Training and facilitation

What I believe about training, learning and facilitation

I have a passionate belief in the value of learning to organisations and individuals. My aim is to help organisations be successful by enriching the lives of their people, and by making learning and change an integral part of everyday working life.

I believe in helping my clients become independent and self-sufficient by working with them to develop learning strategies they can take forward with their own resources, such as blended and work-based learning. I am committed to enabling and encouraging individuals to take responsibility for their own learning and development.

My workshops deal with the realities of organisational life, not with abstract theory, and aim to help participants to understand and influence the complex, semi-formal structures that exist and to expand the boundaries of effective learning within their own organisations.

I aim to create strategies that deliver real change - on the surface levels of developing skills, and on deeper levels, changing attitudes and cultures, and challenging the boundaries of accepted thinking.

When facilitating groups and teams, I aim to create short and relevant processes for them to engage with, followed by 'gallery' displays of their visualised work for them to present for wider discussion. I also enable 'constellation' activities for groups to model actual relationships and contexts at work, so that everyone gains an insight to what is really happening and what needs action.

See facilitated events

Style of workshops

My workshops and events are highly interactive with no sleeping at the back - because there is no back!  Some of the best current adult learning techniques and tools to accelerate learning and retention are used, so that we learn by doing.

Participants will learn through practical examples, best practice, relevant stories and short exercises that will be both thought-provoking and stretching.

Where possible, I like to bring in actors* with commercial experience, who bring typical scenarios to life so that the participants can interact with them - this makes for powerful learning they don't forget!

'Real play' is preferred to role play. Participants are encouraged to bring and identify actual people and issues they face at work, to practice on these in a confidential and safe space. This process helps to ground the learning in reality and provides for easy application and transfer back to work.

Sharing learning through small group and paired discussions is the preferred way of learning. I encourage mind-mapping and other creative tools to serve as memory aids.

Supportive notes and website references are provided for each workshop, along with copies of the workshop slides used, to aid retention.

Individuals will connect the learning and ideas to their jobs through personal action plans to take forward on return. This process aids the transfer and evaluation of learning back on the job.

See list of workshops

*In collaboration with Chris Stagg, I frequently work with specific actors to enhance the realism and impact of learning. Three frequent members of the ‘theatre team’ are Patrick Bland, Gina Gangar and Dianne Calloway.