How to Design Corporate Training Programme Modules

About the Company

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ABC provides value added services in the Human Capital domain, specializing in providing customized solutions to clients in the following verticals:

Management Development – Soft Skills & Behavioural Training.
Human Capital Consulting.
Executive Search & Placements.

ABC has positioned itself in all the key areas of the Human Capital life cycle – TALENT ATTRACTION, TALENT DEVELOPMENT, TALENT ENGAGEMENT and RETENTION. The main focus lies in understanding clients’ business requirements and hence to provide customized services.

The core activity of ABC is providing Soft skills and behavioral training.

ABC plans to further penetrate in the market by devising training modules for the corporate. The second most prime activity under training is putting up workshops on Assessment Development Centre for Corporate and B-School students.

Background of the Study

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To gear up for ABC’s expansion plans, they need to equip themselves with training modules prepared in a format which could be easily modified to suit the requirements of any organization. Since their prime focus is training in soft skill related areas, I was given the opportunity to design the same for the organization.

During this process, I had to read and research a lot to identify the various sub-heads for each topic. My mentor was very helpful in terms of guiding me towards a clear understanding of the subject. Not only did he clarify issues relating to the soft skills topics that I covered, he also made me understand the right methodology of designing any training module.

Review of Related Literature

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Piskurich, G.M. and Beckschi, Peter (1999), in their book, ‘the ASTD Handbook of Training Design and Delivery’ helps trainers design classroom, self-study, or technology – based training programmes. Delivering the latest information on how adults learn best and human performance technology, it shows trainers how to prepare lesson plans, create visual aids, and deliver highly memorable presentations.

Carter and Shani, D. (2000), in their article, ‘Toward a Unified Theory of the Relationship between Training Methods and Factors of Cognitive Ability’ proposes a theory that trainees have varying ability levels across different factors of cognitive ability, and that these abilities are used in varying levels by different training methods. The paper reviews characteristics of training methods and matches these characteristics to different factors of cognitive ability. The paper proposes that if organizations assign trainees to methods of training based on trainees' cognitive ability profiles, then learning will be maximized.

Harper, E. & Bell, C. (1982). in their article, ‘Developing Training Materials: An Evaluation-Production Model’ presented their Evaluation-Production Model with three phases: (a) needs analysis - preparatory evaluation; (b) quality control function on first draft - formative; (c) summative evaluation - the real life evaluation.

Methodology

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Introduction
‘Training’, ’learning’, and ‘development’ are terms that are often used interchangeably. This leads to some confusion, especially as the way the terms are used has changed gradually over the years.

Managers in small and medium sized organisations have responsibility for developing their employees among a host of other activities. Similarly, managers in larger organisations are increasingly responsible for developing staff and need to understand the terms and techniques used, not least to help them in discussions with their colleagues who are involved full-time in learning and development and training.

Definition of training
Training is defined as ‘an instructor-led and content-based intervention leading to desired changes in behaviour’, and which, unless it is on-the-job training, involves time away from the workplace in a classroom or equivalent. In some contexts and (the armed forces are a notable example), it implies teaching specified skills by practice. Until relatively recently, the implicit assumption was that most, if not all, development of employees would be of this nature.

Definitions of learning and development
Since the mid-1990s, there has been a gradual shift in the techniques and language used to describe the steps taken by employers to help employees to perform their jobs more effectively. Until the closing years of the last century, ‘training’ would have been the word most frequently employed, whether to describe a job (‘training manager’) or a development technique (which would probably have been a classroom-based event). Now ‘learning’, often linked with ‘development’, is the key term. The shift from the use of ‘training’ as a catch-all term to ‘learning and development’ has followed the realisation that there is no one route to learning; different individuals have different learning preferences. For example, some may prefer to read books, others to attend courses. Most learn best from experience.

The definition of learning is ‘a self-directed, work-based process leading to increased adaptive capacity’; in other words, an environment where individuals ‘learn to learn’ and possess the capabilities that enable them to do so to help their employers to build and retain competitive advantage. Various authors have somewhat different definitions, but what the definitions have in common is that they link the enhancement of the performance of individuals with that of organisations.

The term ‘development’ is usually used in a wider context than either ‘learning’ or ‘training’ and covers both of these. It tends to refer to a longer process of learning, acquiring skills or knowledge that may include a number of elements such as training, coaching, formal and informal interventions, education or planned experience. It can be structured by HRD professionals, or created as a personal plan. For example, ‘career development’ is a planned process of different learning experiences that may last for some months or years, and ‘management development’ is the entire structured process by which managers learn and improve their skills. But ‘development’ may be also used as a synonym for training, for example in senior management training, where it can be viewed as a more acceptable term for those who still view ‘training’ as a rather basic or even remedial activity.

Training as part of learning
Training has an important complementary role to play in accelerating individual and organisational learning alongside other, less directive, activities like coaching, mentoring and peer group learning. Training (that is, an activity which is instructor-led and content-based) is therefore part of learning and development, and various types of training are among the tools available for developing people. But other tools are available. All this has become increasingly recognised, with the result that there is now a much greater variety of what might be called ‘learning and development (rather than ‘training’) interventions’ than there was in the past. (An ‘intervention’ can be defined as any event that is deliberately undertaken to assist learning to take place.) The shift from training to learning is the progressive movement from the delivery of courses to the development of learning capabilities as a people development strategy. This makes the job of the developer more complex and challenging than it was, but it also provides the possibility of better outcomes.

Education
Although education is normally defined as consisting of those activities which develop knowledge, skills and understanding required in all aspects of life, not simply work, for young people in particular, there is an overlap with training (and of course learning). For example, are people doing a bricklaying course at a further education college or studying medicine at a university being trained or educated? The answer, clearly, is a bit of both, probably with the training element (especially the practical, on-the-job component) increasing as the courses advance.

Title of the project
Designing modules for training interventions

Need and significance of the study
For decades the focus of management was on the so-called "hard" skills. That is, the emphasis centered on the technical skills necessary to effectively perform within the organization. These skills tended to be more job-specific or more closely related to the actual task being performed.

Today, employers crave managers with the critical soft skills. These skills tend to be more generic in nature. In other words, these are skills key to effective performance across all job categories. And these soft skills have come to play an even more crucial role in management positions in today's environment. As the world has changed and the nature of work has changed, the skill set required of managers has changed.

Without doubt, for decades the business world placed a great deal of value on traditionally masculine traits for managers. With the increase in the number of women in the workforce for the past two to three decades, more attention has been given to the traditionally feminine characteristics. There was then a move to develop the androgynous manager - one who embraced the best of both the traditionally masculine characteristics and the feminine characteristics. This has evolved today to the recognition of placing more importance on the soft skills.

At first considered "soft," some are now referring to these skills as life skills thereby conveying the more global aspect of this skill set. Some researchers have also suggested these skills are really the "hard stuff' of management.

The soft skills are in demand. Unfortunately, these are the skills that are in short supply today. Topping the list for most businesses are skills such as communication skills, interpersonal skills, team player skills, ethics, creativity, an ability to value diversity, responsiveness and a willingness to change.

Many of these soft skills are interdependent. That is, as one skill is developed, one or more of the other skills are also being developed. The true value to the organization is in having the complete package in as many employees as possible.

