Interpersonal Skills for Senior Professionals: Influence, Rapport and Collaboration Training Course

Programme Summary

Interpersonal skills training for senior professionals, covering influence, rapport and collaboration, is delivered as a one-week training course for managers and heads of function, ending in a working relationship plan for one critical partnership. Senior roles depend on colleagues, partners and stakeholders over whom a leader holds no direct authority. The programme moves from principles of interpersonal behaviour, through diagnosis of relationship patterns, to design of conversations and agreements, then to application on live working relationships. Mars Training Centre UK delivers this interpersonal skills programme for senior professionals.

The Business Case

Most delays at senior level trace back to strained relationships rather than missing technical knowledge: decisions stall, feedback is withheld and disagreements surface late. Professionals who read others accurately, build trust early and handle tension openly keep work moving across functions and organisations. The programme treats these behaviours as skills that can be observed, practised and reviewed with colleagues.

• Decision Speed: Improves as disagreements are raised early and resolved through structured conversation.
• Staff Retention: Strengthens as feedback and recognition become consistent and respectful.
• Cross-Team Delivery: Gains reliability as agreements between functions are explicit and followed up.

Principles and Evidence Base

• Johari Window: It structures the self-awareness and feedback exercises in Sessions 1 and 2.
• Thomas-Kilmann conflict modes: They guide the choice of approach to disagreement in Sessions 2 and 3.
• Tuckman stages of team development: They frame the diagnosis of group behaviour and the collaboration agreements in Sessions 3 and 4.
• Active listening principles: They underpin every paired practice across the five sessions.

Intended Participants

• Senior managers who lead through influence across teams they do not control.
• Heads of function who negotiate priorities and resources with peers.
• Project and programme leaders who hold together stakeholders with competing interests.
• Specialists moving into leadership roles who must build new working relationships quickly.

The programme serves banks, ministries, hospitals, utilities and professional services firms, and suits mixed groups from different organisations.

Learning Outcomes

1. Participants will be able to diagnose their own interpersonal patterns using structured feedback.
2. Participants will be able to construct opening moves that build rapport and trust with new counterparts.
3. Participants will be able to evaluate a disagreement and select a suitable conflict mode.
4. Participants will be able to prioritise influence tactics for stakeholders with different interests.
5. Participants will be able to design a collaboration agreement between two teams or partners.
6. Participants will be able to justify a relationship plan for one working partnership.

Programme Structure

Day 1: Interpersonal Skills Principles and Self-Awareness

How do your own habits shape the way others respond to you?

• Johari Window Mapping
• Active Listening Practice Protocol
• Communication Preference Profile
• Trigger and Reaction Log
• Peer Feedback Round

Day 2: Reading Relationships and Conflict Patterns

Where do working relationships lose trust or stall?

• Stakeholder Relationship Grid
• Thomas-Kilmann Mode Comparison
• Misunderstanding Case Review
• Rapport Signals Checklist
• Unspoken Expectations Audit

Day 3: Designing Influence and Difficult Conversations

Which approach moves a counterpart without damaging the relationship?

• Interest-Based Influence Map
• Opening Statement Script
• Questioning and Reframing Sequence
• Feedback Delivery Structure
• Conflict Mode Selection Guide

Day 4: Designing Collaboration Across Teams

What agreements keep partners working together after the first meeting?

• Tuckman Stage Diagnosis
• Working Agreement Template
• Decision Rights Clarification
• Escalation Path Design
• Follow-Up Rhythm Planner

Day 5: Applying Interpersonal Skills to One Partnership

Is the relationship plan ready for use with a real counterpart?

• Applying the Session 1 Profile to Partner Dynamics
• Testing the Session 3 Scripts in Role Play
• Reviewing the Session 4 Agreement with Peers
• Rehearsing the Hardest Conversation
• Completing the Working Relationship Plan

Methodology

The programme uses structured exercises built on realistic situations from government, banking, healthcare and industry. Participants work in pairs and small groups, practise conversations with observer feedback and review short recorded notes of their own behaviour. Discussion centres on observable behaviour and its effect on results rather than on personality labels.

• Suggested activity: Preparing and rehearsing an opening statement for a tense stakeholder meeting.
• Suggested activity: Mapping a stalled cross-team relationship and agreeing the first repair step.
• Suggested activity: Giving and receiving feedback in rotating trios with an observer.

Capstone Output

Each participant completes a working relationship plan for one critical partnership. It holds a stakeholder grid, an influence map, a prepared opening statement, a conflict approach, a collaboration agreement and a follow-up rhythm. Participants use the plan in the weeks after the programme to open a conversation, agree expectations and review progress with the counterpart.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is interpersonal skills training suitable for experienced senior managers?

Yes. Interpersonal skills training here assumes leadership experience and regular work with peers, partners or stakeholders, and builds on that experience through practice and structured feedback.

Which models does interpersonal skills training rest on?

Interpersonal skills training rests on the Johari Window, the Thomas-Kilmann conflict modes, the Tuckman stages of team development and active listening principles.

How is the plan from interpersonal skills training used at work?

You use the working relationship plan to open a conversation with a key counterpart, agree expectations, and review progress on a set rhythm.

How does interpersonal skills training differ from a programme on public speaking?

Interpersonal skills training centres on two-way relationships, listening and influence in conversation, while a public speaking programme centres on delivering a message to an audience.