Richard and Mathilde met Yan in 2014 during their Process Communication trainer training.

At the time, Yan was already trained in NLP – Neuro‑Linguistic Programming, which remained his core model, having helped him overcome his own stage fright.

Since then, he has combined his artistic skills with his expertise in personal development to offer “tailor‑made” support to help his clients overcome their fears and express themselves with confidence.

Our paths drifted apart without losing sight of one another, and toward the end of 2025, Richard had the idea to invite him to lead a two‑day training session with our team, to revisit the facilitator’s posture through the lens of NLP.

We later discovered that the NLP and MMAPPER models are closely connected and even share a common language and symbolism: that of the map — a map we can reshape by taking an active role in our own lives…

Here is what Yan particularly appreciated during those two days spent with us:
“Everyone’s engagement, their curiosity, their relational finesse, their enthusiasm for experimenting, adjusting, integrating. In just two days, through simple exercises and role‑plays, they were able to realize that they had already been practicing a great deal of NLP without knowing it. The difference now?
They do it consciously, with intention, and with greater confidence in the structure of their facilitation.”

The whole team thanks him for so skillfully adapting this training to our needs and our reality, and for creating a benevolent and pleasant learning environment.

A pinch of adjustments, a dash of exclusive new sessions…

Here is our updated Intercompany Language Training Calendar for the first semester.

Contact us now to schedule your audit & evaluation!

In November 2025 Richard took part in the TEDx Poitiers event on the theme “eXplore.”

It was an opportunity to introduce the power of the MMAPPER model to a wider audience through an inspiring talk, built around exploring the different gateways to the model—gateways he invites us to open in order to find our own path to success.

We are very happy to share Richard’s talk with you today.

Do you have foreign colleagues who live and work in France, but at work… they always switch back to English?
We created French at Work for them.

A French as a Foreign Language program for non‑French‑speaking professionals who manage everyday life in French but need support to dare and perform in French in a professional context.

Goal: more confidence, more autonomy, better integration.                                                                               

Géraldine Berruto

Three years ago Ghilès Ouabadi contacted Géraldine & Richard to suggest setting up pilot co-development sessions as part of the Sorégies management community programme.

Co-development is a pedagogical tool we have used since the very beginning of our history.

For us the essential condition for the success of any co-development process is the trust established within the group. We therefore designed a programme whose primary goal was to allow participants to get to know one another, open up to differences, and learn how to give and receive feedback in a benevolent, lucid, and constructive way.
Once this climate of trust was built, the magic of co-development could unfold.

These were the beginnings of MMAPPER & Co. The groups formed three years ago are still active today, with participants continuing to help each other grow.

This programme can be implemented internally, as it was with Groupe Sorégies, and this year we are also offering inter-company sessions.

Géraldine Berruto

This is a situation I observe often among language learners. They complete a 56- or 84-hour training program, listen to English audio, watch films in the original version… and yet, sometimes, a frustration appears:

“I’m making the effort, but I don’t really see any progress.”

This frustration is understandable. When we invest time and energy in learning a language, we want to see the results of our efforts. But in some cases, an essential element is missing from the equation.

Today, we have access to extraordinary tools:

• automatic translators to write emails
• subtitles for watching films
• apps that provide answers immediately
• digital assistants that rephrase our sentences

These technologies are useful. They make our daily lives easier.

But when it comes to language learning, they can sometimes create the illusion of progress.

Let’s take two very common situations.

A learner:

• uses a translator to write an email in English
• watches a film with subtitles.

In both cases, the task is completed. But the brain itself has not really learned.

Because the cognitive effort — the effort of searching for a word, reformulating an idea, tolerating a degree of uncertainty — has been bypassed.

Research in cognitive psychology shows that durable learning follows a simple principle: the brain consolidates what costs effort. Researcher Robert A. Bjork refers to this as “desirable difficulties”: certain difficulties in the learning process strengthen long-term memory.

In other words, when we have to guess the meaning of a sentence or rephrase an idea using limited vocabulary, the brain creates much stronger neural connections.

By contrast, when the answer appears immediately through a translator, a subtitle — or is given by the facilitator — the information passes through… but it does not stick.

This phenomenon does not concern language learning alone.

