BENEFITS OF SOFT SKILLS TRAINING

There has always been a hype about how important soft skills training is. For a professional to perform effectively at his or her job and grow simultaneously in terms of his or her career ladder, it is important that they possess the right combination of hard and soft skills.

I have expressed my thoughts on how beneficial soft skills trainings are in lot of my previous articles. Today, my focus would only be on expressing my thoughts on how soft skills trainings are beneficial for organisations. After all we a corporate training company, wouldn’t it make sense if I talked about benefits of soft skills trainings to the corporates?

Corporates look forward to hiring applicants that display a balance of both hard and soft skills for a particular role. With time they have realized that along with being technically competent for a particular job an employee also needs to be emotionally competent to sustain in the organisation and grow. Hence, they have started giving equal importance to soft skills training for their employees as hard skills.

What is it that imparting soft skills through soft skills trainings can achieve? Basically, coming to the point, what are the benefits of soft skills trainings? Let me list down a few for you.

• It helps in have a strong and well-bonded team, be it, their particular department or the whole organisations as a team.

The leadership skills training of the ones in that position to have people who are to be led, enhances.

• The productivity of the employees due to enhanced effectiveness and efficiency increases.
• It helps in creating a belongingness in the employees as the organisation invests in them.
• As one of the results of the above-mentioned point, soft skills trainings greatly help in reducing attrition.
• Making the employees more capable, the opportunities for rewards, recognition and challenging projects also increases for them.
• One of the biggest results of enhancing soft skills and making the team customer focused is customer satisfaction.
• Most importantly, the ROI is long term but guaranteed and increased.

These are just a few benefits of soft skills trainings that I mentioned. Corporates have realized its extreme importance long time ago and have been investing big time in it. they know it very well; hard skills can help them produce products and provide service, but soft skills will help them grow to the next level. It is not something that can be taken lightly any more.

Importance of training the trainer

I have been busy with recruitments recently. We are expanding our trainer force and ensuring that we have trainers in every major city of the country. I have spoken to quite a few trainers and my major take back from all the discussions, interviews and demonstrations that I have had is this. Every trainer needs to go through a train the trainer training.

You must be wondering why I am saying that?

What does a train the trainer training have that it can make such a difference?

Well it has various components that are extremely important. We are different individuals with different skills. Some people excel in their knowledge, some are great at presenting skill, while others are amazing at creating awareness. However for a good trainer, a mix of all the three is very important.

In the past few days I have met and spoken to people who are masters in each of these areas. Some were very knowledgeable, however were unable to transfer their knowledge to the trainees. They ‘knew what to speak’ but fumbled when it came to the ‘how to speak’ part. They had amazing presentations with amazing content, but were unable to create the connect with the participants that would have helped them in transferring the knowledge to the participants.

On the other hand, their were others who were great orators. They had fantastic energy levels and were so full of life. They knew exactly how to keep their audience engaged and on their toes! However when asked deeper questions they were at a loss. They could just parrot what they had read in books and were clearly just training! They were unable to add life experiences which would have made a huge difference.

And there was a third category. They were more of facilitators. They had amazing observation powers and could create awareness from the most subtle things. Things that we would never be able to catch in ourselves. However, when it came to delivering the theory part of the training, they were at a loss. They just looked uncomfortable and would lose the audience completely!

So what is taught in a train the trainer training that’s so special?

All the three aspects.

1.       Knowledge – A lot of focus is placed on the content. You have to have content which is interesting, relevant to the audience, yet crisp. No matter how good yourcontent is, if it doesn’t make sense to the audience and you keep rambling with it over the designated time,  you are certain to lose your audience

2.       Delivery – This is a skill that needs a lot of practice. Train the trainer trainings give you a lot of awareness about how you are currently delivering and how you should be delivering to keep your audiences hooked. They also teach you various methods for teaching the content through which you can engage your audience. Apart from this, they also cover aspects of how to handle your audience, right from helping the quieter one’s to open up to keeping the louder ones in control!

3.       Facilitation – Good train the trainer trainings have now started focussing on this aspect too. They take participants through a number of activities and help them debrief the same. Debriefing is one of the most important aspects of a training. And when done using facilitation, creates the best learning experience for participants. It helps them get aware of what they are doing and come up with what they can do to change those ‘not so great things’ that may come to the forefront

So have you attended a train the trainer training and allowed it to unleash the facilitative trainer in you?

