Letter of Recommendation

On behalf of the Building Research Institute, the largest building research institute in Poland, I have the pleasure of granting a recommendation to INNOWA.

In 2015, we commissioned Ms Iwona Nowak and her collaborator, Mr Robert Sakiewicz, with preparation and implementation of a training for managers on team work organisation and introduction of changes as well as workshops for the Institute’s employees regarding the determination of the vision, mission and values of the BRI.

INNOWA’s employees were much engaged in sharing their knowledge and experience. A solid preparation, individual approach, kindliness and inventiveness resulted in a creative activity of the Institute’s employees and let them achieve the expected results.

Based on our experience, I recommend INNOWA as a reliable partner for professional trainings and workshops, which effectively develop the employee’s attitudes and skills.

DIRECTOR of the Building Research Institute
dr inż. Marcin M. Kruk

On behalf of Astellas Pharma Sp. z o.o., we have the pleasure of issuing this letter of recommendation to INNOWA.

Our opinion is based on the experience of the recent Leadership Workshop, which was the culminating point of the third edition of our Development Programme, a "talent" programme at our company.

We commissioned INNOWA, which we have successfully cooperated with for many years, to conduct the workshop.

The coaches, Ms Iwona Nowak and Mr Krzysztof Stefaniak, prepared and conducted a training which was highly appreciated by the trainees. The trainees positively and actively engaged in the training, working intensely on the individual areas of real leadership. On the basis of the knowledge they gained during the training, they made specific declarations on what they have already decided to implement in their professional life.

The training was exceptionally diverse, creative, interesting, full of interesting exercises and tests. The trainees also appreciated the warm atmosphere, perfect preparation and extensive knowledge of the trainees.

In other words, the most talented employees of our company received a large portion of activity, fun, knowledge, and at the same time contexts for a deeper reflection and possibility to translate the skills into practice. Thank you very much Iwona and Krzysztof!

We recommend INNOWA as a reliable partner for cooperation.

In the last 10 years, Astellas Pharma Sp. z o.o. has completed numerous projects with Ms Iwona Nowak and her colleagues. Our cooperation has always been very successful.

One of the projects entrusted to Ms Iwona Nowak and her colleagues involved preparation of a training course / workshop on “Advanced managerial communication”, held in November 2012 for a group of people selected as part of the company talent development project.

The aim of the course, organised and conducted together with Ms Małgorzata Ufnal, was to provide the participants with the knowledge and skills of communication in all kinds of professional environments.

The varied form of the workshop, concentration on the participants’ needs as well as the knowledge, experience and sense of humour of the instructors were greatly appreciated by the sales specialists taking part in the training.

I am convinced that as a result of the project, the participants are more self-confident while dealing with various situations, which will pay off regardless of their future career path.

To provide a proof of satisfaction and the positive evaluation of the workshop, I would like to quote a statement by one of the participants: ”... as a result of the training, I realized that everyone can have the same aim, but each person can achieve it in a different, specific way, which is neither better, nor worse. I have also learned greater tolerance for people who are different from me. The training has also confirmed my conviction about the importance of a team, and about the fact that a team should consist of people with different characters, since everyone can contribute to it in a different way. I have learned how to form statements and communicate expectations in a clear and understandable way. I have found out that depending on a situation, people can assume different poses. I have also learned my strengths and areas for development..."

I recommend INNOWA with full conviction – it is a reliable, professional and responsible partner.

Astellas Pharma Sp. z o.o.
Iwona Grabarczyk
HR Director

Saint-Gobain is a large and diverse organisation, consisting of numerous businesses manufacturing and distributing materials for the needs of the construction industry.

Creation of a single development solution / programme for the sales structures of all the companies is not an easy task. We entrusted it to INNOWA, who started the project with a thorough analysis and assessment of the initial situation from the point of view of the level of competence, management styles, plans, expectations and perception of one's future career path in the sales force of the Group in Poland.

As a result of a several weeks’ assessment, a detailed report was prepared, which enabled the management of the Saint Gobain Group to discover a number of interesting, sometimes unexpected phenomena related to work in sales.

Based on the assessment and taking into account our strategic goals, INNOWA prepared a comprehensive, long-term programme for the development of our sales force (called the Faculty of Sales as part of the Saint-Gobain University). Its key advantages include responsiveness to the needs of all levels of the Group’s sales structure, as well as flexibility based on respect for different characters and diversity of individual businesses.

I truly recommend INNOWA. In the course of the project implementation, the consultants paid attention to our needs, responded to changes in a flexible way, and provided us with a large amount of business knowledge and healthy pragmatism.

