In my experience you need to personalize the information as best you are able. From your small intro it seems you are part of a large organisation, and I have no doubt some of your training will be of more interest to one or several parts of the organisation than others.
I'm sure I am not telling you anything new, but we trainers some times need to be reminded that we are in the same game as our sales department in that we have to sell what we have to our clients.........in this case your departments/branches/etc. As good sales people tell you, exciting your client about what you can do to help them achieve is the name of the game. Otherwise the concern you have about "tone" will prove to be very accurate. Particularly for internal sales, it is crucial the message does not read like you are the expert and others take-it-or-leave-it. Much better that every department head/possible user, reads the communication so that their expertise is acknowledged and you are there to promote and enhance that expertise.
Even in small businesses the same applies. By sending out the full catalogue you expect people to scroll through and identify what excites them. You must make this exercise as simple and straightforward as possible. I know it takes time, but the results are well worth spending that time.
Then you work on the presentations. I'm no wordsmith so will leave that to others.
One thing to keep in mind in the current environment is the fairly convincing evidence coming forth that the world is not out of the economic downturn. Some very highly respected names are even suggesting next time, like in the next 2 years, things may be even worse. So you may be able to use this information to target that part of your catalogue aimed at up-skilling and retention for those times.
I have always believed that to be successful in Training, or indeed any facet of HR/Training, it really helps to have spent some time on the front line...........both as a "worker" and then ideally in some kind of supervisory position with responsibility for a Team. Size of the Team is not of great importance. It helps you better understand what happens where the work is done, rather than rely on others to tell you.
Where I have seen this to be most beneficial is when a Trainer is trying to assess training needs. Often what the bosses say is top priority is quite different from what the "troops" actually need. Your contact with some of the placements and follow-up might be a good place to start looking for an opportunity.
Just a couple of ideas to add to what is already posted:
Where possible, carefully scrutinize your group ie are they all school-leavers or are they predominantly job seekers with work experience; work backgrounds; male/female; etc. I'm not for one moment suggesting putting like-with-like, but be sure you tailor your content as best you can to fit the people. Admin folk will quickly turn off if you are talking mainly about getting a trade type job etc.
Second, be sure to help them wherever possible to put their CV together such that it looks more like their presentation rather than that of an HR pro. In my experience a CV that looks like it is the product of some HR template will get less attention than one which appears to be the product of the person.
Third, train them to ask questions as well as how to answer questions. In this day and age most Employers..........or should I say better Employers........are looking for people who can think as well as give answers.
If you are discussing accountability for any new Team members, then I have always recommended it should focus on the requirements of the job. The examples given by Rus give a very good indication of maybe how to approach the topic, but as I say, they should be directed at expectations. That way the discussion can easily lead into other facets of the Team requirements to ensure key points of achieving performance are also discussed and not just the accountability.
My discussion replies
In my experience you need to personalize the information as best you are able. From your small intro it seems you are part of a large organisation, and I have no doubt some of your training will be of more interest to one or several parts of the organisation than others.
I'm sure I am not telling you anything new, but we trainers some times need to be reminded that we are in the same game as our sales department in that we have to sell what we have to our clients.........in this case your departments/branches/etc. As good sales people tell you, exciting your client about what you can do to help them achieve is the name of the game. Otherwise the concern you have about "tone" will prove to be very accurate. Particularly for internal sales, it is crucial the message does not read like you are the expert and others take-it-or-leave-it. Much better that every department head/possible user, reads the communication so that their expertise is acknowledged and you are there to promote and enhance that expertise.
Even in small businesses the same applies. By sending out the full catalogue you expect people to scroll through and identify what excites them. You must make this exercise as simple and straightforward as possible. I know it takes time, but the results are well worth spending that time.
Then you work on the presentations. I'm no wordsmith so will leave that to others.
One thing to keep in mind in the current environment is the fairly convincing evidence coming forth that the world is not out of the economic downturn. Some very highly respected names are even suggesting next time, like in the next 2 years, things may be even worse. So you may be able to use this information to target that part of your catalogue aimed at up-skilling and retention for those times.
Good luck. Cheers. DonR.
I have always believed that to be successful in Training, or indeed any facet of HR/Training, it really helps to have spent some time on the front line...........both as a "worker" and then ideally in some kind of supervisory position with responsibility for a Team. Size of the Team is not of great importance. It helps you better understand what happens where the work is done, rather than rely on others to tell you.
Where I have seen this to be most beneficial is when a Trainer is trying to assess training needs. Often what the bosses say is top priority is quite different from what the "troops" actually need. Your contact with some of the placements and follow-up might be a good place to start looking for an opportunity.
Good luck. DonR.
Just a couple of ideas to add to what is already posted:
Where possible, carefully scrutinize your group ie are they all school-leavers or are they predominantly job seekers with work experience; work backgrounds; male/female; etc. I'm not for one moment suggesting putting like-with-like, but be sure you tailor your content as best you can to fit the people. Admin folk will quickly turn off if you are talking mainly about getting a trade type job etc.
Second, be sure to help them wherever possible to put their CV together such that it looks more like their presentation rather than that of an HR pro. In my experience a CV that looks like it is the product of some HR template will get less attention than one which appears to be the product of the person.
Third, train them to ask questions as well as how to answer questions. In this day and age most Employers..........or should I say better Employers........are looking for people who can think as well as give answers.
Cheers. DonR.
If you are discussing accountability for any new Team members, then I have always recommended it should focus on the requirements of the job. The examples given by Rus give a very good indication of maybe how to approach the topic, but as I say, they should be directed at expectations. That way the discussion can easily lead into other facets of the Team requirements to ensure key points of achieving performance are also discussed and not just the accountability.
Cheers. Don Rhodes.