Custom Training for a Change in Mindset and Processes

Present in 66 countries, Merck is a chemical-pharmaceutical company that creates and manufactures specialized products in the fields of healthcare, life sciences, and high-performance materials. Merck is at the forefront in Spain, both in investment and in the development of new processes, and although its organizational structure is dynamic and flexible, they wanted to invest in process improvement applicable to different business areas.

Custom Training

At Runroom, we have extensive experience as trainers and understand that each company and team is unique, which is why we tailor our training to the needs of each project, aiming to make the most of every material and session we prepare to convey information that is as adapted and aligned as possible to each client.

Aiming to achieve a true transformation in the way of working in the different areas of Merck in Spain, we set out to create the training sessions we considered key for their organization:

• Training in Kanban, an agile methodology.
• Training in Design Thinking, a Customer-centric methodology.

The main roles targeted by these training sessions were Product Managers, Marketing Managers, Medical Advisors, Key Account Managers, Compliance Advisors, and Legal Counsels.

Training in Design Thinking

Design Thinking is the means to achieve business objectives and customer satisfaction, and it is based on 3 fundamental activities: inspiration, ideation, and implementation.

To maximize the customization of this training, we started with interviews with the heads of different areas to clearly understand the corporate purposes, and we also conducted surveys with attendees to know their prior level and the objectives they had in mind to extract from the sessions.

With this information, we designed custom training sessions based on the “Training from the back of the room” teaching technique, which consists of creating an optimal learning space through the 4 Cs: connection, concept, concretion, and conclusions, with which we achieved the following objectives:

1. Introduce the value and principles of Design Thinking to achieve a Customer-centric strategic approach that ensures business success.
2. Provide tools that help them lead and guide their teams in achieving objectives and customer satisfaction through optimized processes.
3. Make the acquired knowledge tangible through application in the attendees' own cases to ensure the rapid adoption of the new mindset.

To fulfill this last point, we conducted numerous specific practices for each group based on real situations and cases they encounter in their daily work.

The person responsible for conducting these sessions was Laura Polls, Certified in Design Thinking by Ideo, Head of Experience Research at Runroom, and professor of CX Research in the Master's in Digital Experience Design at BAU, the Design University of Barcelona.

Training in Kanban

Kanban is a project management method based on visualizing pending tasks, seeking a balance between the work to be done and the availability of each team member. This methodology is applied through boards that reflect the workflow and is used to catalyze change in organizations, exposing possible inefficiencies in processes and allowing for reaction and improvement implementation.

At Runroom, we thought of starting the transformation of Merck's teams in Spain with Kanban because it does not require a radical change in the organization to adopt it. On the contrary, it starts from a currently functioning process, and simple rules establish a mechanism for continuous improvement.

Moreover, it is a very non-prescriptive method, yet surprisingly powerful in aligning teams or organizations. It creates a climate of transparency and focuses all members around a common goal.

Determined to fully introduce Merck Spain's different teams to the Kanban universe, we set the following objectives:

1. Teach the functioning of this method and how to evolve it through STATIK, Systems Thinking Approach To Implementing Kanban.
2. Implement metrics that provide visibility to value delivery and change management.
3. Provide coaching tools and Feedback Loops for decision-making at the planning and work coordination levels.

And of course, we convey all this knowledge by creating spaces where people feel safe and inspired to experiment and learn, applying the Flip Classroom method, making both online and in-person training sessions revolve around a key participant. The experience centers around a protagonist who learns through diverse activities that encourage different intelligences and dialogue, individual work, and collaboration.

These sessions were led by Carlos Iglesias, CEO at Runroom, Director of the Business Agility program and co-director of the inDigital program, both Executive Education programs at ESADE Business School, and Pablo Domingo, Professional Scrum Trainer (PST) and official Lean Kanban trainer. Passionate about agile methodologies and systemic thinking applied to helping people improve organizations.

Applicability as a Result

As we explained at the beginning of the case, Runroom's goal is to adapt and customize the materials and training sessions as much as possible to achieve the best result, which is none other than the true transmission of our knowledge.

In each session, we bring theory to practice, from the abstract to the concrete, applying tools and knowledge to the reality of each team, seeking direct applicability in different contexts. In the case of Merck, we ensured that each area implemented its own Kanban to initiate a change in the way of working and benefit from all the advantages of this agile methodology.

Are you looking for organizational transformation and internal culture change in your company?

We would love to guide and accompany you in this important process for the future of a business.

Tell us about your project and let's get started!

Contact us. or check the in-house and open programs and training at Runroom Academy