By Elisabeth Goodman, 8th February 2018
Snow drops in the winter display of the Botanical Garden, Cambridge
Many of our clients are in the midst of planning their objectives, and their learning and development goals for 2018.
So this newsletter is a reflection on some of the ways that RiverRhee’s learning and development resources have been evolving in the past year – in case this resonates with your needs.
Exploring mindsets as well as ‘how to’ processes
How we think about ourselves and what’s possible can have as great an influence on our capability for doing something, as having the right tools, skills and knowledge for doing it.
RiverRhee’s courses have evolved since our early days in 2009 to include more and more of the softer or people aspects of our work, as opposed to just the ‘how to’ process.
So for instance, our Lean Sigma training emphasises the mind-set of continuous improvement, and of seeking out problems so as to prevent them recurring, rather than rewarding fire-fighting.
Effective Project Management relies on creating and sustaining a high performing team, and of understanding the soft skills that people bring to it. These are just some of the challenges and opportunities of working in a matrix environment and on multiple simultaneous projects.
Managing Change is of course all about understanding how people are perceiving and experiencing change and how to respond to that to get the desired outcome.
And, Sharing Knowledge and Collaboration will be easier to do in a climate of good relationships and trust.
Our ability to:
- Make the most of our Time and Meetings
- Influence and Communicate effectively
- Deliver good Presentations
- Be Assertive*
are all as much a factor of understanding and working with the strengths of different personality types, as adopting smart personal and team practices.
(*Assertiveness is our newest course and is currently in development.)
Accessing the rich resources of Neurodiversity
In November 2017, we delivered a seminar on Neurodiversity with Carol Fowler, co-sponsored by Abzena and Babraham Bioscience Technologies.
We are now offering in-house seminars on this topic, with a view to building managers’ and HR professionals’ awareness of the rich resources that could be available to their teams.
How we recruit, interview, and support people with Autism, Dyslexia, ADHD and other cognitive differences will determine how well we can access the unique skills that they bring and ensure their well-being at work.
Going beyond introductory management skills
Delegates at RiverRhee’s June 2017 Introduction to Management course
Our 3-day Introduction to Management course (running next on the 13th-15th March) continues to be our most popular course.
With over 100 managers having now taken part, some of them are now looking for options to develop their skills beyond the introductory level.
We now offer a 30-minute follow-up call as an integral part of the course, as well as the one-to-one coaching that each delegate received during the course.
Our Associates are also available for further one-to-one personal coaching – to which we bring various specialisms such as dealing with Dyslexia, coaching in French, and transitioning to leadership roles.
In 2017 we added Transition to Leadership and Coaching Skills for Managers to complete our portfolio of resources available to managers beyond the introductory level.
Tailored in-house programmes
All of our courses can be tailored for in-house delivery. In 2017 we worked with 4 clients to customise and deliver variations of our management and individual contributor courses for their staff.
These programmes included tailored versions of:
- Introduction to Management delivered in a series of modules over a few weeks / months
- Conducting Effective Performance Reviews and Appraisals
- Recruitment and Employment Relations for Managers* (we also have a half-day version – Recruitment and Interviewing Skills – that we are offering on open access on the 8th March)
- Transition to Leadership
- Presentation Skills
(*We were delighted to have Alison Proffitt join the RiverRhee team of Associates in January to support us with this and our other offerings.)
Concluding thoughts..
Hopefully there is food for thought there for you as you prepare for your learning and development in 2018.
Do get in touch if you would like to find out more about RiverRhee Consulting, our range of off-site and in-house workshops and one-to-one coaching, and how we can help you to create exceptional managers and teams.
See the RiverRhee Consulting website or e-mail the author at elisabeth@riverrhee.com.
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