Baking & Snack - May 2018 - 22

Q&A: BEMA-U
Emily Bowers

CULTIVATING LEADERSHIP
The Insights Discovery model helps BEMA-U apply skills to baking-industry workplace challenges.
BEMA's expanding education portfolio, BEMA-U, uses the Insights Discovery method to help bring new levels of awareness to leadership style. Emily Bowers, BEMA's director of education and professional development, tailors this unique platform to a variety of programs for professionals in the baking industry. Joanie Spencer, editor, Baking & Snack, spoke with Ms. Bowers about the program and
how Insights Discovery can make teams, companies and the industry stronger.

Joanie Spencer: What is Insights Discovery, and
how is it used in the BEMA-U portfolio?
Emily Bowers: Insights Discovery is an evaluative tool, based on
the psychology of Carl Jung, built to help people understand themselves, understand others and make the most of the relationships
that affect them in the workplace. The methodology uses a simple
and memorable four-color model to help people understand their
style and strengths and the value they bring to the team. These are
referred to as the "color energies," and it's the unique mix of Fiery
Red, Sunshine Yellow, Earth Green and Cool Blue energies, which
determine how and why people behave the way they do.
BEMA-U has adopted Insights Discovery as the foundation
of our training programs. The principles of self-awareness are
applicable across the globe, in every industry and at every level of an organization. BEMA-U's course offerings are currently
focused in sales effectiveness, team effectiveness, learn-to-train
and leadership development. The Insights Discovery training
platform provides a variety of supporting materials and learning experiences that create the building blocks for meaningful
workplace transformations.

Why did you decide to build the BEMA-U platform on
the Insights Discovery model?
When your people truly understand themselves, the potential of
your business goes through the roof. Think about it - people
can only make the best of the strengths they've already got and
work on facing their challenges if they really know what those are.
When people can take an honest look at their personal style, they
can ask vital questions, such as "What kind of leader am I now,
and how can I be a better sales professional?" or "Why do I react
so strongly to change?" and "Why am I always butting heads with
my colleague, and what common ground is there between us?"

22 Baking & Snack May 2018 / www.bakingandsnack.com

Considering the needs of BEMA's membership, as well as the
needs of the entire baking industry, Insights Discovery was the
clear leader as our preferred training partner. The curriculum is
globally recognized, multi-lingual and accompanied by the highest quality training materials, and the learning is actionable and
immediate. As an accredited practitioner, I highly value the organization's focus on creating unique and impactful learning experiences for everyone that has the opportunity to take part in any of
the Insights Discovery suite of courses.

How exactly does it work?
The Insights Discovery Research team has spent more than two
decades measuring quality and refining the evaluator to ensure
that the offering is the highest standard it can be across more than
30 languages globally.
The evaluator is a simple 25-question assessment that takes approximately 15 minutes to complete. From those results, a multichapter personal profile is created. The model then uses four colors to represent observable behavior. It's so simple, yet completely
adaptable for many training purposes.

Can people who take one BEMA-U course built on
the Insights Discovery model take another BEMA-U
course? How do the Insights results translate from
one workshop to another?
Yes! The possibilities are numerous, and that's yet another reason why this program is so beneficial. Each of the courses have a
similar foundation, an introduction to the concepts and color energies. There are so many engaging and interactive ways to teach
the introduction that you could participate in it several times and
not feel like you are repeating. Beyond the introduction, imagine
the turning of a lens. Are you focusing in on improving sales and

http://www.bakingandsnack.com

Baking & Snack - May 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Baking & Snack - May 2018