Magdalena Krupa
HR Director
Saint-Gobain Group for Eastern Europe

I hereby confirm that I entrusted INNOWA with a project to support Mindshare in developing and implementing a competence model and appraisal system at the company. In consequence of the cooperation with Ms Iwona Nowak and her collaborators, we received a coherent and understandable tool to support HR management. Individual consultations helped us understand how to effectively use it. In addition, to develop management skills (it was necessary as a result of the first appraisal season), we invited INNOWA to propose a cycle of development activities for the company’s key employees. This project is being implemented now. Several training sessions and workshops have already taken place; next ones are scheduled to take place next year.

On the basis of more than two years of cooperation with INNOWA, I highly appreciate their approach flexibility, willingness to know and understand the business of Mindshare. The current experience has confirmed extensive knowledge, business and advisory experience. The training style and the method of constructing training courses make the company highly reliable also in the eyes of trainees. The ability to arouse the interest of a group of young and creative managers is worth emphasising.

As a board member, I also appreciate the pragmatism and usefulness of the solutions developed. With a comprehensive and long-term approach to the problems of Mindshare, this is a partner I may recommend.

Anna Sakowicz
Member of the Board
Mindshare Polska Sp. z o.o.

Colourful sheets and markers, plasticine, puzzle, balls and blocks. The training on “Individual and team efficiency” took place at a conference hall with glazed doors. The passers-by looked in and wondered why a group of serious people – managers of journalist teams of the Polish Press Agency – were playing kindergarten for the whole two days. At the same time, the trainees were as exhausted after the play as after many hours of following foreign informational agencies or handling difficult lawsuits or Sejm sessions. Why? Because the colourful blocks and paper cuttings were an excellent tool of intensive work on and with themselves.

During two days of training we gained knowledge that could be incorporated in several serious books. Both, the theoretical knowledge about diagnosing personalities of employees, conduct of negotiations, solving problems, attainment of the goals defined, as well as practical knowledge – exercises, tests, role-plays characteristic of situations in our work, etc.

The training conducted by Iwona Nowak was very useful. The trainer’s experience, professionalism and ability to work with people, as well as manners and sense of humour get all workshop participants involved to the maximum extent. Even sceptics, let alone enthusiasts.

Everybody has the opportunity to look at themselves, their work, colleagues, get to know new possibilities of their own development and potential of the team they work in.

I sincerely thank you for the two days,

Natalia Bryżko-Zapór
Director of the PAP-media department
POLSKA AGENCJA PRASOWA SA

More than ten years of corporate experience let us experience a dozen of different initiatives related to training, coaching, competence development, attempts to master professional management or leadership during workshops, etc.

More than ten years mean more than ten different companies dealing professionally with the art of training. With that experience, I am able to state that there are only few trainers I cast my mind back to, that I recall (that I can remember!). Only some of them were able to arouse such strong emotions in me and my employees and create such reliable image of the skills desired that we keep on referring to those meetings, reading through materials, and going deeper into the topic.

Ms Iwona Nowak, who has repeatedly supported me in difficult moments as difficult managerial situations evolved into management problems, is a member of that exclusive group (from the viewpoint of a training participant – recipient). Due to her original ideas and the ability to adjust the training programme to recipient’s individual needs, I managed to implement many projects.

I may sincerely recommend Ms Iwona Nowak and her professional workshop and experience to all those who need support in attaining the goal in their professional careers. The ability to talk to people, identify their needs, as well as experience and knowledge enabling to use many tools is everything a manager may dream of. This is the right person to find a solution, provide advice, and the effects will surprise you.

Patrycja Dębska

Dear Ms Iwona,

I have the pleasure of sending you the recommendations based on our long-term cooperation.
I will summarise the cooperation in several most important points:

1. I have had the opportunity to observe your actions in the area of preparation and conduct of a number of Assessment Centre sessions within the internal and external recruitment at Astellas Pharma to the position of a Medical Representative and District Sales Manager (along with individual feedbacks to the participants) for the recent few years. The forgoing included preparation of descriptions of the competencies analysed for the AC process, selection and development of exercises for the competencies analysed, development of comprehensive and understandable individual reports, providing a feedback to the participants – all those components have always been of the highest quality;
2. Preparation of and participation in the final candidate selection process (individual interviews with finalists of the recruitment and selection process) – very important advice;
3. High quality of work observed in the following areas:
   
   
   • comprehensive development of the AC process;
   • accurate selection of adequate exercises / actions;
   • preparation of exercises adequate to a given company’s situation / business context;
   • orientation at process professionalism and comfort of participants / candidates;
   • accuracy of diagnosis and valuable hints concerning candidates and their fitness for the company and the job proposed.

To conclude, once again I would like to underline your professionalism in all areas of the activity.

Piotr Filipczak
National Sales Manager
ASTELLAS PHARMA Sp. z o.o.

