THE CHALLENGE:
Poppulo, a global enterprise communications company, helps organisations connect people, systems, and workflows to drive collective progress. Poppulo’s goal is “to support people managers and leaders through every stage of their people leadership career.”
A significant challenge faced by Poppulo’s Learning & Development team was initially merging more than one entity and also creating cross collaboration across various groups of staff across territories, to create a cohesive, company-wide leadership culture capable of engaging people managers located around the globe, from Denver, Colorado, to Ireland and the UK, and eventually also including teams at Bengaluru, India. Addressing the diverse learning needs and preferences of teams across multiple time zones presented additional complexities, requiring a solution that was inclusive, effective and an opportunity to strengthen networks and to embed approaches to management and leadership.
THE SOLUTION:
In 2023, marking the start of a strong partnership, Adaptas helped design the ‘Manager Academy’ to support senior managers across multiple teams in Europe, the U.S. and India. The programme’s success led to the establishment of a biannual ‘Manager Academy’ featuring virtual learning sessions including:
– Building Resilience & Adaptability
– Presenting with Impact
– Developing a Growth Mindset for Problem Solving & Decision Making
– Courageous Feedback
– Manager as ‘Coach’ Skills and Practice
– Emotional Intelligence and High-Performance Teams for Established Managers
– Working Collaboratively – in teams and cross functionally
– Decision Making at Work
– Aspiring Leaders
– New Managers Programme
The learning sessions are designed with input from Poppulo and scheduled and tailored to fit the needs of the international teams. Participants complete pre-work before each module and complete exercises throughout the programme. During the learning sessions, facilitators deliver information on useful concepts, tools and techniques while inviting learners to discuss and apply the tools to their current role and objectives.
THE RESULTS THUS FAR:
In 2025, the vast majority of participants in the latest ‘Manager Academy’ expressed high satisfaction with the programme. This overall learner satisfaction rating demonstrates a very positive experience, with people leaders strongly recommending the programme to colleagues.
Participants across all management levels particularly highlighted that sessions were:
– Engaging and Practical: Participants appreciated real-life scenarios, case studies, and direct feedback from managers.
– Interactive: Breakout discussions, exposure to diverse perspectives, and live sessions with managers were highly valued.
Many participants found the content insightful and directly relevant to their roles, particularly regarding giving and receiving feedback.
The ongoing collaboration between Adaptas and Poppulo’s Learning & Development team has led to the expansion of a robust ‘Manager Academy’, which Adaptas now supports by leading sessions during the ‘Aspiring Manager Bootcamp’ and the ‘New Manager Academy’.
FEEDBACK:
Eve Bulman, Director of Organisational and Talent Development at Poppulo (Former Senior Manager of People Development (Global), Intercom )
“One of the things that sets Adaptas apart from other providers is their ability to really get into the psyche of our organisation and our culture; this is reflected in Adaptas’ flair for customised design and facilitation and time and time again, our employees share positive feedback for the impact they experience working with Adaptas.”