Interview - Leadership and Falconry
Interview with Anita Morris of Holden Morris consulting
Topic : The High Flyers Programme
A unique and innovative workshop incorporating falconry to enhance leadership understanding and performance
Now available as an accredited programme earning points at Masters level. Accredited by Leeds Metropolitan University.
Why are you using birds of prey as part of a management training course?
If you look at the over 4000 year history of falconry, it was used to develop leadership skills in different cultures around the world. Often royalty were trained in falconry not only because it was considered a sport of Kings, but also because Kings and Princes were leaders of armies as well as countries and needed to develop leadership skills. A human being cannot impose his/her wishes on birds of prey and the birds have no instinct to follow a human. It is therefore only through the skills of the falconer and his/her understanding of his/her charge that the desired results can be achieved. No two individual birds of prey, even those of the same species, will have the same temperament and react in the same way. This means that the falconer has to understand every individual bird he/she might work with. This has strong links with leadership. Falconry is noted as being the most difficult and challenging of all the hunting sports. If you talk to those in leadership positions in industry, and in other areas such as politics, you will hear similar comments to those of the falconer. Management is a skill, but leadership is an art.
Why are you working with Steve Birchall and Cheshire Falconry?
When I first met Steve I sat and talked to him about the birds he works with and the falconers who work at Cheshire Falconry. I was amazed at his level of knowledge and expertise in working with birds of prey. He truly understands every aspect of the birds, from practical aspects like feeding and housing to a detailed psychological understanding. He is able to tell you about how a particular species might act and react, but he also understands the temperament of each individual bird. He recommended some books to me and in one of them Nick Fox, a well known falconry expert, states that ‘Falconry teaches humility and fortitude, it enhances the spirit, it improves fine judgement and gives the falconer a sense of oneness with nature’.
The facilities at Cheshire Falconry are excellent. The site is very accessible even though it’s in a rural setting, which is great for my business clients. The facilities such as catering and parking are really good too.
What makes YOU able to run leadership development programmes, what is your level of expertise?
Like many psychologists I’m uncomfortable with the term ‘expert’. There is an implication that it means I know more than you and therefore creates a power situation. I prefer the term ‘specialist’, really. From an academic perspective I have been interested in and have researched the whole area of leadership for some time. I have a background in industry. My first degree is in business and after graduating I worked firstly as a management accountant before moving into sales and marketing, mainly in manufacturing industry. I did have a brief sojourn as marketing manager for an executive coaching company, which first introduced me to leadership development. It highlighted to me that I wanted to work in this area, but wanted to do it ‘properly’ and with integrity. I found out what I needed to do to work at the level I currently work at and planned my future development. I knew I needed the credibility of working at a senior management level and so went back into industry to get management experience and work myself up to the level of director in a large manufacturing group. I then left, did a further degree in applied psychology, then a Masters in occupational psychology, and also some specific training and qualifications in coaching and related topics. I set up my company and have developed an impressive client base. I suppose that my unique selling point is that I have both business and psychology qualifications, plus both business and psychology experience. There are very few people in my field who can say that.
I run a number of leadership development programmes, as well as coaching senior managers. I continue to have links to academic institutions and am a visiting lecturer at LJMU. This helps me to keep up to date in the research and development of leadership theories and development approaches. I liaise with academics on a regular basis, but prefer to work in an applied setting. My links to industry and my work with organisational leaders is as important as my links with academia. This combination allows me to facilitate the desired results for my clients.
Isn’t the falconry link just a gimmick?
Perhaps some people might think that. However, read almost any book on the psychology of birds of prey and any book on leadership, and you can’t help but see the links. One of my specialist areas is emotional intelligence and I remember laughing when attending a ‘meet the birds’ event Steve was running. The falconer, Rob, said that we couldn’t work with the Eagles that day, because they were in a ‘narky mood, and you don’t want to work with a narky Eagle’. Falconry is about communicating in very difficult circumstances and to communicate effectively you need to understand the impact of emotion as well as what is being communicated. Rob obviously has an in-depth understanding of the emotional states of the birds he works with. Again falconry is a perfect way to get these messages across.
There is a lot of research that supports the effectiveness of what is termed experiential learning. By seeing and experiencing new ways of working, new approaches and ways of behaving, it’s often easier to learn. If people also enjoy the learning experience, it has a greater impact. It’s often easy to get stuck in a comfort zone, so handling a wild animal can help to take you out of your comfort zone and see things from a different perspective. Falconry is a fantastic way of doing this.
The programmes we have designed that incorporate hunting take things even further. The hunting aspect really helps to impact on communication skills and on the strategic perspective of leadership, plus it enhances teamwork.
For me as a leadership development specialist, this is some of the most exciting and enjoyable work I do. I get to work with people who really are experts, as in the area of falconry their knowledge is arguably unrivalled. The delegates who attend always add to the events, bring something new to every workshop. If you attended the same workshop twice, you would learn something new and different at each event. I also get to work with some remarkable wild animals too, and am always somewhat awestruck and honoured to have one of these magnificent creatures on my arm.
