HIGH-IMPACT STRATEGIES FOR THE EXPERIENCED MANAGER

Eligibility:
Minimum one year of employment in your current agency

Minimum one year of supervisory experience

Minimum one direct report

Skills to Be Addressed

• Managing individuals and building teams, including developing and maintaining interpersonal relationships through self-awareness, developing skills , and building effective teams
• Learning to manage conflicting priorities while driving toward organizational objectives and outcomes 

In addition, participants will have opportunities to establish lasting connections with colleagues from Jewish agencies in diverse areas while learning from others about their specific management and communal challenges.

Methodology
With the knowledge that adults learn by doing, this program is highly interactive and requires significant participation, including engagement in role-plays, small group discussions, peer coaching, fishbowls, and presentations. In between sessions, there will be reading assignments and opportunities for participants to receive coaching from the faculty. 

All sessions will be held at UJA-Federation, 130 East 59th Street, New York City, from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. Breakfast and lunch will be provided. 
Session dates are as follows and will be confirmed upon acceptance into the program. All sessions are on Thursdays. If applying, please put a tentative hold on your calendar.

November 19, 2026
December 3, 2026  
December 17, 2026
January 7, 2027
January 21, 2027
February 11, 2027
February 25, 2027
March 11, 2027
March 25, 2027  (if needed)

Fee, paid by the sponsoring organization, is $600.   

Certificate of Completion and Social Work CE Credits

Full attendance is considered a minimum of six of the seven High-Impact Strategies sessions. The certificate will be awarded only if the attendance criterion is fulfilled.

This course qualifies for a maximum of 23 Social Work Continuing Education (CE) contact hours. To qualify, participants must arrive on time and sign in at the start of each session and stay for the entirety of the session.

Leader as Team Builder. Introductions  and program overview. Sharing leadership journeys. Understanding the Five Dysfunctions of a Team model and the development of team action plans

Leader as Talent Developer (Part 1). Learn models for giving and receiving feedback up, down, and across. Practice the GROW coaching model. Explore the DISC assessment of leadership styles and how those styles can help you get the best performance from your team members and drive the mission of your organization.

Leader as Talent Developer (Part 2). Learn the Clifton Strengthsfinder model and how to use it to develop your team more effectively. Build a strengths-based team to drive organizational objectives. 

Leader in a Constantly Shifting Environment. Guest speaker on the changes facing Jewish nonprofit leaders. Managing change and transition with teams and across generations. Identifying your own resiliency levels and where you could build skills going forward.  Help others in the organization build their own change management and resiliency skills.  

Leader as Conflict Manager. Build awareness of multiple influence styles in order to achieve desired outcomes for the team and your organization. Using Thomas-Kilmann Conflict mode instrument, practice de-escalating conflict.  Learn to manage up more effectively based on DiSC style and other best practice models. 

Leader as Productivity Driver. Focus on planning and prioritization with the Covey Time Management Matrix and The Blanchard Situational Leadership model.  Discussion about how your team’s priorities match the organizational objectives. Exploration of Daniel Pink’s work on intrinsic and extrinsic motivators and how generational differences can impact.  

Leader as Learning Guide. Understand neuroplasticity and the science of learning. Take the Honey and Mumford Learning  assessment to understand how you best learn, and what your team needs from you in order to learn.  Discuss building a growth mindset and psychological safety and their importance in building a learning culture.  

In addition, you will participate in a Capstone project where you will share a management challenge and your solutions to resolve it with the rest of the participants.  

Rachel Wallins has 35 years of experience building and deploying learning and leadership development, team effectiveness, and executive coaching programs in a variety of industries. With certifications in nine psychometric assessment tools and a results-based coaching certification from the NeuroLeadership Institute, she is uniquely qualified to understand professionals’ needs and support them in driving improved performance for their organizations.

In the past, she held senior leadership positions at Deloitte & Touche, MTV Networks, Ketchum Public Relations, L’Occitane en Provence, Ross Stores, and The Children’s Place.

Rachel has a B.A. in English from the University of Oregon, an M.A. in adult education from The Ohio State University, and a post-master’s certification in organizational development from The New School University.
Rachel has been faculty for High-Impact Strategies for three cycles and has worked in the Jewish communal space as a consultant for six years.