Q: Why did you want learning and accreditation for your team?
A: It’s really important for people to understand the job they do and what it delivers. A big thing for me is seeing what others do, so you can pull out what you already do, so you feel good, and find opportunities to drive change and deliver more to the business as well. It’s independent and verified, that’s important too.
Q: How did you all get started?
A: We worked with you to choose the right learning videos, then chose 10 people, from the UK & US, all working virtually. This has helped team motivation, after so much remote working, and also got the global team together, which was really beneficial. It was a long time since some had done any educational qualifications, so getting started was the hardest bit. We watched the learning and best practice videos, and I created a learning log, a structure that I asked them to be creative around.
Q: How did the team work together on this?
A: I had set them up in mixed buddy groups, so they get together after watching each video, for really good conversations about what they’ve watched, what they do today, their ideas for the future. Each group then have a session with me. I watch the videos like everybody else, so we have a conversation around it, which they tend to lead. You know, you learn something every time you watch a video. Every single time you learn something different, and you’ll apply something different in your approach. I’m just encouraging them to focus in on the areas that they found interesting. They then go and update their personal learning log packs. It’s the little snippets of things that actually make a big difference. And that’s what I’ve asked them to focus on. The little things that you’re going to change along the way. I try to give them encouragement, so they know they’re going in the right direction. I also give them feedback and coaching individually.
Q: Can you give me an example?
A: The module on Pyramid Principles actually drove a lot of conversation. E-mails can be death by details, sometimes! So we took some good practice and changed our approach, like more attachments rather than long, detailed e-mails. We also talked about how you prepare for meetings: finer detail, the major detail, top priorities. So, you may think you’ve got 30 minutes, but you end up with five and need to make sure you hit the top message. So you still deliver the key result because you were ready. Just to prepare them for both options, I think that was really, really good.
Q: Why invest in training for such experienced people?
A: So, experienced people learn as well. You will get people who are more vocal, but they share, and that’s good. Some workbooks will have more in than others, but we have a good mix. What I’ve said is, if you haven’t got many learnings from one video, that shows you do all the great stuff anyway. However you do always get some learnings, and the more experienced in that role help others, to bring them on at a quicker pace potentially.
Q: Well thank you Jackie
A: We’ve enjoyed every moment, Paul.