Self-awareness is critical. All employees are responsible for their own career development today. This means every employee must know what they can and cannot do. A complete inventory of knowledge, skills and abilities (referred to as KSAs) should be performed on a regular basis. This should then be compared with the KSAs considered critical to success in the workplace.

While many employers feel they can train employees in the technical skills needed to perform the job, there is more concern with the ability to teach the softer skills. Therefore, more companies are seeking job applicants that already possess these soft skills.

Employees of the twenty-first century must be committed to the soft skills. And this commitment doesn't begin the first day on the job. This is a commitment that starts even prior to entry in the workforce and stems from the dedication to become a lifelong learner -- constantly updating and revising skills to better meet the needs of the changing marketplace.

Objectives of the study

To design classroom training module.
To design semi-outbound training programmes.
To design an Assessment Development Centre.

Aspects Studied

Designing the Powerpoint Presentation.
Designing the Pre-Workshop Material.
Designing the Workshop Material.
Designing the Post-Workshop Material.
Designing the Activities and Games.
Scheduling the entire Training Programme.
Designing the Feedback Forms.

Research Hypothesis
The developed Training Modules will prove to be helpful in improving the soft-skills of the participants and the designed ADC shall be used in assessing the participants for the specified competencies.

Research Design
This is a descriptive form of research. The objective of this study is to understand the designing process of a training module. For this, a soft skill is selected. The trainer then explores what the organization would expect from its employees with regards to this skill. Then he tries to contemplate what is the existing level of the employees is with respect to this skill. The trainer then designs the training module understanding the difference between these two levels and aims at bridging the gap by the same.

It is most essential to design a training module keeping the participant in mind. What should be considered is what would the participant find interesting and what would be useful for his daily activities. A trainer cannot design a module based on what he thinks is necessary. He has to design one based on what the participants’ requirements are.

Designing a training process would have been very simple if people had a very focused and concentrated approach towards the training session. But unfortunately, the human mind is prone to distractions and this could pose a problem to the trainer. For this, the trainer tries to incorporate games into the module to keep the session appealing to the participants. But irrelevant games would only be a means to having extended the session beyond the required time. Hence, it becomes essential to develop games based on the topic. In fact, playing games which demonstrate the significance of the soft skill could help the participant understand the importance of the specified competence in a more practical sense and in an easier and impact-ful way.

Operational Definitions of terms used
Training Module:
This is an entire folder consisting of the powerpoint presentation, the pre-workshop material, the workshop material, the post-workshop material, the activities material, the feedback forms and the roadmap.

Visual Aid Presentation:
The trainer uses a powerpoint presentation for the purpose of classroom teaching.

Pre-Workshop Material:
Some topics require the participant to have some knowledge prior to the commencement of the programme. This information is imparted to them by the pre-workshop material. The participants are expected to read this module before they come for the programme.

Workshop Material:
This is a printout of the powerpoint presentation having 3 slides on a page with lines drawn to the right if it. This is done so that the participant doesn’t waste time copying down everything shown on the slide. Instead, he could scribble down whatever he deems important from what the trainer speaks. This material also contains handouts which the participants would be required to use during the course of the training programme.

Post-Workshop Material:
Sometimes the powerpoint presentation isn’t sufficient. For this purpose, the main points from the presentation are elaborated to prepare this module. The participants could then refer to this module whenever they need any clarification with regards to the topics covered in the training programme.

Activities Document for the Trainer:
This is the written description of the games and activities to be executed in class. It is important to ensure that these activities are directly related to the topic of the training programme. These could be role-plays, case-studies, pencil-and-paper activities, outdoor games, etc. generally outdoor games are not executed in a classroom training session.

Activities Handout for the Participants:
A good training course will actively involve the learners throughout. They may be asked to complete tasks, or to sequence list of options, or do other interactive activities. It would be of value if these tasks very accumulated together in one place.

Feedback Forms:
It is very essential for the trainer to know what the participants thought about the training session conducted. A feedback form is a questionnaire which is given to every participant. It contains open and closed ended questions about the topics covered, the manner of presentation, the activities, the trainer and even the scheduling of the programme. This feedback is useful to the trainer as he could improve himself in the next training programme that he does.

Roadmap:
This is a planned timetable of the entire training programme. It is of two types: internal roadmap and external roadmap. The internal roadmap is for the trainer’s purpose; it helps him know when and where each activity is to be performed. It also gives him an idea as to which topic he is required to concentrate on. Also, the time required to be covered by each topic is also mentioned in the internal roadmap. The slide numbers required to be covered in a particular session are also mentioned. The external roadmap is for the organizer’s purpose. He would get an idea as to when and where any particular topic would be presented and how much time would be required for the same.

Outbound Training (OBT)
This is a traning programme which is not conducted in the office or office environment. The participants are taken away to some exotic location and they are made to do activities like river rafting, mountain climbing. By way of such sports, the participants learn soft skills like team building and leadership.

Semi-Outbound Training (SOBT)
This is a training programme which is not conducted in the conference room. There is no classroom teaching in this programme. The participants are made to do activities within the office premises. Every activity is debriefed for its relevance to the topic and also how the learning could be applied to the office environment. This type of training is used for soft skills like team building and leadership.

Content Development for Training Modules

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WHAT IS “LEARNING” AND “TRAINING?”
Before we explore designing of training modules, perhaps we need to understand what exactly is meant by “learning” and “training”.

Learning
A pure definition of learning could be: ‘Learning is a process that enables someone to acquire new attitudes, skills or knowledge.’

To justify all the direct costs in providing learning opportunities, not to mention the lost revenue-earning time, a business must be able to see a direct benefit resulting from any learning its staff experience. Hence, we need to expand the definition of learning to: ‘Learning is a process that enables someone to acquire new attitudes, skills or knowledge, so that they can do something they couldn’t do before, or do it more effectively.’

The ability to apply learning to make a difference to performance differentiates learning from pure education.

Training
‘Training is any form of process designed to facilitate learning in the target audience.’

Please Note
The most important thing to remember throughout the whole designing process is to always jump into the shoes of the target audience and ask yourself: ‘How will this exercise or task feel for them?’, ‘How will this section of the course or activity facilitate learning?’

THE BENEFITS OF A GOOD DESIGN

Well structured.
Varied training methods.
Logical flow.
Appropriate models or concepts used.
Ideas which the participants can take back and use straight away.
Appropriate balance of theory and practice.
Good handouts, visual aids or workbooks.

The list, which could go on and on, clearly shows the benefits of a good design. Given a well designed course, even an average trainer can deliver an acceptable learning experience. But if you start with a poorly designed course, you will need an exceptional trainer to turn it into anything worthwhile.

Steps in Designing a Training Module

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Define the training needs.
Explore the learning options.
Sequence the learning.
Define the overall course envelope.

DEFINE THE TRAINING NEEDS
The purpose of this step is to define the human process requirements in terms of learning needs. In the given topic, ascertain which sub-skills you would wish to concentrate more on. Also, identify constraints and localization issues.

The module designer is required to read as much as possible on the given topic. He could refer books or even articles published on the internet. He could also interview people who have adequate knowledge and experience in this regard. This will give the person a huge information block as to which sub-topics come under the purview of the given topic. From this vast database, the designer decides which sub-topics to include.

