tolerance within teams significantly. Teams then shift to a different level, get the work done and use team members to their full potential.

Balance in teams is crucial and, by ensuring that there are various thresholds within a team and resourcing them according to their team roles, you are sure to have a strong, top performing team.

Is your team sensory intelligent?

October: Sensory Intelligence - why it matters more than IQ and EQ

Well, then why does it matter more?

In a nutshell:

Sensory intelligence (SIQ) refers to the senses as the primitive, unconscious gateway through which emotion (EQ) and cognition (IQ) receive their information in order to feel, behave, think, act and perform.

It’s all in the brain; the human computer; where this hierarchy of processes stimulate our thinking, acting, feeling and doing. Information enters the brain via the senses through the spinal cord at the bottom part of the brain and gets filtered through the primitive brain (sensory intelligence) before being sent to the emotional brain (EQ) and lastly moves to the cognitive brain (IQ). Although neuroscientifically this process is intricate and multi-faceted, the base line hierarchy is sensory intelligence first, then emotional intelligence and then IQ.

The senses thus have a silent but powerful contribution to how we focus, concentrate, perform, act in teams and manage stress and pressure.

July: Using “sensory calmers” to optimize your work environment!

Sensory solutions with a difference!

How conducive is your work environment?

What kind of individual sensory profiles do you have in the office?

What are the main sensory stressors?

What solutions are you implementing?

July: Sensory intelligence and stress. When is “too much” too much

We are bombarded by information from our environment on a daily basis. The human brain reacts to this information in a particular way and on certain levels, depending on:

* in-born neurological threshold
* general health and wellness
* type and intensity of the information

Levels of reaction to the environment:

1. I’m Ok
A level of comfort enabling a person to cope with all information from the environment in a productive and optimal manner.

2. Stressed
The next level where drive and output get accelerated by work load, intensity and expectation, the so called “good stress”.

3. Overloaded
This is a level where work load; intensity and expectation start to reach a stage beyond the physical capacity of an individual resulting in stress, uncertainty and regression of performance. A warning sign to reduce expectation and input/output.

4. Out of control
The individual experience significant break-down of function which could result in fear, aggression and/or other negative emotional output. At this level conflict often occurs in a work environment. This is an extremely negative phase for everyone involved as it breaks down teamwork, personal effectiveness and cohesion.

5. Shutdown/Depersonalization/Dissociation
Break down of individual abilities. At this level physical removal from the environment is necessary. People often get sick at this stage. It is a classic sign of burn-out.

Where are you functioning?

Sensory Intelligence™ consulting:

* Perform sensory profile testing
* Determine thresholds and environmental stressors specifically for your profile type
* Coaching with emphasis of understanding, insight and removal and/or changing of stressors
* Outcomes – higher productivity rates in an optimal environment

June: This month we explore a performance counseling case study

She worked in an open plan office environment, in the middle of the area, under the air conditioner outflow and next to the photocopy machine. She had 2 phones and a fax machine on her desk. Her productivity was low and she was in tears about 5 times a day. Environmental analysis identified her incorrect seating arrangement within the open plan office environment. Through a process of observation and documentation we established her arousal curve throughout a normal day.

AROUSAL refers to the alert state of the brain.

Her pre-input arousal curve looked like this:

The above curve refers to the level of responses to sensory input: when we respond appropriately, we have a normal arousal level of the brain, creating optimal concentration. With too much sensory input and stress, sensory overload occurs. When sensory overload is prolonged, sensory shutdown occurs. Her bursting into tears indicated a move from overload to shutdown; she had to leave her desk and office to pull herself together. Sensory overload are contraindicative for performance and shutdown indicates zero performance.

After increasing her awareness and insight through the sensory profile process, sensory ergonomics (environmental adaptations within the open plan office structure) and self-regulation strategies were introduced for Mrs. X. Her productivity increased drastically. She was happier and coped better. Her post-input arousal curve (established 8 weeks later) looked like this:

Benefits were observed directly in the amount of productivity hours. The intervention had a personal gain for her but also for the team and company.

