At Hans Anders, store managers and team leaders work with diverse teams, gaining insights into their own and their team's behavior and communication styles through Mapstell.
Challenge
Hans Anders, a leading optician and audiologist, operates over 400 stores across the Netherlands and Belgium. The store managers and team leaders face the challenge of managing teams that vary significantly in age, culture, and background. To maximize their team's potential, they require insights into their own communication and leadership styles, as well as the behaviors of those they lead.
Previous training methods were ineffective, as complicated questionnaires and lengthy reports left participants feeling constrained, leading to resistance among the hands-on employees of Hans Anders. The organization sought a user-friendly tool that was widely applicable, easily recognizable, and directly usable on the shop floor.
Solution
Hans Anders chose Mapstell's World of Difference as the foundation for its leadership training. Five internal trainers were certified, enabling the method to be implemented immediately in both countries and in two languages.
Participants complete a brief, accessible questionnaire at the beginning of their leadership training and receive their PersonalMap, along with a short video explaining their position on the map. Throughout the multi-day training sessions, Mapstell is revisited multiple times, focusing on personal leadership, conversation skills, and situational leadership. This repetition deepens understanding and continually connects theory to practice, with the PersonalMap serving as a constant reference point for reflection.
The floor mat has proven to be a powerful tool for visualizing behavior. When participants are asked to physically stand in a different realm, they experience the impact it has on them. Behavioral patterns become immediately recognizable, leading to valuable discussions about collaboration and personal effectiveness.
"What sets Mapstell apart from other providers is the personal contact. They know you, think along with you, and are there when you need them. In a time when many organizations focus primarily on volume, Mapstell focuses on making an impact. That aligns with us: we want to make a difference in our customers' lives and therefore prefer to work with partners who want to do the same."
Result
The implementation of Mapstell within the leadership programs has led to lasting effects in practice. Participants recognize themselves in their PersonalMap and begin to view behavior—both their own and that of others—differently. The language of the map facilitates discussions about behavior and helps understand why collaboration sometimes flows naturally while at other times it feels strained. Leaders consequently engage in more open conversations with their teams, fostering greater understanding and improved collaboration in the workplace.
The enthusiasm of participants is contagious. Other store managers and colleagues at the headquarters are now requesting to work with Mapstell, especially around themes like team dynamics and collaboration on both good and challenging days.