EXPLORE THE LEARNING OPTIONS
Any topic could be taught, explained or demonstrated. It is up to the module designer to select that method of facilitating the topic which gives the participant a better understanding of the subject. Some topics could be dealt simply like the way a teacher teaches in class. But for others it becomes important that the trainer demonstrate the practicality of his words. Sometimes it becomes necessary that the participants unlearn what they believe in so that they are able to fully comprehend the meaning of the message that the trainer wishes to give him. In such situations, it becomes essential to introduce or explain the topic by a practical demonstration of the issue. It could be in the form of a role play, case study, or maybe even a game. The selection of the methodology of teaching depends on the module designer and the trainer. If the designer feels that the topic is important and it is essential that the participants understand the topic in its entirety, then he is likely to suggest an activity for the same.

SEQUENCE THE LEARNING
Once the topics and the methodology of facilitating these topics have been decided, the designer now needs to sequence the topics and activities into a logical manner. Every topic needs to be related to the previous as well as the successive topic. All the topics shouldn’t be cluttered up together such that it resembles a playing field. Neither should the activities be so meagerly distributed that it bores the participants.

The purpose of this step is to design the overall flow of the training session. Here, the module designer develops a logical flow for the learning process. He considers how best to deliver each session. If the designer is working on the training module for any specific company, he could prepare a rough draft of the sub-topics covered and present it to the company representative, who could confirm what exactly the sponsor expects delegates to gain from the training.

DESIGNING THE OVERALL COURSE ENVELOPE
Aeronautical engineers use the phrase “envelope” to describe the whole set of performance criteria within which an airframe must stay if it is to be safe, so we can use the same term to bring together all the criteria for the training event. It includes issues like – the objectives, the duration, how many people, residential or day course, trainer-led or e-learning, etc. Let’s consider each of them.

Learning Outcomes
It is important to confirm what exactly the sponsor expects delegates to gain from the training. Once this is clear, the overall design envelope could be fixed.

ABC designs training programmes which could have a wide applicability in terms of the types of industries. The programmes are modified to suit any particular company once such a requirement arises.

Duration
An important decision would be how long the course should last. In an ideal world you would collect your thoughts about what the course should include, arrange the topics for the best flow, and strike the optimum balance between theory and practice. Once, you have done all that you might decide, for example, “This is a two-day course.”

Generally the real world isn’t like this anymore. It is quite likely that the sponsor might specify the extent of the training programme. The challenge is then to get the best fit between what you would like to do, and what you realistically can do, in the available time.

Consider these observations:

Half a day is great for refresher sessions, or some topics like minute-writing skills where you can cover all the concepts and still give time for practice.
One day is ideal for many topics as it allows a fast paced course to cover key theory, with some time for participation and interaction, for example time management and writing skills.
Two days are essential for courses where you need to cover theory and provide a greater amount of time to practice skills, for example, presentation skills or recruitment interviewing.
Three days or more are required for courses where there is greater amount of theory to grasp, probably coupled with the need to demonstrate mastery of the skills.

Start and end times
An important decision is when to start and end the course. We are required to be conscious of the normal working hours of the participants.

If you schedule the start time earlier than they are used to, people could drift in over an extended period, which makes it difficult to make a high impact start. Similarly, if you plan to begin later than they are used to, we can expect people’s concentration starting to lapse, or some individuals needing to leave before the end because of travel or child-care arrangements.

Residential or not?
For many courses, especially the short ones, there is no debate about the course being non-residential; but the question will arise for longer courses or in situations where delegates need to travel from geographically dispersed sites.

Advantages of residential courses

More time available as you can work till late evening, or start earlier on subsequent mornings.
People get to know each other better.
People often relax more as their domestic issues can be put aside.
More relaxed pace as there’s less pressure to cram it all in.
People traveling from afar have time to adjust before the course starts.
Opportunity to build teams and to break down barriers.

Disadvantages of residential courses

Costs will be much higher as you are housing and feeding people overnight.
Some people could be unable to stay overnight due to personal circumstances.
The temptation to work to late into the night.
Some people feel threatened or uncomfortable with the continual social immersion with the other delegates.

Number of delegates
For regular classroom training or even SOBTs the batch of participants is not expected to exceed 40. Depending upon the skill to be developed and the managerial level of the participants, the number could reduce.

For ADCs, the number of participants is not required to exceed 14. 14 participants would require 7 assessors.

Designing Course Materials for the Assistance of the Participants

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Some handouts are given to the participants before, during and after the training programme. These handouts are:

Pre-Workshop Material.
Workshop Material.
Post-Workshop Material.

An important aspect of designing these support materials is displaying the text most effectively. Let’s consider the following types of formatting:

Justify or not?
Justified texts look very neat. Unjustified text could be very distracting because of its irregular line endings.

Italic or not?

Excessive use of italic script is very hard on the eyes and most people simply do not read it at all.
Use italic very sparingly.

Capitals or lower case?

Most people find lots of text in capital letters challenging.
Capital letters all look the same, whereas lower case letters are different. As adults we don’t read each word but scan the text and recognize the shape of the letters.
Example: on the roads, apart from HALT and STOP, all text is lower case.
Use capitals sparingly.

Bullet points

Bullet points draw attention to the key facts.
It is easier to abbreviate the text and edit out unnecessary words in bullet points, making it quicker to read.

General guidelines
Font:
Use a strong, simple typeface. Use an easy to read font. Avoid the temptation to use one of the fancy font choices available – as many people find them difficult to read. Once, you have chosen your font – stick to it. At the most use only one other font style.

Font Size:
As a general rule, use 12 point. Don’t drop to 10 point in order to squeeze text onto one page and, if you suspect your target audience may have difficulty reading, increase the standard fort to 14 point.

Paragraphs:
Separate paragraphs by double line spacing, or indent new paragraphs.

Signposting:
Use heading to ‘signpost’ the way though documents to make it easier for people to select the sections they want to read. Use a hierarchy of heading styles to show which sections individual pieces of text belong to.

Numbering Systems:
Numbering chapters, sections and paragraphs can be helpful to make it easier to refer to specific pieces of text – but keep numbering simple and easy to follow.

Emphasis:
To emphasize a word, it’s best to use bold type. In general, use underlining sparingly. Using underlining on more than headings is very weary on the eyes and your delegates will be tempted to skim over the text.

Contrasts:
In general, use black text on white paper. A coloured type of background will make it harder to read and some colour combinations will be very difficult for colour blind people.

Page set-up:
Aim for 25 mm margins either side of the page, and give lots of ‘white space’ on the page. Aim to have 8 to 12 average-length words per line, or about 70 to 80 characters (including spaces).
The post workshop material should reinforce the key learning points.
The workshop material should have spaces for the participant to jot down anything that he would like to take away from the session.

DESIGNING ACTIVITY HANDOUTS
A good training course will actively involve the learners throughout. They may be asked to complete tasks, or to sequence list of options, or do other interactive activities. For the same, one needs to write suitable briefing notes. All the above design considerations apply as mentioned above. In addition to them, the following are also required to be addressed.

