Course catalogue

One of the key responsibilities of a leader is to assess team members on a regular basis. These might include post-project reviews, annual or quarterly performance evaluations, and in-the-moment feedback.  

Organizations use different parameters and tools to assess their employees. The assessments used are based on functional goals, developmental goals, innovation goals, stretch goals, or any other goals customized to the organizational needs. Irrespective of the tools you use, when it is time to assess your employees, do you rely on the data or by your perception of the person?  

As fair and factual as you believe your assessments are, you might actually be guilty of some “rater biases” that can skew your evaluations. 

• Assess if you are too lenient or halo in your evaluations 

• Find whether your evaluations are based on recency or similarity 

• Examine if you are driven by contrast or negative bias 

• Identify the central tendency and employ a technique to be objective during your evaluations

Coaching is a process, which the leaders use to help employees become more independent. There are many coaching programs available to managers these days. But the good leaders implement The COACH Model in coordination with a coaching philosophy that includes mentoring, constant two-way communication, and continuous feedback. The COACH Model is a five-step program that walks a leader through the process of coaching an associate from setting a goal to measuring their success at the end of the process. 

• Describe the effectiveness of the COACH Model 

• Explain the need to clarify goals 

• Identify obstacles and explore alternatives through brainstorming 

• Choose an action and hold the accountability

McKinsey’s 7-S model was created by McKinsey consultants Robert Waterman, Tom Peters, Richard Pascale, and Anthony Athos. It provides a framework to plan and execute mid-term organizational change. It is based on the premise that organizations perform properly when seven key elements are aligned. 

The seven key elements are structure, strategy, systems, skills, style, staff, and shared values. The model is most often used as an organizational analysis tool to assess and monitor changes in the internal situation of an organization.

• List the seven elements of McKinsey’s change model 

• Identify the hard and soft elements of the factors of change 

• Use the model to change organizational behavior 

• State the advantages and disadvantages of the model

With COVID-19 meaning that home working is no longer an option but a necessity for many, what are the potential side effects on our health and work performance. Employers may need to provide additional training to ensure appropriate supervision and work behaviours. These include remote technology, communication skills development, time management and ergonomics.

Managing remote teams and business continuity are operational priorities for companies during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Remote working allows some operations to continue and facilitate flexible work schedules, which typically improves individual performance. However, greater flexibility and leading teams remotely puts a greater burden on managers and makes supervision more complex. 

The group of workers who experience most difficulty in handling ‘boundary-less’ working are actually managers.  This is mainly because they are connected longer in their ‘non-working time’.

The ‘Managing Remote Teams’ bundle includes 3 months access to 10 online courses and over 10 hours of eLearning. 

• Negativity in the Workplace

• Decision Making

• Supporting Change: 03-Your Path to Supporting Change

• Management 101: 02-Leading and Communicating as a Manager

• Smart Management: Managing a Geographically Distributed Workforce

• Health and Safety for Home Workers (Managers)

• Lone Working (Managers)

• An Effective Leader’s Guide to Time Management

• Team Building IV: Conflict Management

• Essential Skills of Leadership: 05-Lead Effective Meetings

With COVID-19 meaning that home working is no longer an option but a necessity for many, what are the potential side effects on our health and work performance. Employers may need to provide additional training to ensure appropriate supervision and work behaviours. These include remote technology, communication skills development, time management and ergonomics. 

Maintaining health and well-being while working from home encompasses many areas, including ergonomics, preventing feelings of isolation and effectively managing stress. Studies have found that more than half of people working from home had not paid any attention to ergonomics, and 94% of them reported that neither had their employers. Almost half of remote workers have experienced work-related pains. One of the most problematic aspects of home working is the isolation and the lack of access to day-to-day informal interactions. While remote working enables greater autonomy, it also leads to higher levels of work intensity. The ‘24/7’ availability for work can result in family conflict and stress. Key areas to promote a positive work-family interface include the parental ability to cope with children and amicable resolutions of conflict about working hours, household work and personal time in the family.

The ‘Healthy Home Working’ bundle includes 3 month access to 12 online courses and over 9 hours of eLearning.

• Stress Awareness

• Working Time Limits and Fatigue Management

• Display Screen Equipment (DSE)

• Ergonomics

• Health and Safety for Home Workers (Employees)

• Medicine Awareness

• Smart Health: Sleeping – How to Ensure You Are Well-Rested & Energized

• Smart Mental Health: Managing Anger and Emotions

• Smart Mental Health: Keys to Successful Parenting

• Smart Health: Drinking Responsibly

• Smart Mental Health: Reducing Stress and Anxiety

• Smart Mental Health: Mastering Marriage