Communication Skills Training

Communication skills training has become more essential than ever before. With the world becoming a smaller place, communication is no longer restricted to the people around us. We now have to communicate with those even at the other end of the globe and that too effectively! Also, with the ever-increasing number of mediums for communication, understanding how to communicate effectively using each of these has become ever so important. That’s why communication skills training is becoming a norm and why so many communication training is being held the world over in every organisation.

What is Communication Skills Training?

Communication is simply the transfer of information from one person to another across a medium. Sounds simple doesn’t it. However when you start doing it, you realise how difficult it really is! There are a number of factors that come into play which can impede it and render it ineffective. Communication Skills Training sessions make you aware of these factors and how you can go beyond them. They focus not just on what the sender and receiver have to do to make their communication effective, but also on how to manage the medium they are using well.

In today’s fast advancing world, technology is constantly providing newer and newer ways of communicating with those around us. While we started of with the telephone and post; we have now moved on to e-mail, cell phones, video conferencing, webcasts, the Skypes and Whatsapps and other social media, etc. Understanding which medium to use in which situation and how to use it effectively is becoming an art in itself and is the need of the hour as seen in most communication skills workshops.... Read more https://theyellowspot.com/communication-skills-training/

FUNDAMENTALS OF SUCCESSFUL CORPORATE TRAINING COMPANIES

It’s that time of the year again when everyone is busy with their preparations for the most awaited Performance Appraisals! Training calendars have also started getting prepared and Training Managers have started looking around for corporate training companies that can help them fulfil their training mandates.

Interestingly, when you actually start scouting around, you realise the number of corporate training companies that exist. And that’s when you feel the need for some sort of filter to help you. Yup, the kind of filter that we use on all our online sites and apps. Something to help you narrow down the search based on some criteria. And guess what. Today’s your lucky day! I’m going to help you define that criteria so that you can find a successful corporate training company to fulfil your training needs.

So let’s get to it…

Criteria No#1: Offerings – This one’s really a no brainer! Select a corporate training company that can offer you what you are looking for like team building training. Doesn’t make sense going to a technical training company and asking them for communication skills training eh? So first and foremost, check the list of offerings and see that it matches with what you want.  You may not be able to see if they can deliver the fine intricacies of your requirement, but you can at least get a broad perspective

Criteria No #2: Experience – Try to gauge the amount of experience the company has. Take a look at the kind of work they have done, the kind of trainers and consultants they have as well as the kind of clients they have serviced. ln case their website has a ‘success stories’ kind of section, do check that out too. It will give you some perspective on what they can do for you

Criteria No #3: Years of Existence – Look for corporate training companies that have been around since some time. Why? Because somehow this is a sector where there’s a lot of churn. Companies open and close everyday and its typically the successful ones that have the resilience to take it all in their stride. Am not saying that new companies are bad, its just that they may not be ‘that’ tried and tested, if you know what I mean!

Criteria No#4: The Feel – Okay now I’m going the intangible way. Well what do you expect from me? I’m a behavioural trainer who works largely with emotions! Every website has a certain feel to it and keeping that in mind while making a choice is important. It’s like when you interview someone for a position in your organisation. Don’t you get a certain kind of ‘feel’ from the person? The gut feel as we commonly call it? Well that’s extremely important in making a decision. After all, decisions made using both sides of your brain, the logical and emotional or intuitive as we call it sometimes, are always better.

So that’s my list for today. I can come up with some more criteria that will help you select a top corporate training company, however that might land up confusing you. And we don’t want too many cooks to spoil the broth do we!

FEATURES OF ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Organisational Development has been around since quite some time now. Some 70 odd years to be more precise. But it’s still to pick up pace. At least in India. Somehow Indian companies are just not ready for it. Rather, I should say that they are not yet open to it. They feel it takes too much effort and time. And you know how we all are. Always looking for a quick fix!

Let’s face it, the market place is growing at a supersonic rate. Newer technologies are constantly outrunning the older ones and customer expectations are ever on the rise. Which means that all the organisations are perpetually on their toes, always aiming to get better so that they can give better.

So when organisations say that organisational development is not for them, I find it difficult to believe. After all, organisations are run by humans and humans are pretty complex beings. So we can start with team building training. Understanding them to help them be more productive can get really difficult at times. And that’s where organisational development fits in.