Explain the task clearly and succinctly.
What outcomes or outputs are delegates expected to produce?
Explain any ‘rules’ or constraints.
Mention any supporting materials or documents.
Outline team size and membership.
Give timings.
Include briefing notes in the facilitator’s copy only.

It should contain spaces for the learner to record results of tests, case studies or other activities. The participants should be encouraged to document their own thoughts, ideas or interpretation of the course materials. It is essential to remember that too frequent recourse to this approach may cause irritation in the learner, whilst too infrequent loses the value of the interpretation.

It should contain spaces for the learner to record action points. Learning or understanding is one thing – knowing how to use the newly acquired skills or knowledge is something totally different. Participants should be encouraged to write their action points as they emerge during the course. Without this, the moment the programme ends, it’s quite possible that the other messages competing for the learner’s attention may drown all the learning gained from attending the course or workshop.

DESIGNING FEEDBACK FORMS
The main benefit of feedback forms is that it directs the observers to the issues they need to be focusing on, so the trainer can be more certain about the quality and relevance of the feedback that will be given.

A feedback generally has a standard format and it includes some questions specific to the topic too. The questions could be based on a Likert Scale, or could be descriptive questions. Feedback is gained on the presentation as a whole, the powerpoint slides, the various topics covered, the activities completed, the trainer’s characteristics and even the scheduling of the sessions.

Feedback forms generally don’t require the participants to mention their names on it.

This feedback is useful for the trainer and his team, so that they are able to make improvements in their next session.

DESIGNING VISUAL AIDS
Most people remember what they have seen more easily than what they have heard. Visual aids are made to enhance the ideas of the trainer. Each visual is expected to have a specific purpose, and should emphasize or dramatize an important point. Visual aids help in:

Helping to explain complex topics or diagrams.
Stimulating more of the senses.
Making the messages more memorable.
Brightening up a less interesting topic.
Prompting the trainer - so that he or she doesn’t have to look at the notes.

Visual aids must be carefully designed, preferably keeping the following guidelines in mind:

Ideally, the visual aid should resemble a t-shirt. Big, clear images with a few words. The image should be self-explanatory.
Bold and imaginative use of colour is advisable.
Some colour contrasts could be difficult to read; especially red and green for colour blind people. Be conscious of such combinations.
Ensure that non-pictorial visuals are simple and easy to read.
Avoid showing numbers as raw data – whenever possible display them as graphs, pie charts or histograms.
Use the same font style throughout and develop a hierarchy of font sizes for heading and use it consistently.
Check spelling carefully as people notice errors.
Always check calculations carefully – people will automatically add colums or charts to check that totals are correct.

Overview of an Assessment Centre or Development Workshop

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An Assessment Centre or Development Workshop is a process in which aspects of a job are simulated so that participants' behaviour can be observed, recorded, classified and evaluated, either by assessors or by themselves.

Why is it important to classify and evaluate people's behaviour?
It is important because there is a direct and powerful correlation between the behaviour which an individual demonstrates and the contribution they can make to the customers, the team and the organization. The survival and prosperity of the organization depends on it.

In selection you need to match people as closely as possible to roles which require the behaviours they already tend to demonstrate, as well as understanding the behaviours in which they will require further development. Likewise in development you need to assess people's current profile of behaviour in order to target training and development activities on to areas which will be important for success in current and future roles.

In both cases above, you also need the individuals themselves to be committed to their own self development. The evidence which Assessment Centres and Development Workshops provide is one of the most powerful methods of raising people's awareness of their own development needs and of securing their enthusiastic commitment to new roles and development plans.

What is an Assessment / Development Centre?
The term assessment centre does not refer to a physical place, instead it describes an approach. Traditionally an assessment centre consisted of a suite of exercises designed to assess a set of personal characteristics, it was seen as a rather formal process where the individuals being assessed had the results fed back to them in the context of a simple yes/no selection decision. However, recently we have seen a definite shift in thinking away from this traditional view of an assessment centre to one which stresses the developmental aspect of assessment. A consequence of this is that today it is very rare to come across an assessment centre which does not have at least some developmental aspect to it.

Increasingly, assessment centres are stressing a collaborative approach which involves the individual actively participating in the process rather than being a passive recipient of it. In some cases we can even find assessment centres that are so developmental in their approach that most of the assessment work done is carried out by the participants themselves and the major function of the centre is to provide the participants with feedback that is as much developmental as judgmental in nature.

Assessment centres typically involve the participants completing a range of exercises which simulate the activities carried out in the target job. Various combinations of these exercises and sometimes other assessment methods like psychometric testing and interviews are used to assess particular competencies in individuals. The theory behind this is that if one wishes to predict future job performance then the best way of doing this is to get the individual to carry out a set of tasks which accurately sample those required in the job and are as similar to them as possible. The particular competencies used will depend upon the target job but one will often find competencies such as relating to people; resistance to stress; planning and organising; motivation; adaptability and flexibility; problem solving; leadership; communication; decision making and initiative. There are numerous possible competencies and the ones which are relevant to a particular job are determined through job analysis.

What's the difference between an Assessment Centre and a Development Workshop?
The different labels are also used to distinguish between an Assessment Centre which is being used purely for selection (usually with external applicants) where information about the principles of the process is not explained to participants and is understood only by the assessors who run the event, and a Development Workshop whose purpose is broader than selection, encompassing the identification of high potential people, self awareness raising and an element of training (usually for internal people) where all of the principles of behavioural assessment will be shared openly and discussed with participants.

One might ask the question 'Why group assessment and development centres together if they have different purposes?' The answer to that question is threefold. Firstly, they both involve assessment and it is only the end use of the information obtained which is different i.e. one for selection and one for development; secondly, it is impossible to draw a line between assessment and development centres because all centres, be they for assessment or development naturally lie somewhere on a continuum somewhere between the two extremes; thirdly most assessment centres involve at least some development and most development centres involve at least some assessment. This means that it is very rare to find a centre devoted to pure assessment or pure development. The issue is further confused by the political considerations one must take into account when running such a centre, it is common practice for an assessment centre with internal candidates to be referred to as a development centre because of the negative implications associated with assessment.

Types of Simulations
The different types of simulations include:

In-Basket Activity.
Role Plays.
Case studies.
Business Games.
Group Presentations.
Group discussions.
Individual Presentations.
Psychometric Tests.
Personal Interviews.

Assessment Centre Design: Easier Said Than Done
Assessment centre designers used to assume that the different exercises were separate opportunities for candidates to exhibit relatively stable competencies. The expectation was that each competency would be marked relatively similarly across exercises. There was also the expectation that, within each exercises, people would do quite well on some competencies and poorly on others. Repeated studies have shown the opposite to be the case. Within each exercise each person has fairly similar scores on the competencies being measured. But, across exercises the same competency gets quite different scores in different exercises. This phenomenon known as the exercise effect is beginning to be better understood and its practical implications are being identified.

This may be seen as a genuine reflection of both candidates' variation in performance across exercises and the relative sameness in their performance across dimensions in any particular exercise. For example, a person might do well at a presentation, appearing generally strong on all the competencies measured. On the other hand, they might do less well on a piece of analytical work, appearing generally weak on all the competencies.