Sensory Intelligence™ consulting included:

* Group sensory profile testing
* Coaching Mrs. X on an individual basis
* Sensory ergonomics: environmental adaptations in her current work environment
* Implementation of sensory diets and self-regulation strategies

May: This month we explore SENSORY ERGONOMICS

“Sen·so·ry” – adj. Pertaining to sensation; That aspect of consciousness resulting from the stimulation of a nerve process beginning at any point in the body and passing through the brain, especially by those stimuli affecting any of the sense organs, as hearing, taste, touch, smell, sight and movement.

“Er·go·om·ics” – n. The study of the relationship between man and his working environment, with special reference to anatomical, physiological and psychological factors; human engineering.

Sensory ergonomics therefore means the act of manipulating an environment through either adding or withdrawing sensory stimuli to meet the needs of the individuals functioning within that environment.

Sensory ergonomics can only be performed effectively after sensory profiling of staff has concluded the behvioural responses to their work environment.

* Low threshold individuals are more sensitive to the environment, they need very little sensory stimuli to meet the threshold and fire a response in the brain.
* Some sensory ergonomics for low threshold individuals:
o Reduce ringer volume on phones (↓ noise)
o Reduce clutter and create harmonious spaces (↓ visual)
o Move an individual away from air conditioner outflow (↓ touch)
* High threshold individuals need extra sensory stimuli to meet the threshold and fire a response in the brain.
* Some sensory ergonomics for high threshold individuals:
o Extend phone cords for individuals who make and/or take phone calls. It gives them opportunity to walk while talking (↑ movement)
o Use background noise (↑ noise)
o Use bright lighting (↑ visual)
* Consulting Sensory Intelligence™ will include:
o Sensory profile testing
o Sensory stressor identification
o Sensory ergonomics: environmental adaptations

April: This month we explore Open plan offices

The trend for the past 35 years in office design is to move towards open plan. It uses space more efficiently and is cost effective. It can be easily reconfigured and reduce construction cost. It further also encourages team work, sharing of information, and is seen as motivational for workers.

Nearly three-quarters of U.S and Canadian workers now do business in open plan office space (Wall Street Journal online). However, occupant satisfaction with an office environment also plays a role in its cost-effectiveness.

If office conditions are poor, employees can become uncomfortable and dissatisfied, which can cancel the expected savings.

From a sensory intelligence perspective – considering the bottom line human element:

* Individuals with low thresholds, who are sensitive to noise, vision and touch will be more distracted in an open plan office environment. It will reduce their focus, attention and result in a significant drop in productivity. This is a potential poor fit of the individual within the work space.
* These individuals can benefit greatly from sensory ergonomics (to be discussed next month)
* Individuals with high thresholds, who enjoy busy environments, will work well in an open plan office environment. They will less likely be distracted by noise, people, or touch.

This is a potential good fit of the individual within the work space.
* Consider the effects of your open plan office space on your workforce.
* Consulting Sensory Intelligence will include:
o Sensory profile testing
o Sensory stressor identification
o Sensory ergonomics: environmental adaptations

March: This month we explore “sensory defensiveness”

Sensory defensiveness is the result of aversive or defensive reactions to what most people consider non-irritating sensory stimuli. Due to a low threshold/low tolerance the brain over-responds. It often leads to tension, anxiety, avoidance, stress, anger and even violence. Basic sensations have the potential to put the brain in “high-alert”, which coincides with a stress response.

Degrees of sensory defensiveness can be mild, moderate or severe.

Defensiveness can be evident in one or more sensory system. I.e. if someone is auditory defensive, sounds and noise will potentially overload the brain.

Although largely unrecognized, sensory defensiveness is not uncommon.

USA studies showed that 15% of normal adults have a nervous system that is overly sensitive to sensation. They potentially become irritable, distracted as their brains keep on going into fight/flight responses. Sensory irritations can be as simple as:

* Someone opening a bag of chips
* The odor of a new car
* The flashing pointer on a pc screen
* Hum of an air conditioner
* Feeling of a label in clothing

The following “labels” can potentially indicate a sensory defensive person....difficult, picky, perfectionist, anti-social, demanding, fussy, finicky, fastidious...

Understanding these behaviours is the key in order to implement the appropriate strategies.