Leadership Development Programmes Incorporating Falconry
The High Flyers Programme
*OPEN EVENT NEW DATE :- 19th September 2008 *Booking Form – high flyers Sept 08.pdf
Now available as an accredited programme earning points at Masters level. Accredited by Leeds Metropolitan University.
WE ALSO RUN HIGH FLYERS AS IN-HOUSE TAILORED PROGRAMMES TO MEET SPECIFIC ORGANISATIONAL NEEDS AND GOALS, PLEASE CONTACT US TO DISCUSS YOUR REQUIREMENTS
New published article“Learning from Eagles.pdf”:http://www.holdenmorrisconsulting.co.uk/file_download/25
A unique and innovative workshop incorporating falconry to enhance leadership understanding and performance.
We won’t tell you how good it is – read what the delegates think!“Newsletter – High Flyers.pdf”:http://www.holdenmorrisconsulting.co.uk/file_download/9
For over 4000 years falconry has been used as training for Princes and leaders. According to leading falconry expert Nick Fox ‘it is the most senior of the hunting sports because it is the most difficult and the most challenging’. Birds of prey have no instinct to obey a leader. It is only through the skills of the falconer that the partnership of human and bird can achieve exceptional performance. Through working with birds of prey we can enhance our understanding of and the skills needed for truly effective leadership.
Who will benefit from the programme?
This one day programme enhances the ability to influence, inspire, motivate and communicate, leading to greater individual and organisational performance. It is ideal for those who aspire to be leaders and are currently in, or are new to, management positions.
Programme objectives.
Enhance your understanding of:
the principles of leadership.
the importance of strategic thinking.
the need for judgement and balancing risks in improving performance.
the importance of communication.
the influence of emotion on individual and organisational performance.
These objectives form the core of Falconry. Through experiential learning, working with the Falconer and Birds of Prey, you will increase your performance as a leader, thus impacting on individual and organisational success.
Programme outline
The programme starts with an introduction to the day’s events and the concepts of leadership. This is followed by a morning session spent with the falconers introducing and handling a range of different birds of prey. Then we apply the skills of the falconer to the world of the business leader. After lunch we meet the Eagles and learn about what makes them tick before applying this to the world of business.
You may even meet a White Tailed Sea Eagle
Your programme presenters
Leadership Specialist:
Anita Morris, Managing Director of Holden Morris Consulting Ltd, a consultancy specialising in leadership development, executive coaching and emotional intelligence. Anita is not only highly qualified in her field, holding three relevant academic degrees, but has extensive experience working in management and leadership positions in industry. She is a visiting lecturer at LJMU and a graduate member of the British Psychological Society.
Falconry team:
The falconry team are made up of highly trained and experienced personnel, whose enthusiasm for their work and their charges enhances this highly interactive workshop.
For programme costs dates and venue see booking form or contact us at info@holdenmorrisconsulting.co.uk
0151 257 9480
Cost includes, lunch, refreshments, course notes and folders.
Please note: due to the nature of this programme and to ensure that delegates receive individual attention, each workshop is limited to a maximum of 12 delegates.
A range of one and two day workshops incorporating falconry are available. Our programmes are available as in-house courses as well as open workshops, and as such will be tailored to the wants and needs of individual client companies.
For further information on the programme, dates of forthcoming programmes and details of how to enrol, please contact: Holden Morris Consulting Ltd., 0151 257 9480 or at info@holdenmorrisconsulting.co.uk
Want an away day with a difference and which has real business benefits? Talk to us we’ll design you an event which will not only be fun and memorable, it will have real business benefits too!
Leadership development
We offer a number of approaches to Leadership Development including one-to-one coaching, open Master-classes and full and extensive programmes which often include an element of academic study.
When delivering leadership development programmes we work closely with client organisations to align our work to their organisational culture, organisational goals and strategy, 
the individual needs of participants, previous interventions used and current HR policies. We believe in engaging our clients in ownership of the development process to enable its continuance long after individual projects and our intervention has concluded. This approach provides our clients with value for money over the period of the project and long into the future.
Our cutting-edge programmes include: diagnostic assessments, events, workshops, one-to-ones, action learning and other interventions using the most up-to-date theories, research findings and applied experience. The managers and teams involved not only develop leadership knowledge, skills and abilities to improve individual, team and organisational performance, they have the ability to develop the knowledge, skills and abilities of others within their organisations leading to a culture of excellence.
Our belief in a process of continuous improvement for our clients, selves, and the programmes we deliver, becomes evident in the details of development proposals. An on-going review and evaluation process is included. However, we carry this out in line with any current evaluation or audit procedures. It is important to point out our programmes are, by the nature of the development process, flexible. 
The framework of any programme we deliver can only be finalised through detailed discussion and working in partnership with our clients.
Our expertise in leadership development, Emotional Intelligence, development of Transformational and Authentic Leadership, and our reputation for delivering excellence, make us ideal providers of your Leadership Development Programmes.
We run ‘open’ and in-house programmes predominantly within SMEs. For programmes in large public or private sector organisations, and for programmes with an element of academic study such as MBA, we work closely with Liverpool John Moore’s University. Please contact us for more information.