People Management Skills - Practical Tailored Workshops

The Client

A leading local government organisation in south-east Queensland.

The Brief

To design, develop and implement a training program to improve the skills of managers and team leaders in day to day management by improving their knowledge and skills in practical people management issues.

To include relevant legislation, organisational policies, case studies, and be conducted interactively using adult learning principles.

Our Response

We conducted a needs analysis by consulting with managers and team leaders in the target audience for the training to establish current and required knowledge and skills relevant to employee relations and performance management.

The needs analysis included consultation with key Human Resource practitioners within the organisation to get input on target group and business needs, as well as program constraints and desired outcomes.

We developed and delivered a tailored program to respond to the needs identified. It included these features to maximise learning and respond to organisational issues:

• A three-module approach conducted over three weeks (one module per week) to meet availability and operational working needs of participants
• Pre-work before each module to ensure the learning process occurred over the period of the modules, and not only during face to face sessions. This also maximised participant preparation and the value of face to face sessions
• Highly interactive approach with case studies relevant to the organisation and linked to organisational policies and procedures
• The use of key guest speakers who could provide practical 'warts and all' relevant experience for participant's to learn from experienced peers

We conducted this training for some 230 managers and team leaders over six months.

The Results

The program was offered on a voluntary basis and operational groups funded attendance by their managers and team leaders on a 'user pays' basis.

A significant demand for training exceeded initial expectations and was driven by positive word of mouth from participants and referrals to colleagues to attend.

The organisation's Senior Employee Relations Manager, the program sponsor, described it as one of the most successful and practical training programs delivered in-house.