Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A. (MSC) is the world’s largest privately-owned shipping company, and was founded in 1970 by Captain Gianluigi Aponte, with one small vessel, the M/V Patricia. Headquartered firstly in Brussels, moving thereafter to Geneva, MSC now has a network of over 480 offices in 155 countries, employing a team of over 70,000 dedicated individuals. They operate an established fleet of 490 container vessels and they cover 200 routes globally, calling at 500 ports. Today they are a truly global company.
The Aponte family has a long and proud seafaring tradition, with maritime ancestry dating back to the 17th century in Italy. Gianluigi Aponte, Group Executive Chairman, from the very beginning placed an enormous amount of value on his staff, seeing each and every person employed by the organisation as part of a larger family story.
It was with this ethos in mind that Kevin Clarke, Managing Director Australia & New Zealand (MSCA), approached Peak Teams to deliver specialised training to MSCA. “Mr Aponte has always been clear about keeping our family traditions at the forefront of the business, and we wanted to ensure that we maintain this as a strong part of our cultural heritage. Our Agency has, like the rest of the MSC world, seen a lot of change and growth, and we want to embrace this and ensure we maintain a strong sense of company cohesion”.
Kevin continued, “We engaged Peak Teams to deliver a training program for core staff in 2017. The aim was to reinvigorate our teams as the industry had been through a lot of consolidation in recent times, and in an ever-changing environment we wanted to build on our competitive advantage and foster a strong team spirit. We really wanted to invest in our number one asset – our people”.
lan Schubach, CEO of Red Leaf Group, comments, “When highly successful international companies grow rapidly, you often find that the pressures of increased productivity can create a complex network of issues. With a new motto “One Vision One Team” MSCA sought the guidance of the Red Leaf Group to achieve their aims.
lan says, “MSCA liked our adventure background and they were open to a different approach, So, we launched with one of our wilderness simulation products which really engaged their team. This was followed with more practical and analytical products to help them to embark on a process of continuous improvement, spearheaded by their Senior Leadership Team. We found that our products really reached them on an emotional, practical and rational level.”
“When a company steeped in tradition opens its doors for specialised guidance.”
09 May 2023: A group of 120 high achievers recently got together at the Allianz Australia Aspire Awards. Lead Facilitator Ian Schubach ran Reach for the Summit, one of our team-based Virtual Adventures.
One particular piece of feedback stood out, “Probably the best team session I’ve ever attended. As a psychologist and risk professional I found it very interesting to be a part of.”
F2F Delivery
Working with Ian has given our people a rich insight into what makes teams successful. From defining what success looks like to decision making, using Ian’s virtual adventures have allowed us to better understand how we work together and has given us the opportunity to have real life conversations and experience in making decisions and working together. Ian’s virtual adventures have allowed our group to engage and participate in a team work experience we would otherwise never be able to do. We don’t have the budget to climb Everest with our leadership team, or take a safari in South Africa, but Red Leaf’s Virtual Adventures have allowed us to have a taste of this real experience and left our leaders with confidence in their decision making processes and abilities.
Chief People Officer
It was great to have you back involved with our group again. All of the feedback has been terrific. Excellent job with both the facilitation and the framework of the session, as always!
Chief Operating Officer
Aligning our senior leadership across the region has always been important, even more so during recent times. Faced with limitations around face to face interaction, we pressed ahead with an online QBR. Ian Schubach from Red Leaf designed and delivered a two hour virtual adventure that helped highlight the importance of teamwork and cross boundary leadership in these times. What’s more, it was fun!
AVP
Thank you for an amazing African adventure – what an experience! It was truly an educational, fun, teaming experience that was very much enriched by your obvious passion and love for the animals. Ian, you are an outstanding guide. Your wisdom, enthusiasm and energy had us on the edge of our seats! The stories were heartfelt, and I believe we all connected deeply with the Tracker Academy and the mission they are on.
VP Events
When Red Leaf began working with us they identified key areas of focus and guidance: re-defining leadership roles, faltering internal team communication, and confusion of company message. Red Leaf’s combination of engaging and emotive content combined with the tools to secure a long-term leadership and team framework, has really united our vision. We were given consistent follow up to bring us a collection of operations, to fulfil our focus of one company with one message.
CEO Iress
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