Communication & Influence
Strategic Listening Mastery™
Hear What Matters. Build Trust. Move Work Forward.
Turn listening into an operating discipline that surfaces risk, strengthens trust and converts different perspectives into better decisions.
Next steps
Let's discuss this programme
Bring this to your team, or join a public cohort. Ashish personally reviews every enquiry.
Key outcomes
- Listening as an organisational input into decisions, execution, trust, voice and risk
- How attention, internal rehearsal, pressure, prior assumptions and status interfere with comprehension
- Four listening depths: downloading, factual, empathic and generative listening
- The Value Coaching L.I.S.T.E.N. Loop™: Land, Invite, Scan, Test, Explore and Navigate
- How to listen for content, meaning, emotion and system context without claiming certainty
- Inquiry, concise paraphrase, assumption testing and clear conversational closure
How the day works and what's included
Methodology
- Concise evidence-informed inputs
- Live listening demonstrations and contrast examples
- Developmental self-diagnostic and reflective journalling
- Whiteboard framework modelling
- Pair coaching and structured inquiry
- Triad practice with behavioural observation
- Original executive cases and role plays
- Multi-stakeholder capstone simulation
- Peer feedback and focused replay
- Hybrid-meeting and AI-summary audit
- Silent reflection and workplace action planning
Practice laboratories
- Strategic Listening Diagnostic
- Said / Inferred / Decided recall check
- Attention-thief inventory and landing ritual
- Four-depth scenario sorter
- L.I.S.T.E.N. Loop™ conversation card and behaviour scorecard
- The Green Status decision-risk case
- The Third Handoff client-escalation practice
- Power and voice-risk mapping
- Five Ps AI co-listener protocol
- Project Northstar multi-stakeholder simulation
- Observer rubric and focused replay
- Twelve-question knowledge and judgement check
- 24-hour / 7-day / 30-day transfer plan
Tools & assessments
- A diagnostic or assessment is bundled into the programme
- Strategic Listening Diagnostic — developmental reflection tool, not a psychometric instrument
- L.I.S.T.E.N. Loop™ behavioural scorecard
- Four-depth scenario judgement checks
- Triad and role-play observer feedback
- Project Northstar capstone behavioural rubric
- Twelve-question knowledge and judgement check
- Final transfer commitment and evidence plan
Reinforcement & transfer
- 24-hour real-conversation commitment
- Seven-day three-conversation listening experiment
- Thirty-day team-routine implementation
- Accountability-partner check-ins at seven and thirty days
- Manager discussion guide
- Team conversation guide
- Personal reflection journal
- Colleague impact-feedback prompt
- Repeat of the selected Strategic Listening Diagnostic items
- Use the L.I.S.T.E.N. Loop™ in one named workplace conversation within 24 hours.
- Separate what was said, inferred and decided before acting on a high-stakes message.
- Ask one open, specific invitation before offering a view in an important conversation.
- Test a concise summary before advice, challenge or decision when the stakes justify it.
- Use status-aware language to invite dissent from lower-power or remote participants.
- Apply the Five Ps before using AI capture, transcription or summaries.
- Run three listening experiments within seven days: a one-to-one, a meeting and a difficult conversation.
- Embed one team routine within 30 days, such as summary-before-decision, a dissent round or AI-note verification.
- Ask a colleague or manager for one example of the impact of the changed behaviour.
Agenda at a glance
09:00–09:25 | Opening contract and baseline
Create psychological safety, connect the day to real business conversations and establish an observable baseline for effective listening.
09:25–10:05 | Module 1 — Listening as a strategic system
Link listening quality to decision-making, stakeholder trust, voice, execution and risk. Separate what was said, inferred and decided.
10:05–10:45 | Module 2 — Attention before technique
Identify device, time, expertise, emotion, status and solution urges that steal attention; design a short landing routine.
10:45–11:00 | Morning break
Reset and informal reflection.
11:00–11:45 | Module 3 — Four listening depths
Explore downloading, factual, empathic and generative listening; diagnose defaults and match depth to conversation purpose.
11:45–12:30 | Module 4 — The L.I.S.T.E.N. Loop™
Build the six-move sequence through demonstration, question practice, tested summaries and client-escalation role play.
12:30–13:15 | Lunch
Informal reflection: what becomes possible when understanding is tested before response?
13:15–14:00 | Module 5 — Listening under heat
Practise steadiness, acknowledgement, inquiry, boundaries and clear closure during disagreement and stakeholder tension.
Who it's for
People leaders, executives, project and programme leaders, client-facing professionals, HR and people professionals, consultants, coaches and cross-functional teams whose listening affects trust, risk, decision quality or execution.
- People leaders and emerging leaders
- Executives and senior managers
- Project, programme, product, change and delivery leaders
- Client-facing, sales and customer-success professionals
- HR, people and organisational-development professionals
- Consultants, coaches and professional-services teams
- Hybrid, multicultural and cross-functional teams
Seniority: Emerging leaders, Mid managers, Senior leaders, Executive, Whole team, Mixed
Prerequisites: No formal prerequisite. Participants should bring one real, moderate-stakes workplace conversation they want to improve, using anonymised details where appropriate.
Facilitator
Ashish Goyal
Ashish Goyal is an ICF-accredited executive coach, leadership trainer and transformation practitioner with more than 25 years of experience across banking, technology, government and global delivery. He combines commercial acumen, systems thinking, evidence-informed learning and human-centred leadership to help leaders strengthen communication, decision quality and durable workplace behaviour.
Taster workshop
Experience the same thinking in a shorter live session:
Next steps
Let's discuss this programme
Bring this to your team, or join a public cohort. Ashish personally reviews every enquiry.