28/12/10 12:26
It is difficult to predict what the economy will do. All we can really do is look back at the year past and say with certainty that for most it has been another tough year. Having said that, for some it has been good, growth, excitement, new opportunities. When we put together our year-at-a-glance calendar for 2011 we chose to take an optimistic view - a new day (year) is dawning, let it be a year of growth for the economy, employment for those in need of work, hope for those in situations that seem desperate.
With economic recovery means more training and retraining and that’s good for us of course. In addition, 2011 sees us broadening our training activities into a new field and we will say more about this in the new year. Over the last month we have been visiting some of our clients to hand out our 2011 calendar and ‘test the waters’ regarding this new area of involvement.
If we haven’t called on you, or sent you one of our year-at-a glance A4 size calendars, please email or phone if you would like one. The calendar features a picture of a sunrise over the Hauraki Gulf, taken from our offices on the North Shore.
15/10/10 13:13
The trapped Chilean miners are now free and people throughout the world rejoice with them and their families and the Chilean people. Stories have emerged of courage, perseverance, personal anguish, faith and hope, leadership and teamwork. No doubt many articles and books will be written, documents and films made. 70 days is a long time to be trapped underground, it’s a unique story to be told.
It’s often the stories, the practical examples that we remember long after we have forgotten the facts and figures when attending a training course. I imagine we will have lots to learn from the miners about leadership and teamwork. As in any team there would have been shared leadership according to the individual strengths of the men. Some would excel in initiating activities to keep up morale, others stimulating physical activities, others looking towards peoples spiritual needs etc. And there would be concepts such as shared purpose, goals, celebrating success. I look forward to hearing the stories and discussing the learnings with delegates to our supervisor and teamwork courses.
Tags: supervisor training, Teamwork
21/07/10 14:59
Many trainers get to become trainers because they are good at the subject they are training. This is often the case with training of technical skills, and would be true of computer software. Some people are naturals when it comes to coaching and encouraging others. Some are not. Whether you are a natural teacher or if learners ‘try your patience’, learning the principles of adult learning and the tools of the trainer will go a long way to helping you enjoy the teaching experience. You will also achieve the satisfaction of a good learning outcome.
We recently had an opportunity to combine the skills and material we have running ‘train the trainer’ courses, with the experience some of us have of teaching computer literacy. The outcome has been a ‘train the trainer course for computer software trainers’. The course has been refined over several months of application and we now have a product that is ‘tailor made’ for those who, on a full time basis or as part of their regular functions, impart their computer software skills to others. We welcome enquiries as to how we can work with your Organisation, or for the possibility of a pubic course.
For details of the learning outcomes for this course follow
this link.
Tags: train the trainer , computer software training
29/03/10 17:52
Some years ago I was put in charge of the training function of a large manufacturing company. They already had a Training Manager so I had to come up with a job title that was a bit different. Since my role, apart from managing the training function, was to look at the future H.R. needs of the organisation, introduce a Manpower Plan and develop people for future roles, I chose the title Human Resource Development Manager. I had never seen the title before then, but over the years it became popular. Training sounds a bit restrictive, development sounds more future oriented and creative and I am sure better describes the role. In recent years Learning has become a popular word in training circles and Learning Advisors, Learning and Development Managers etc are replacing Training Managers in many organisations.
Training Needs Analysis seems to have stood the test of time when referring to the process of finding out, in advance of training, who and what should be trained. Is this term accurate I wonder? What about Development Needs Analysis? (could be abbreviated to DNA) This would suggest a more proactive, forward looking approach. And of course, since training is not always the solution, what about broadening it to Performance Improvement Needs Analysis? (PINA?)
I suspect it will be Training Needs Analysis for some time to come.
Tags: training needs analysis
26/02/10 15:37
Our 2009 year-at-a-glance calendar had a picture of a gannet navigating through an approaching storm. We’ve all felt the effect of that storm to some measure and it’s time to reflect on the lessons learnt, the opportunities gained or lost and how we can make the most of our new environment. This year our calendar depicts reflection through the beauty of our New Zealand mirror lakes.
On the back of the calendar we show the dates of our scheduled public courses:
IMPACT! Training for Trainers, ON-JOB Training, LEADERSHIP Skills for Supervisors, Introduction to TEAM LEADERSHIP, TEAMWORK, FOOD SAFETY, HEALTH and SAFETY, Unlocking Business COMMUNICATION, Essential COMMUNICATION Skills and COMMUNICATING with CUSTOMERS
We have a few of these laminated A4 sized year-at-at-glance calendars left. If you would like one, please use our 'contact us' page to email your Name, Job Title, Company and Company Address. We will post one to you, subject to availability.
Tags: course caledar