One explanation for this variation in general performance between exercises might be that, in each exercise, a particular attribute like cognitive ability, self-confidence or experience is dominant. In the presentation, the self-confident person also appears quite clever and, indeed, more clever than the genius who becomes tongue-tied by embarrassment. Performance in an assessment centre can be seen as made up of exercise-specific performance and some performance that is stable across exercises and driven by broad general traits. The practical implication of this is that, if they are to work properly, assessment centres must be comprehensive samples of the role that the candidate will be doing. With so much variation across exercises, it is absolutely vital that the exercises reflect fully the role.

Standards That an Assessment Development Centre should follow are as follows

There should be job analysis that defines a set of competencies to be measured and clearly demonstrates the link between them and effective performance in the target job.
To ensure that a competency is measured in a reliable fashion across the centre it is usual to duplicate measurement of each competency (through different exercises).
There are usually at least two simulations, amongst the material that confronts candidates/participants.
There should be clear separation of the component parts into discrete exercises.
There are assessors/observers who are trained in the Observe, Record, Classify and Evaluate (ORCE) process, and its application in the particular simulations that are used.
Assessors/observers complete their evaluations independently, including any report before the integration (or wash-up) session.
There should be a full integration session involving assessors / observers to summarize and evaluate the behavioural evidence obtained.
Feedback should be offered to candidates/participants to support development.
There should be a clear written and published statement of the intent of the centre, how data will be stored, by whom and rights of access to that data by any individual.
There should be a statement of the limits of the relevance of the centre overall and / or the limits for a particular exercise.

In-Tray Exercise / In Basket Activity
Candidates work individually on this exercise. Each will be presented with a dossier of papers - memos, notes, telephone messages, reports - similar to that which a manager in the organisation might find in his or her in-tray in the morning. You will need to read through each and decide on the action that needs to be taken on each one and the priority to be allocated to it. By the end of the exercise, each item should have moved from the in-tray to the out-tray!

Competencies assessed: planning, organising, time management, written communication.

What is an in-tray exercise?
It is a business simulation, usually part of an assessment centre, where you play a member of staff who has to deal with the tasks of a busy day. You will be given a selection of letters, emails and reports in either paper or electronic format, which somebody doing the job might find in their in-tray or email inbox first thing in the morning.

You have to read each item, decide on the action to be taken, the priority to be allocated to it and complete related tasks such as summarising a report or drafting a reply to an email. There is a tight time constraint.

It will probably start by describing the background scenario. Subject matter is usually related to the job you are applying for.

There is a lot of work to get through caused by your return from holiday or having to cover the work of an absent colleague.

Typically you will be given one to two hours to complete the tasks which will consist of a large number of items (perhaps 20 or more) to see how well you can handle several complex tasks in a short period.

Some tasks may just require a yes or no answer. Other items may need a longer response, such as drafting a reply to a customer complaint, writing a report, delegating tasks to colleagues or recommending action to superiors. You may need to analyze information for some items (calculating budgets or sales figures, using information provided). New items may be added while the exercise is in progress.

As part of the exercise it's possible you might be asked to make a phone call to a "customer", role played by one of the assessors.

At the end you may be debriefed by a selector and asked to discuss the decisions you made and the reasons for these or you might be asked to prepare a memo outlining your priorities for action, or make a short presentation.

In-tray exercises are usually done individually but can be run as a group exercise.

Contents
The in-tray could contain any of the following together with information about the structure of the organization and your role within it.

Memos.
Letters.
Letters of complaint.
Telephone messages.
Emails.
Personnel information.
Organization charts.
Policy documents.
Reports.
A calender.

Outbound Training

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We use the concepts of action and experiential learning – one’s experiences serving as a learning tool – through the methodology of ‘Outbound training’ to help trainees gain immediate and powerful insights into their own and their team’s work styles and behavior.

In outbound programs, participants are made to go through various outdoor activities where they will be required to face challenging situations as individuals and teams. This will help them see the importance of communication, leadership, teamwork, planning and delegation. Many consider outbound training as one of the best platforms for personality development, leadership development, confidence building and team building.

One of the most unique aspects of ‘Outbound’ training is that trainees are immediately able to see the consequences of wrong actions and can see the tangible difference that can be made by a change in thinking and behavior. Trained facilitators help them extrapolate the learning from the outdoor activities to their workplace.

Below are a list of programs are usually trained using the ‘Outbound’ methodology:

Sales Training.
Leadership Training.
Team Development.
Motivation.
Creative Problem Solving.

The outdoors as a classroom
In today's corporate world, qualities like leadership, resourcefulness, decisiveness and team spirit have taken on an unprecedented importance. It is qualities like these that separate the best from the rest, and keep organizations ahead of their competition.

These qualities are learned better in the outdoors than in concrete classrooms, through Semi Out-Bound Training (OBT) or Experiential Learning (EL). Stripped of an urban ambience, and without the confines and pressures of an office atmosphere, a well designed outbound programme helps people get in closer touch with themselves and gain a clearer view of their strengths and weaknesses. The result is seen as improved team dynamics, a more aware and focused workforce, and enhanced productivity for the organization.

The objective of OBL lies in taking the group of people away from the normal environment into the outdoors, where groups have to fend for themselves in solving challenges set before them. These settings not only enhance their personal thresholds, but also group thresholds.

In an Outbound Traning Programme, experienced facilitators work with the participants to explore and improve upon their strengths, support areas, behaviour patterns and interpersonal relationships. Mutual learning is facilitated through experiencing, reflecting and conceptualizing under the guidance of expert facilitators.

Simulations are designed to address multiple dimensions of team development and leadership skills. Each action, process and behaviour pattern is observed carefully, taken note of and reflected upon by the participants with the help of facilitators during exploratory debriefs in a relaxed environment. The process facilitates unlearning of errors and learning solutions. The learnings are related to organizational environment and transformed into commitments. Participants are encouraged to transform commitments into quantifiable objectives to effect organizational growth.

Activities generally center on the importance of team building, communication, presentation skills, leadership, etiquette, creative problem solving.

Advantages of Experiential Learning over the regular training programme
More and more companies in India are incorporating Experiential Learning (EL) modules in their executive training programmes, acknowledging the superiority of this way over conventional methods of teaching several critical life skills.

Outbound training is far better than being cooped up in a room and getting fed on theoretical concepts. Outbounds make for great team bonding especially when you want a new team to gel together or even incorporate some concepts into a team in a fun sort of way. Combine an office outing with some good learning as well.

Another advantage of EL is that participants pay attention, not only because there are safety factors involved but also because it is fun.

Experiential learning is challenging. It is demanding. It is fun. Activities are safe, stimulating, and occur in an atmosphere of support and caring. Results can be rapid and profound.

EL is far tougher to organize than regular trainings. The setting makes it impossible that participants doze off during training - something that can happen very soon in a room.

What was once a novelty, is now commonplace among Indian companies. Once you go to a couple of ELs, you begin to think if it’s the novelty that makes it fun or the learnings. At times though, the fact that you are at an offsite often overrides a lot of other learnings, unless it is reinforced through briefing, de-briefing sessions and refresher courses too.

Experiential learning fosters quick understanding and absorption of required personaliy traits and professional skills, facilitating people empowerment. This format utilizes experiential learning with self analytical group processes to imbibe learning.

