As part of Capacity Building, the WCO organized a Leadership and Management Development (LMD) Workshop from 29th October to 9th November 2018 for 20 senior managers of the Mongolian Customs General Administration (MCGA). The overall objective of the two-week interactive workshop was to strengthen senior management’s capacity to lead and drive reforms within MCGA.
Senior managers from various departments and remote border posts of the MCGA participated in the workshop. During the workshop, the revised materials of the LMD workshop were used for the first time. This new material focuses even more than before on ‘knowing yourself’ and ‘managing yourself first’, before you start leading and managing others. A wide range of topics on personal and organizational development was covered such as leadership, integrity, influencing, building trust, negotiations, people management, strategic and personal communication and change management. The workshop highlighted the importance of leadership and management skills, as well as the responsibilities of individual managers, to drive modernization and change within their work and personal life.
For many of the participants the workshop was regarded as an opportunity to review their personal and managerial skills and approach in their work environment. As a result, many of them committed to make fundamental changes in their management and communication styles. The LMD workshop was conducted in English, and although this represented a challenge at times, this was more than compensated by the enthusiasm and motivation of the group. During the intensive workshop–and even during breaks and after workshop hours- participants continued to share experiences, views and ideas about the workshop contents and philosophy.
As a result of the LMD Workshop, participants now have a greater propensity to manage more strategically, lead with greater focus, and involve their staff more intricately. Another outcome of the workshop was that the training strategies and methodology of Mongolian Customs will be fundamentally reviewed in the near future. This action will allow the participants of the LMD Workshop to have a more lasting and significant impact on the further modernization of MCGA.
For more information on the WCO Leadership and Management Development Programme, please contact Capacity.Building@wcoomd.org.