I think that each company having highly-qualified, experienced employees, experts in their fields puzzles how to provide further training and development to them. Inviting them to sales and customer service training courses is often naturally opposed by them and commented on like “What can they teach us?”. However, such training courses are very useful, in particular during an economic slowdown. This is a time when customers carefully spend their money, and the right attitude and service quality are often decisive for getting an order.

That situation was encountered by Aerzen, which decided to have its sales team trained on efficient communication and customer service. Despite the opposition of the so-called “old stagers” at the beginning, the trainers, Ms Iwona Nowak and Mr Dariusz Olszewski of De Integro, having carried out a thorough diagnosis, prepared very interesting and extensive workshops the contents of which involved even the most sceptical participants.

It must be emphasised that classes are conducted in a lively and unconventional way, exercises are original and knowledge is shared using diversified methods. In view of the foregoing, I have the pleasure of recommending the aforementioned trainers as persons with great experience and extensive training workshop. I know that understanding the business they perfectly satisfy its expectations.

Artur Dybała, MSc
Managing Director of
AERZEN POLSKA Sp. z o.o.

The project involving improvement in competencies of sales managers at Nordea Life & Pension, in the area of recruitment and selection, was implemented by Ms Iwona Nowak.

The programme preparation was preceded by a thorough analysis of the participants’ competencies and the company’s business needs in that area. The on-the-job observation of managers resulted in an excellent diagnosis of the actual needs, and a perfect adjustment of the workshop programme to the participants’ expectations. The workshops conducted by Ms Iwona convinced us that she is a high-class trainer and HRM expert. The success of the training was continued by a coaching session process. The sessions were concentrated on the essential area for the effective insurance agent recruitment and selection process.

The effectiveness of Ms Iwona’s activities induced us to entrust her with another project in the area of creation of a team of trainers and development of training competencies with in-house trainers. The process model proposed by Iwona involved: personality tests, on-the-job observation, feedback, competence development plan, training workshops. The work with Ms Iwona was a great inspiration for the group of Trainers and resulted in certain solutions. I may admit that Ms Iwona’s professionalism has repeatedly formed a source of consultancy on HRM, coaching, team management, employee career planning, solving difficult situations resulting from the nature of my work.

Iwona is my adviser, support, and in particular she inspires me to look for solutions and take challenges. I recommend Iwona as a professional business partner, effective adviser, instigator with full conviction (Iwona is a coach written with capital “C”).

Anna Jaguszewska-Bogacz
Training Department Director
NORDEA POLSKA TUŻ SA

We had the pleasure of cooperating with De Integro on the Strategic Goal Definition and Interpersonal Communication projects. Both projects were particularly significant to us from the viewpoint of further development of our business. The main purpose of the said projects involved development by the companies associated in our organisation of a coherent further development concept, determination of the essential cooperation terms and improvement in interpersonal competencies through a better diagnosis of an interlocutor’s personality and selection of communication forms providing an opportunity of a quicker understanding.

I would like to emphasise that the workshops were diligently prepared. The individual programme tailored to meet our expectations was preceded by a thorough diagnosis and understanding of business realities of our organisation.

In consequence, a very interesting scenario was developed. Classes were characterised by a great organisational and substantive professionalism. As the workshops were conducted in a lively manner, the participants showed great involvement and attention. The diversity of the exercises referring to the participants’ experiences was an undeniable advantage enabling them to understand the issues discussed in a transparent and precise way.

The trainers, Ms Iwona Nowak and Mr Dariusz Olszewski, are characterised by great professionalism and experience, and the way in which they conducted the classes confirmed their training experience and business practice.

To conclude, an interesting approach to the subject and high professionalism let us recommend De Integro as a training and consultancy company.

Tadeusz Pawlik
Member of the Board of Directors of
SIEĆBUDOWLANA.PL Sp. z o.o.

On behalf of Viridian Sp. z o.o., leading distributor of Philips medical devices, I would like to thank Ms Iwona Nowak and Mr Dariusz Olszewski of De Integro for the development and conduct of training courses for our sales team.

I must admit that I was surprised by the first meetings full of incisive questions. However, I appreciated the effects of the first meetings, also with the participants, during the workshops. The programme reflected the specificity of our industry and accurately addressed our needs. A lot of practical exercises based on several theoretical rules identified areas needing improvement in the commercial tools, and the techniques and practical ways of conduct proposed enriched the range of business behaviours.

A very practical solution used by De Integro involved “home works” given to participants after each workshop. It was a kind of surprise for the team, but looking back it turned out to be a great form of consolidation of the skills introduced during workshops which may evolve into habits. Therefore, I have the pleasure of recommending De Integro as a successful training and consultancy company. Great experience and practical approach to the subject let the group trust the trainers; their personalities and a varied and cheerful method of conducting classes easily eliminates the distance and opens even the most mistrustful participants.

Tomasz Woźnicki
President of the Board of Directors of
VIRIDIAN POLSKA SP. Z O.O.