Participants get a fresh perspective of self and organizational development through this approach.

Major Findings

2008-10-02T21:13:00.000-07:00

The key purposes of this study were to develop training modules for 4 classroom sessions, 2 SOBTs and 1 ADC. Through this study, we have been able to generalize the process of designing training modules.

It is essential to understand what one’s aim is and where he is today to understand precisely how that gap has to be bridged. This is true for designing training modules too. It is necessary for the designer to park himself into the participants chair and think like him. Only then can a successful training programme be built.

To design any training module, it is essential to read through all topics which could possibly fall under the preview of the targeted soft skill. From this we could choose what topics are more relevant than others and design a training programme.

Suggestions

2008-10-02T21:11:00.000-07:00

The developed modules are designed without keeping any company or industry in mind. A lot remains to be done before it could be presented to any firm. The profile of the participants should be studied to understand which parts of the training module would be irrelevant or unwanted to them. Such parts should not be a component of the training programme.

Further, the presentation should be modified to suit the company in particular, and the industry in general.

No training module is timeless. It is essential that these programmes are updated as and when the requirement of the business world changes and whenever the work culture alters itself.

Conclusion

2008-10-02T20:58:00.000-07:00

Four Ways to Communicate

Telling.
Selling.
Involving.
Facilitating.

Telling
The key characteristics of this approach are:

The trainer or presenter delivers the message with little active involvement from the delegates.
He or she is explicit about what needs to be done, and how it is to be achieved.
The delivery will be well prepared, well rehearsed and perhaps involve multimedia visual aids.

This style of communication is most effective in situations when:

There are specific management or performance messages to be passed on, which allow little or no scope for debate or discussion.
There are urgent or timely responses needed to deal with specific situations.
The delegates are new or inexperienced staff who would be able to contribute little to the discussions.

Selling
The key characteristics are:

The trainer ‘sells’ the idea or concept.
He or she provides limited opportunities for delegates to raise issues or concerns to gain their partial ‘buy in’.
The delivery will be well prepared, well rehearsed and perhaps involve multimedia visual aids.
There should also be time for some small group discussions.

This style of communication is most effective in situations when:

It’s important that you gain some degree of ‘buy in’ to new initiatives or ideas.
You’re dealing with medium-term initiatives and there’s not quite as much time pressure.
The audience comprises staff with growing confidence and/or skill who would be able to contribute meaningfully to the discussions.

Involving
The key characteristics are:

The trainer essentially leads the delegates through a well-defined decision-making process.
There is a high level of participation, which ensures the full commitment of all delegates to the resulting outcomes.
Preparation will focus on defining the desired end results and the processes to be followed.
There should be plenty of opportunity small group discussions and capturing the resulting outputs.

This style of communication is most effective in situations when:

It’s important that you gain a high degree of ‘buy in’ to new initiatives or ideas.
You’re dealing with medium-term initiatives and there’s not quite as much time pressure.
The audience comprises experienced staff with high levels of confidence and/or skill who contribute meaningfully to the development of the business.

Facilitating
The key characteristics are:

The trainer acts as a facilitator leading the delegates through a journey of discovery.
There is maximum participation and control by the delegates, which ensures their full commitment.
Preparation will focus on the process to be followed, since the facilitator will need to respond ‘on the hoof’ as the discussions develop.
There should be plenty of opportunity small group discussions and capturing the resulting outputs.

This style of communication is most effective in situations when:

You’re breaking new ground – a ‘blue sky’ type of approach.
There are no longer time scales with no immediate time pressures.
The audience comprises seasoned professionals who contribute meaningfully to the development of the business.

Which one to use?
A variety of approaches are used during any training process. It depends on what is most suitable at any particular moment. The time required by each of these approaches is different – telling takes the least amount of time while facilitating is the slowest approach to communication.

Bibliography

2008-10-02T20:51:00.000-07:00

Frank Laftasto & Carl Larson, When Teams Work Best, Response Books.
Narayanji Mishra, Better Management and effective Leadership through the Indian Scriptures, Pustak Mahal.
Julie Hay, The Grower assessment and development centre, Grower Publishing Ltd.
George M Piskurich, Peter Beckschi & Brandon hall, The ASTD handbook of Training Design and Delivery, Tata Mc. Grow Hill publishing.
Tony Bray, The Training Design Manual, Kogan Page.
Patrick Lencioni, Overcoming the 5 Dysfunctions of a Team, Unique Color Carton.
Andy Kirby, Games for trainers, BPI(India) Pvt Ltd.
Gordan F Shea, Mentoring, Crisp publication.
Harvard Business Essentials: Negotiations, Harvard business School Publishing.
Harvard Business Essentials: Creating Teams, Harvard business School Publishing.
Harvard Business Essentials: Coaching and Mentoring, Harvard business School Publishing.
Harvard Business Essentials: Managing change and transition, Harvard business School Publishing.
Harvard Business Essentials: Creating Teams with an Edge, Harvard business School Publishing.
David Oliver, How to negotiate effectively, Kogan Page.
Elizabeth M. Christopher & Larry E. Smith, Leadership Training – A Source of Activities, Kogan Page.
Peter G. Northouse, Leadership Theory and Practice, Response Book.
Sidney Callis, Supervisory Management, Indiana Publishing.
Frank Lofasto, Carl Liason, When Teams Work Best, Response Books.
John Adair & Peter Rad, Not Bosses but Leaders, Kogan Page.

Effective Communication Skills

2008-10-02T17:03:00.000-07:00

This module is aimed at lower and middle level management personnel. It is a one-day workshop. It has a powerpoint visual aid, games, psychometric tests, a case study and a role play.

Objective
People in organizations typically spend over 75% of their time in an interpersonal situation; thus it is no surprise to find that at the root of a large number of organizational problems is poor communications.

Communication is the heart and soul of management at absolutely every level. Without communication skills one can’t hope to express one’s thoughts, convince others or negotiate.

Effective communication is an essential component of organizational success whether it is at the interpersonal, inter-group, intra-group, organizational, or external levels.

Areas covered under this module

Introduction.
Objectives of Communication.
Communication Process.
Barriers to Communication.
Attributes of Communication.
Types of Communication.
Verbal Communication.
Oral Communication.
Written Communication.
Non-Verbal Communication.

Benefits of this module

This module helps in understanding the communication process completely, with all the factors of and barriers to effective communication.
This module helps to understand the reasons for the breakdown of communication.
The module highlights various types of communication and gives tips of improving each of these.
The activities covered in this module help the participant to gauge his competence in communication and also help him to improve himself.
The module also specifies the use of body language in communication.
It gives an insight into the meaning of various types of gestures and facial expression. A lot of emphasis has been given to eye-contact and its importance in communication.
A lot of our communication depends on the way we present ourselves. The module also highlights some tips of power dressing for men and women.