Let’s have a look at some of the features of Organisational Development and what their consultants do to give us a better understanding of the same:

• Behavioural Expertise – Organisational Development consultants are behavioural experts. They understand the human species very well and how their minds works and what they want. This makes it easy for organisations to create policies and structures which employees will relate to well, in turn increasing their productivity, commitment towards work And also improve performance of employees.             

• Change Agents – Change is something that can get difficult to manage, especially when its met with resistance. Organisational Development Consultants understand this very well and hence create interventions which help include the parties who are going to undergo the change in the change process. This improves the acceptance of the change and the process becomes smooth and a lot easier to manage

• Independency – How often have you been to a specialist and realised that you tend to get hooked to them because they know their stuff well and its not something you can do? Happens all the time, doesn’t it. But is it that desirable? Doesn’t it create dependencies? Organisational Development consultants and organisational culture workshops, believe that it does. They therefore ensure that they equip their clients to handle and solve their own problems before completing the intervention and exiting the organisation

• More than just a Doctor – Just like a Doctor, Organisational Development consultants help you diagnose problems. However, I must stress on the word help. They ‘help’ the organisation in figuring out what’s wrong, then together work to correct it and then re-evaluate the results and see what further actions need to be taken. They can well do it for you, but believe in empowering their clients and make them ready to face what the future holds for them.

If you feel you need to create some kind of change in your organisation or have some issue but are unsure how to go about solving them, Organisational Development is the way. It will help you move forward smoothly with long term effects that are sure to benefit you, your customers and your employees.

BASICS OF MANAGERIAL SKILLS TRAINING

The last two months have been very interesting. We got to encounter three very varied opinions when it comes to Managerial Skills Training.

All three were from First Time Manager sessions we were conducting for various organisations. But the audience profile was rather different in each case. The first was from a group of Managers who had been in the role for a long time but had not received any formal Managerial Skills Training. Another was also a group of Managers who had been Managers since quite some time but had been through some ‘world-class’ Managerial Skills Training in the past. The third was a group of youngsters who had just entered the role.

Any one would think that the youngsters would be the most inquisitive to attend the corporate training. However we were in for quite a shock! The youngsters felt they knew it all and had learnt whatever they had to about managing people while in the execution role they had been in for the past few months. The older ones on the other hand, were split in their opinion. The one’s who had not received formal training were very eager to absorb all that they could. While the other group was guarded and completely resistant to feedback!

So what is covered in a Managerial Skills Training and how can it lead to such varied opinions?

• Role – Many Managers have been playing the Managerial role for a long time but are really not aware of what’s the difference between their role, that of a leader and that of a Supervisor. The awareness that such sessions create make some of them realise that they land up executing when they should be managing the executioners!

• Interpersonal Style – We all behave in a specific manner based on our personality. This behaviour may help or impede our interpersonal relationships. Our Managerial Skills Training sessions are a huge eye opener in this area and give the participants direction into what they need to work on. It also makes them aware of the behavioural styles of others and how they may come across to the people around them. Apart from this, it also equips them with a tried and tested tool on handling conflict effectively.

• Motivation – Keeping your team motivated is prime for any Manager. However, Managers sometimes lose track of what they need to do to provide that motivation to different team members. After all, what motivates one may not motivate the other!

• Time Management – Ensuring that we get the most out of our day and also help our team members do the same is again very important. Our Managerial Skills Training throws light on aspects of planning and prioritisation that can help Managers improve productivity.

• Goal Setting – Imagine having a team where the members are headed in different directions. That’s really not going to help you fulfill your team or organisational goals! Therefore defining these goals and defining them smartly for team members to follow is something that we teach during these sessions.

• Delegation – This is another aspect that many Managers need help on. We help them understand who they can delegate to and how they can best delegate.

Our Managerial Skills Training sessions are power packed and have created huge amounts of awareness in the Managers that have attended them. But for that, they needed to be open to learning more about themselves. Learning is an endless process and there’s always scope to learn no matter what level we are at in an organisation.

FIVE CORE FOCUS POINT OF SALES EFFECTIVENESS TRAINING

Off late we have been facilitating a lot of sales effectiveness training sessions for our various clients. Sales effectiveness training is a perfect example of a combination of technical and soft skills development.

Having delivered so many sales effectiveness training programs, we have observed five important points of a sales effectiveness training program. That’s what we are going to discuss today, as the name of our article suggests.

So, the four out of five core points of a sales effectiveness training are the four stages of a sales process. And, what is the fifth one? Well, you will know it soon. So, let’s start with them one by one.