A South African pilot study of 70 people who completed the Adult sensory profile indicated the following:

* 27% had mild to moderate sensitivity
* 17% had severe sensitivity (sensory defensive)
* Although forming an active part of the workforce the above group of people complained of loss in concentration, increased stress and reduced performance.

COACHING for sensory defensive individuals include:

* Identify sensory profiles
* Identify sensory stressors
* Implement self regulation strategies
* Implement sensory diets
* Create the best-fit environments in the workplace

October: The Tactile Sense

The TACTILE (touch) sense is a primary sense we use on a daily basis to process information from the environment. It is vital for communication, interaction and performance.

Receptors for the tactile system are located in the skin. It has therefore the widest receptor field of all the senses. We use touch to feel and discriminate our environment and to protect us from harm. When connecting with other people we enter each other’s “tactile space” for interaction.

Thresholds for touch (how much touch your brain can tolerate) are on a continuum:

On one end people have low thresholds for touch:

* they dislike and avoid touch from other people
* they tend to isolate themselves from others
* they are on “guard” with team work operations
* they need big/wide working spaces
* they perform poorly in open plan office environments

On the other end people have high thresholds for touch:

* they enjoy touch and often will touch people when talking to them
* they enjoy working in close proximity with others
* they enjoy people and are usually sociable
* they contribute positively to team work functions

Sensory profiling will establish your tactile threshold and guide you towards using your environment to work and perform better. Creating the optimum work space for you based on your sensory needs will make you work BETTER, HARDER AND SMARTER!!

September: The Auditory sense

The AUDITORY sense is a primary sense we use on a daily basis to process information from the environment. It is vital for communication, interaction and performance.

* Our ears are “switched on” 24/7
* We live and work in “sound polluted” environments
* The picture below is one of the extremes of “sound pollution”

People with low thresholds for noise concentrate less effectively in open plan office environments.

People with high thresholds for noise miss instructions and auditory cues.

At Sensory Intelligence Consulting we do sensory profiling and strategy workshops in order to maximize the use of the senses for success and high performance.

August: The visual sense

You have 7 senses, a primary one is the VISUAL sense:

Use your VISUAL system and look at the following two pictures:

(Things aren’t always what they seem to be.)

Your VISUAL system is one of the most complex, yet powerful sensory systems. It processes and filters millions of visual information on a daily basis, enabling you to interact with the world.

Your VISUAL world: reading, paperwork, computers, clutter, people, etc.

People with LOW VISUAL THRESHOLDS should have a blank computer screensaver.

People with HIGH VISUAL THRESHOLDS should have a moving computer screensaver.

July: Your brain is your biggest asset

”It is thousand times more powerful than the worlds most powerful computer…and it’s all yours!” Tony Buzan

The top part of your brain is called the cortex, it can be described as the CEO of your brain. It is responsible for all your executive functions of thinking and doing.

When cut through, the middle and lower parts of your brain are shown. They control your attention, emotion and reactions to sensory input from your environment. It can be described as your brain’s secretary to the CEO and supports performance.

Sensory Intelligence addresses these lower, primitive functions of the brain to ensure high level intellectual functions and performance. Through workshops and coaching sensory intelligence aims to:

* Identify your unique sensory profile
* Learn how to improve your focus and attention
* Improve your interactions with colleagues and team members
* Increase self-awareness of individuals and teams
* Identify sensory stressors responsible for un-productivity and learn techniques to eliminate them

March: What is sensory intelligence?

Knowing about your senses (see+hear+touch+taste+smell+move) and how they respond to your daily environment.

How does it work?

It is based on primitive, unconscious brain-body responses: Your brain responds to the millions of sensory messages you receive at any given time per day through an individual filtering process. This facilitates all daily responses and/or actions.

How do we evaluate sensory intelligence?

Through a standardised sensory profiling process.

What is the value of sensory intelligence?

Identify direct connections between sensory processing styles and performance.

Make effective, appropriate and valuable changes to your environment and/or personal working methods.

Increase performance and team work – create happy, productive environments.

What are the processes involved in sensory intelligence?

Corporate workshops, individual coaching, sensory ergonomics