The comprehensive toolkit for managers to drive performance.
Reverse-engineered from behavioural science
01Motivation
Finds which of five dials is in the red for one person, so you turn that one instead of reaching for the bonus.
Ask in your next one-to-one: “Where do you have room to decide how you do things, and where would you like more?”
The science: leaders who support autonomy are linked to more self-driven motivation in their teams (Slemp et al., 2018).
02Feedback
Keeps feedback on the work, not the person, said within days, with one clear next step and real belief behind it.
Pick one piece of feedback you’ve been holding on to, and give it the AHEAD way while it still matters.
The science: feedback works best when it’s aimed at the task, not the person (Kluger and DeNisi, 1996).
03Behaviour change
Walks six questions about the situation before you decide it’s the person. Most fixes live in the setup, not the speech.
Before the next reminder or telling-off, spend ten minutes walking the process yourself.
The science: defaults, friction and cues are among the best-evidenced levers in behavioural science.
04Follow-through
Ties each new habit to a cue already in the week, with a back-up for the week it slips and a peer who checks in.
Write one plan: “If it’s Friday at four, then I’ll book next week’s one-to-ones before anything else.”
The science: if-then plans are one of the best-evidenced ways to turn intentions into action (Gollwitzer and Sheeran, 2006).
What changes
The Motivation Dashboard
Someone good has gone flat, and the only ideas on the table are a pep talk or a bonus.
They find the one dial in the red for that person, and turn that one.
AHEAD
Feedback lands badly, or never gets said at all.
Feedback is aimed at the work, said while it still matters, with one clear next step.
Not Them Yet
A behaviour won’t change, and it’s starting to look like they just don’t care.
They check the situation first, and fix the setup instead of repeating the speech.
The If-Then Plan
Everyone agrees what should change, and three weeks later nothing has.
Each change is tied to a moment already in the week, with a back-up for when it slips.
How it runs
We shape it around your managers’ real situations, so the practice feels like their actual job, not a case study. Nobody sits through a lecture.
Before
We talk with you about your team and the challenges in front of it, then build the examples and the practice around them.
The three hours
The gap between knowing and doing, and the Motivation Dashboard.
AHEAD and Not Them Yet, practised on real moments from your team.
The If-Then Plan, built into each manager’s real week so the change sticks.
After
Your managers keep the one-page tools and every Ducora playbook. Masterclasses, programmes and coaching build on the same models if you want to go further.
Ways to work with us →
What your managers leave with
Who it’s for
Promoted for being great at the job, and now leading the people they used to sit next to.
Good instincts, no shared system. Everyone gets the same toolkit and the same words for the hard moments.
Building your first management team, and wanting it right from the start rather than fixed later.
Designed by
Business psychologist and founder of Ducora
A certified member of the Global Association of Applied Behavioural Scientists, Rav has studied at four of the world’s best business schools and led top-performing teams across several industries.
Every Ducora model is reverse-engineered from published research on what effective managers actually do. Where the evidence is strong, we say so. Where it isn’t, we say that too.
Good questions
Something we haven’t covered? Book a call or email inquiries@ducora.co.uk.
Tell us your numbers and we’ll shape the session around them, so everyone gets real time to practise.
Both work. In person, we come to your offices, or to your offsite if you have one planned. Online, it runs live, with the same models and the same practice. We’ll suggest what suits your team.
Yes. Before the session we have a short call about your team and the challenges in front of it, and we build the examples and the practice around what you tell us.
It depends on numbers and format. Tell us a little about your team and we’ll come back within one working day with options and dates.
Your managers keep the one-page tools and every Ducora playbook. If you want to go further, our masterclasses, programmes and coaching build on the same models.
Rav Sawhney, Ducora’s founder and a business psychologist.
Tell us a little about your team. We’ll reply within one working day with options and dates.
Or email inquiries@ducora.co.uk
