Emile Woolf Middle East

CASE STUDY | CUNDALL

Building a Shared Leadership Language Across Cundall’s Regional Offices

2
Intensive Days

Blending behavioural psychology and emotional intelligence to shift leadership habits.

4
Applied Frameworks

Johari Window, Psychological Safety, Tuckman’s Stages, and Lencioni’s Five Dysfunctions.

Multi-disciplinary
Unified Approach

Engineers, project managers, and technical leads developing a single shared leadership framework.

THE OPPORTUNITY

Where Technical Excellence Meets People Leadership

Cundall, a global engineering and design consultancy, was navigating a leadership transition common in professional services: technically strong engineers and project managers stepping into people leadership roles without the behavioural foundations to make the shift effectively.

Differing working styles, insufficient psychological safety, and the challenge of building trust across multi-disciplinary teams were creating inconsistency across regional offices. The organisation needed a shared leadership framework that could be applied consistently, and a development experience that would make the shift from technical expert to people-centric leader tangible and lasting.

THE SOLUTION

Integrated Team Science, Designed to Shift Leadership Habits

Emile Woolf Middle East designed and delivered a two-day programme blending behavioural psychology and emotional intelligence to produce lasting shifts in leadership behaviour. The approach combined established frameworks with applied experiential learning, ensuring that concepts were not just understood but practised.

Foundational Awareness

Using the Johari Window and Psychological Safety models to build trust and influence. Participants gained clarity on their own blind spots and triggers.

Performance Frameworks

Navigating team dynamics through Insights Discovery, Tuckman’s Stages, and Lencioni’s Five Dysfunctions. Practical tools for managing real team challenges.

Applied Experiential Learning

Combining activities with Situational Leadership and live Team Charters. Learning tested in practice, not just discussed in theory.

THE PROGRAMME STRUCTURE

Pre-Assessment to Team Playbook

Phase 1

Pre-Assessment

Reflection on leadership identity, career turning points, habits, and core values. Participants arrive prepared, not cold.

Phase 2

Foundations of Safety

Building self-awareness and learning to lead through safety and emotional intelligence.

Phase 3

Performance Rituals

Mastering communication styles and team stages to establish high-performance rituals.

Phase 4

Applied Breakthroughs

Finalising Team Playbooks and individual action plans to ensure behavioural shifts are carried back to the business.

The Impact: One Leadership Language. Across Every Office.

The programme established a consistent leadership language across Cundall’s regional offices. Participants reported greater self-awareness regarding triggers and blind spots, leading to improved psychological safety and openness within teams. The use of shared frameworks enabled more effective performance, better conflict navigation, and clear behavioural commitments aligned with a high-performance culture.