1. Preparation

The first step of our sales process is the Preparation as a good sales professional. Preparation starts with having the right sales attitude. Understanding the role and soft skills required for a sales professional very well. Analyzing where you currently stand in your knowledge and skill level by looking at your strengths & weaknesses as a sales professional.

It is also very important to create a very positive mind-set for being in a sales role. It can be a very challenging role and preparing for it definitely requires being positive.

Preparation also involves understanding the organisations goals, our product or service and knowing our competing well. This is the pre-study that is essential. This is going to be extremely important for your prospecting and lead generation. Gathering all the information required before cold calling a customer for sales is critical. Your pre-approach is what will set you apart from your competitors.

In case you are going for a sales meeting, then preparing yourself for the meeting is another important aspect. Grooming is something that definitely makes a difference. People judge you in the first few seconds. You want to be best dressed for such instances.

2. Investigating

Now that you are going for a meeting all well-groomed, having the right body language, voice and meeting & greeting etiquette is essential.

Post your looking and behaving good, coming to the most important part of this step – Questioning.  Asking the right questions to a customer is the key to closing the deal. There is a proper model that needs to be followed to understanding the customer needs properly and providing the best solution to him. Empathy and active listening is the key while questioning.

3. Demonstrating capability

This is the time when you introduce your product or service to the customer. Presenting to him the features, advantages, and benefits of your product or service. Making the customer understanding how your product or service is important for them. Your actual persuasion skills come into picture here.

The other part of this step is to answer your customer’s questions now. Solve any queries or objections that they have. Handling objections effectively are what a sales effectiveness training is meant for.

4. Obtaining commitment

Last step of our sales process is closing the deal and providing the after sales service. In this, you should understand what successful salespeople do differently. For closing a sale, one must cover the key concerns, summaries the benefits and propose an action-based commitment.

Offering the customer, the best after-sales service to build an everlasting relationship to accomplish secondary sales through references.

5. Practice

Last but not least, practicing the sale. The last focus point of a complete sales effectiveness training program is practicing what you learned. This is when you understand what you are good at and what can be improved like communication skills. And before actually going out and trying the trick on your actual customers, practice is a must. What say?

It is very important that you create an action plan for yourself after this whole exercise. Your action plan provides you with a concrete pathway to follow to your up-skilled journey. A sales effectiveness training program should as robust as mentioned in this article. That is when you know its effects.

IMPORTANCE OF GOAL SETTING WORKSHOPS

Ah its that time of the year again. The perfect time for a Goal Setting Workshop! Why? Because it’s the starting of a new year and the time that we set goals for ourselves.

So have you come up with your new year resolution/s yet? Did I hear you saying the last one’s aren’t completed yet? Don’t worry. That’s a common problem. And the vast majority falls in that boat!

The same thing happens in the corporate world. We start of the year with creating goals for our teams. But unfortunately, most of the time these goals go unfulfilled. Either they are too lofty or the team just isn’t motivated enough to move towards it. The zing that everyone started the year off with just gets lost along the way and we end up struggling at the end of the year. Struggling to complete the very same goals which we were actually motivated to work on at the start of the year!

This is the precise reason why we recommend goal setting workshops. Such workshops help you to set goals that are achievable yet challenging. They also help you to define your goals vey clearly so that the entire team has a similar understanding of the goal and heads in the same direction. Goal setting workshops also help participants in working on action with time management. They help in creating a well thought of action plan which looks at all possibilities. Well, you have to keep Plan B ready in case Plan A doesn’t work, right!

Defining responsibilities ensures that each team member takes ownership and accountability for the tasks that they are given. In fact, in Goal Setting Workshops, participants are so charged up that they actually put their hands up and take on particular responsibilities. They also ensure that others around them support them so that they are able to complete them successfully.

A very interesting module that is rarely covered in typical goal setting workshops is also goal setting conversations. In our goal setting workshops, we help Managers devise SMART goals for their team members and also assist them in communicating the same to them in an effective manner. And why do you think such conversations are important? To ensure that the Manager and the Team Members are on the same page. Unfortunately; the human mind tends to delete, distort and generalise information. This means that we do the same thing with the goals our Managers give us. This may lead us to actually think and work towards something other than what was expected of us, leading to plenty of rework and wastage of a lot of time!

Now aren’t these good enough reasons to arrange a Goal Setting Workshop for your Organisation?