After decades of rising IQ scores — a phenomenon known as the Flynn effect, identified by James R. Flynn — some studies now show a stagnation, and even a decline, in cognitive performance in several Western countries.

The causes are multiple, but some researchers point to the impact of an environment where answers are always instantly available.

We have more information than ever before.

But we engage our capacity for deep thinking less and less.

The good news is that progress always appears once the balance is restored.

Learning then becomes what it has always been: a process that can sometimes be demanding, but profoundly transformative.

Hana Bowcott

The beginning of this year has been an opportunity for us to take a step out of our daily routines and enter 2026 with a strengthened team that is more motivated than ever.

We continue to practice what we “preach” as consultants by cultivating a lifelong learning mindset. I was particularly pleased to welcome Yan Mercoeur and to see how seamlessly he connected with our team, linking our pedagogy with one of the major influences of our approach: Neuro‑Linguistic Programming.

Since our creation in 1987, we have continuously trained ourselves, and over the past two years we have followed high‑quality training sessions with Pascale Molho on Nonviolent Communication and Jérôme Lefeuvre on Emotional Intelligence. These regular internal trainings and the sharing of our methods help us bring even more depth and substance to the MMAPPER model.

Today, we can know everything (or believe we do) at the snap of a finger, but know-how and interpersonal skills require a much greater effort, don’t you think?

I hope you will find this newsletter insightful and thought provoking.

Happy reading!

Richard Bowcott
Co-gérant

When Richard invited Jérôme Lefeuvre to host a workshop on emotional intelligence last June for the ImpaQt team, it wasn’t just another training session to be ticked on the calendar. It was about trust, strong ties, and a shared desire: to continue learning, growing, and making our practices evolve.

Richard and Jérôme first crossed paths in 2015. At the time, Jérôme, Master Trainer in Process Communication – was leading the certification program in which Richard took part.

Two years later, Jérôme wrote in the preface of the MMAPPER book: « If life is worth living, it’s for the encounters and marvels we provoke along the way ».

We warmly thank him for the two extraordinary days we spent by his side and for all the seeds that were planted with benevolence and subtlety.

Ten years ago, Richard and Pierre Paineau – then Director of the Fenwick Linde factory in Cenon (Vienne) – were setting up connection days with all the managers. Pierre would call them ON days rather than OFF days…

Since then, we’ve managed to instill this practice into many teams  – a kind of  healthy routine that more and more participants now consider essential. These days, often rich in emotion, allow people to reconnect on a human level and collective intelligence to emerge. As our friend Jérôme Lefeuvre says: “Our emotions are not the problem. They are the solution.”

So what are connection days actually for?

• To integrate new team members with care
• To take a step out, share the vision and the project with the team, and take them further together
• To work collectively on important topics that require reflection—such as defining a delegation framework
• To bring to the table “things that niggle”, and learn how to say things to each other in a way that can be heard and is constructive.

Disconnect to reconnect with MMAPPER—because taking time is the best way to save it!

Géraldine Berruto

Listening comprehension… ouch!

I don’t understand a word of it! They’re speaking too fast, they have a thick accent, they’re swallowing most of their words, they’re jumping from topic to topic…

Sound familiar?

And what if you tried HEARING before trying to UNDERSTAND?

Think of your ears as tools. Wouldn’t it be amazing to learn to use them more effectively – so listening becomes more natural and less exhausting?

At ImpaQt, in the METHOD pillar of MMAPPER, we’ve created a step-by-step process to guide learners through this:

STEP 1: WARM-UP – Tune in, don’t overthink it, just let the sounds sink in. Listening as relaxed as possible helps you capture the whole picture. I’ve heard that classical music is known for « opening » your ear.

Step 2: SENSORY – Voices, background noise, breathing, silences, repetitions. What sounds did you pick up on and when? Train your ear to distinguish sounds and the “music” of the language.

STEP 3: PERCEPTION – Use your experience, logic, imagination, creativity and brainstorm ideas about what you’re hearing.

Step 4: CONTEXT – Now ask yourself: What do I know so far? Who? When? Where? Why? How?

The objective being to develop more natural listening, regular work over a period of time is key to getting solid progress.

Each step chips in to the final result. Start with the global picture before diving into details.

Start with what you already know and save your energy to focus on what you need most.

So, are you ready?

Open your ears wide!

Jane Le Goff