Guidelines for developing effective communication skills
Guidelines for developing effective listening skills

Stop talking. It is not possible to listen while talking.
Make the person who you are listening to as your focus. Stop everything else that you are doing.
Listen openly and with empathy to the other person.
Judge the content, not the messenger or delivery; comprehend before you judge.
Use multiple techniques to fully comprehend (ask, repeat, rephrase, etc.).
Use body language to reinforce to reinforce your active listening. Face the person you are listening to. Make eye-contact and fight distractions.
Ask the other person for as much detail as he/she can provide; paraphrase what the other is saying to make sure you understand it and check for understanding.
Attend to non-verbal cues, body language, not just words; listen between the lines. Don’t be deaf to the emotion and feeling behind them.
Do not create or tolerate distractions.
Be aware of prejudices and preconceptions that may influence your listening.
Ask the other for his views or suggestions.
Practice supportive listening, not one way listening.

Guidelines for developing effective talking skills

Think before you speak.
Make every word count by.
Choosing your words carefully.
Keeping it clear and concise.
Making it real but not exaggerated.
Appealing to the senses.
Telling the whole story.

Guidelines for developing effective e-mail practices

Use short lines and paragraphs especially the first and the last ones.
Don’t shout. Use capitals only for emphasis or to substitute for italicized text. Using capitals only is equivalent to shouting.
Proof–read your message. Type the address only after proof-reading.
Choose your recipients carefully. Send messages to people only if it applies to them.
Use a descriptive subject line to ensure that it is read.
Greet your recipient. Salutation is a must.
Insert previous messages appropriately.
Use a direct style of writing most of the time.
Think twice – write once – always assume that the message will never be destroyed.
Provide an appropriate closing. Include your name and other appropriate identifying information.
Use initializes appropriately.

Leadership Development Programme

2008-09-28T20:35:00.000-07:00

This module is aimed at lower and middle level management personnel. It is a two-day workshop. It has a powerpoint visual aid, games, a case study and a psychometric test.

Objective
Leadership is the process of influencing others towards the accomplishment of goals. It is the ability of a manager to induce subordinates to work with zeal and confidence.

Leadership is critical to the achievement of high performance, no matter what your business or your area of responsibility. It is also essential in helping others aspire to and attain high levels of performance for themselves and the organization.

Qualities of a Leader

Visionary Outlook.
Emotional balance.
Passionate.
Good listening ability.
Creates a positive atmosphere.
Leader develops teamwork.
A good leader is committed to excellence.
Enthusiastic, Passionate, Dedicated, a Source of Inspiration and a Motivator.

Leading is different from managing. Put briefly:

The effective leader seeks out situations where change is needed. He ‘does the right thing’, and operates using personal influence. He is stronger on ‘vision’, and often on ‘inspiration’ too.
A manager makes change happen. He ‘does things right’ and relies more on personal influence. ‘Momentum’ is his strong suit, and ideally he can also ‘inspire’.
All organizations need managers as well as leaders. Without strong managers, the organization risks descending into chaos. But, without effective leaders, the organization becomes lethargic and fails to evolve.

Areas covered under this module

What is Leadership.
Importance of Leadership.
Qualities of a Leader.
Leaders and Managers – Are they the same?
Leadership Development Process.
How Can We Become Effective Leaders?
Building Robust Teams as a part of Leadership.
Delegating – A Five Step Process.
Bringing Accountability.
Leadership Styles.
Leadership Theories:
Ohio State University Studies.
Managerial Grid.
Hersey and Blanchard’s Situational Leadership Theory.
Leader Member Exchange Theory.
Fiedler’s Least Preferred Co-Worker Theory.
Transactional Leadership.
Transformational Leadership.

Benefits of this module

This module helps the participants to understand the drivers of leadership. The trainee is able to comprehend the situations which lead to the rise and development of leadership skills.
The participant is made to understand what he should do to develop himself into an effective leader.
It also guides the trainee as to what he should be doing as an effective leader which would help him develop more leaders in the team.
It is most essential that the participant try and understand the various leadership theories and styles which would help him categorize himself or his boss and function accordingly.
The participant is made to understand the difference between a leader and a manager.
As leaders, the participants should not:
Compete with their own people.
Consider that they have a lousy team.
Place popularity ahead of effectiveness.
Sacrifice the means for the end.
Create a future that enables self-preservation.
Sacrifice the team to prove a point.
Say, “I told you so…”
When a new order is ushered, let people say, we did it by ourselves.

Guidelines for becoming effective leaders

Effective leaders learn continually.
Champion change.
Communicate powerfully.
Build relationships.
Develop others.

Supervisory Development Programme

2008-09-28T20:07:00.000-07:00

This module is aimed at the supervisors working in a factory or manufacturing setup. It is a three-day workshop. It has a powerpoint presentation, games, videos, psychometric tests, a role play and a case study.

Objective
Typically, Supervision is the activity carried out by supervisors to oversee the productivity and progress of employees who report directly to the supervisors. For example, first-level supervisors supervise entry-level employees. Depending on the size of the organization, middle-managers supervise first-level supervisors; chief executives supervise middle-managers, etc. Supervision is a management activity and supervisors have a management role in the organization.

"Leadership" and "Supervision" are closely related. Supervision requires leadership. Leadership does not necessarily have to involve supervision.

Supervision means the act of watching over the work or tasks of another who may lack full knowledge of the concept at hand. Supervision does not mean control of another but guidance in a work, professional or personal context.

The supervisor must:

Be in charge of a work group.
Enjoy the trust & confidence of the group.
Have good working relations with them.
Ensure the group is well organized and trained to do the job.
Set up excellent communications with their staff, their colleagues and their boss.
Accept the responsibilities of leadership.

Areas covered under this module

Introduction.
Job Role of Supervisor.
Challenges of Managing.
Managing the Process.
Managing the Staff.
Being in Sync the Your Boss.
Various Acts.

Benefits of this module

The participant is made aware of the various different processes that the supervisor performs. He is also told the importance of each of these processes.
The supervisor learns how to plan, coordinate, organize, staff, control, solve problems and budget and manage time.
The supervisor learns the importance of discipline and industrial relations.
The participant understands how he is required to manage his staff.
He understands the importance of team building and leadership roles.
He understands the significance of communication skills.
The participants starts to appreciate the problems that his boss faces and he now prepares himself in advance for any adversity.
The participant is ready to offer help and assistance to his boss when he needs it.

Guidelines to be an effective supervisor
To be an effective supervisor, one needs to:
Manage processes like

Planning.
Organizing.
Staffing.
Controlling.
Problem Solving.
Time Managing and Time Budgeting.
Discipline.
Industrial relations.

Manage his staff via

Team Building.
Leadership.
Communication Skills.
Listening Skills.
Delegation.
Human Relations.
Managing Conflicts.
Motivation.
Negotiation.
Coaching.

Manage his boss by

Understanding What the Boss Expects From him.
6 Questions which would Build a Better Understanding of the Boss.

Be aware of the various acts

The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
The Factories Act, 1948.
The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970.
The Workman’s Compensation Act, 1923.

Human Process Laboratory

2008-09-28T17:35:00.000-07:00

This module is aimed at middle and senior level management personnel. It is a three-day workshop. It has a powerpoint visual aid and activities.

Objective
This is an example of sensitivity testing or t-group analysis. The objective of the programme is to lighten the individuals attending this programme. At the end of the session people should feel that they have spoken their hearts out. Also, the participants should be able to see themselves in a new light where they understand their faults and drawbacks. They should also understand what aspect of their behaviour is disturbing and annoying to other people. This is a session wherein people get to see their reflection in a clear glass.

Areas covered under this module

Constituents of personality.
Self image.
Aggression.
Dealing with confusion.
Dealing with attitude.
Tackling ego issues.
Dealing with superiority complex.
Dealing with inferiority complex.
Patience.
Dealing with arrogance.
Dealing with over-sensitivity.
Dealing with stubbornness.
Dealing with adversity.

Benefits of this module

Increased sensitivity to emotional reactions and expressions in oneself and in others.
Greater ability to perceive and learn from the consequences of one’s actions through attention to feelings, of one’s own and of others.
Clarification and development of personal values and goals in consonance with a democratic and scientific approach to problems of social and personal decision and action.
Development of concepts and theoretical insights as tools in linking personal values, goals and intentions to actions consistent with these inner factors and with situation requirements.
Development of behavioural skills to support better integration of intentions and actions.
Ability to transfer laboratory learning to back home situations.
Learning how to learn; to continue to be analyst of one’s own behaviour and to become the kind of self the learner is seeking to become.

Guidelines towards sensitivity testing.
Most of the HR related problems in organizations arise due to interpersonal ineffectiveness of its people. Further, most of the irrational expectations and behaviour have origins to lack of self-understanding. Organizations tend to down with emotional problems and managers lose balance in decision-making when they are indifferent to sensitivity. This is true in case of all the managers supposed to deal with people as a part of their job. Therefore, all managers need to be exposed to sensitivity training in a systematic manner. This helps to promote healthy relationships and quality of behaviour of its personnel.

Semi-Outbound Training - Team Building

2008-09-28T17:02:00.000-07:00

This programme could be conducted for professionals at any level in the organization. This is a two-day programme and contains 10 games and 6 motivational videos.

Objective
No person can exist individually. Similarly, in the organization, people need to be dependent on each other for their help or simply because their output depends on what they get as the input from someone else. In situations like these, people tend to do their part of the job and push it away to the next in line. Only when the team members exist and function as one, can the team complete its tasks successfully. For this, people need to be made aware of the importance of team building. They need to understand how essential working in a team is.

Areas covered under this module
After each activity is completed, the trainer debriefs the participants about what were the underlying intentions of the game. A discussion follows where each person talks about his experiences. The team as a whole then deliberate over how they could apply what they have learnt from the activity to their organizational tasks. The following are the various aspects of team building expected to be covered in this programme:

Each person needs to contribute towards a group task.
No person can accomplish the task on his own.
Spontaneity is not an uncommon practice in the organizational team work. It does have positive effects.
It is essential to keep track of the time given for each activity, both in the SOBT as well as in the organization.
Sometimes, it is important to work according to a pre-decided plan and hence, it is essential to make one.
Trust is an important feature of team work.
Sometimes, it is essential to trust the leader or the mentor without questioning him. But people tend to misunderstand their boss, and start questioning their decisions behind their back.
Work could be assigned to a team wherein the instructions would be given to all the members as a team. But everyone would have different roles to perform and they wouldn’t be briefed about it separately. It’s up to the team members to understand which instructions are addressed to them and which aren’t.
It is important to synchronize the efforts of the individual team members towards the common organizational goals.
It is essential for us to express our individual goals to our boss and team members and also to align them with the organizational goals.
During tense situations it is essential to maintain our composure and to try and resolve the issues with a balanced mind.
It is essential to support people who have difficulties doing the work assigned to them.
Lack of effective Communication can affect the team’s functioning.
It is essential to listen to all ideas before finalizing on what has to be done.

Benefits of this module
It highlights the various aspects of team work like communication, leadership, co-operation. At the same time, it develops a healthy working relationship between the members of the team.

Semi-Outbound Training – Leadership Development

2008-09-28T08:14:00.001-07:00

This programme could be conducted for professionals at any level in the organization. This is a two-day programme and contains 10 games and 6 motivational videos.

Objective
Every solar system needs a guiding star and every team needs a leader. Without the presence of the leader, the team is unmindful of its duties. A leader streamlines the actions of every individual to make it a team effort. The leader is a guide, a motivator and a strong minded personality.

The objective of this programme is to develop leaders.

Areas covered under this module
For some activities, leaders would be appointed right at the beginning. They could be nominated by the trainer himself or by the participants. The team is then given a task and the leader has to take decisions with regard to the task given. Any mistake made on the part of the leader could be very awful for the team.

Through this programme, the leader is tested under different conditions to identify their strengths and weaknesses with respect to being a leader.

The various areas covered under this module are:

Trust.
Team Building.
Communication skills.
Patience.
Decision making.
Coaching and Mentoring.
Ability to motivate.
Conflict Management.
Delegation.
Negotiation skills.
Dedication.

Benefits of this module

This module has given us the following inputs about leaders:

The subordinates should trust the leader and vice versa.
It is essential to be patient with the team members. Sometimes, they could take a longer time to understand what is expected of them.
The leader needs to stand by his people and needs to continue to motivate and encourage them even in times of distress.
A leader should have good communication skills.
The leader alone cannot complete the task. He needs the support of the team members for the same.
A leader has to coach / mentor his people as and when the need arises.
A leader should be able to handle conflicts effectively.
A leader has to align the interests of the team members to the organizational goals.
Sometimes a leader is expected to perform with limited resources.
A leader is required to clearly specify the goals of a team.

Guidelines to becoming an effective leader

The 5 P’s of Leadership.
Pay attention to what’s important.
Praise what you want to continue.
Punish what you want to stop.
Pay for the results you want.
Promote those people who deliver those results.

Assessment Development Centre

2008-09-28T04:07:00.000-07:00

This module could be conducted for any person whose competencies are required to be tested. This programme is generally conducted as one of the rounds during interviews for positions requiring specific skill sets. It is a four-day workshop. It has games, psychometric tests, case studies, role plays, in-tray activities, individual and group presentations, and individual and group interviews.

Objective
This is not a regular training programme. The participants in this programme are actually tested for specific skill sets. Their results are then compared against the benchmark for their category and each individual participant is given feedback on what they assessors think about his skill sets. The participant is also enlightened about the ways in which he could work upon those aspects.

Areas covered under this module

Verbal Communication skills.
Written Communication skills.
Decision making ability.
Analytical ability.
Ability to process written information.
Time management.
Problem solving.
Sense of responsibility.
Prioritizing.
Empathy, respect and trust.
Coaching and mentoring people.
Response to change.
Creativity.
Interpersonal skills.
Non-verbal communication.
Handling stress.
Planning skills.
Team building.
Developing leaders.

Benefits of this module
Such programmes help the participants to understand their position with respect to the benchmarked people in their industry. It helps a person understand his strengths, weaknesses, and abilities. It makes a person aware of things that he didn’t know about himself. He understands what perceptions others have about him and the reason for the same. He is given opportunities to explore himself and his abilities.

This module is very helpful for people who are just about to step into or those who have just recently stepped into the corporate world. It helps them realize their drawbacks and rectify themselves.

Guidelines
The ADC is required to be well drafted for the participant to get a complete and accurate picture of himself. The ADC should have a variety of activities testing the participant on various competencies and during each activity every participant is required to be observed and interpreted. To support this process are the psychometric tests which also give an insight into an individual’s personality. The programme should be used for the betterment of the individual.