Communication Skills

Course Duration:  1 day - 6 hours

Maximum Class Size:  35

Description of Target Population:   All Staff

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Understand the impact of verbal, non verbal communication.

• Understand the impact of passive, assertive and aggressive styles.

• Align and develop listening, summarizing, expressing and questioning skills.

• Adapt and adjust to different communication partners. 

• Learn how to match and pace to establish rapport. 

• Identify and prepare the message and the audience for successful communications.

• Develop ability to give and receive constructive feedback.

Working With Leadership

 

Course Duration:   � or full day - 3 or 6 hours

Maximum Class Size:   25

Description of Target Population:   All Staff

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Distinguish between criticism and feedback. 

• Understand effective uses of feedback and feedforward.

• Formulate and deliver feedback effectively.

• Assess conditions that enable/hinder effective feedback.

• Incorporate feedback into routine communication. 

• Develop targeted action plan for improving feedback skills.

Myers-Briggs-Work Relations

 

Course Duration:   � or full day - 3 or 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:   25

Description of Target Population:   Staff and Management

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Understand their own MBTI profile and what that suggests about strengths, development needs and blind spots.

• Identify relationship builders and busters that occur in workplace.

• Use MBTI as a tool for moving past judgment to bringing more empathy and options for relating to workplace interactions.

• Understand limitations of MBTI and appropriate applications of the materials.

• Identify conditions that support good work relations.

• Develop a personal action plan for building and sustaining effective workplace relations.

Critical Thinking 

 

Course Duration:   1 day - 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:   35

 

Description of Target Population:  Staff and Management

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Examine evidence and information.

• Understand facts, opinions, and inferences,

• Develop problem solving skills in practical applications.

• Recognize how to solve problems.

• Understand fallacies in the thinking process.

• Develop your confidence in making sound decisions.

Conflict Resolution

 

Course Duration:  1 day - 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:  35

 

Description of Target Population:   Staff and Management

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Recognize conflict and causes.

• Understand how to bring individuals together in problem solution.

• Work through actual conflict case and resolution.

• Construct a plan that foresees and minimizes the potential for destructive conflicts to emerge.

• Apply successful communication techniques to conflict situations.

• Write an action plan that capitalizes on individual strengths and overcomes shortfalls in resolving conflict.

• Explain the differences between �big picture� and �hands-on� perspectives that often emerge in conflict situations.

• Reframe conflict situations to acknowledge the positive benefits of diverse perspectives and the heightened energy that conflict generates.

Challenging People

 

Course Duration:   � or full day - 3 or 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:   25

 

Description of Target Population:   All Staff

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Identify different types of challenging people.

• Apply current models for working with challenging people.

• Understand issues underlying difficult behavior.

• Identify areas of strength and development for working with others.

• Clarify areas of control and influence in dealing with others.

• Develop action plan to improve capacity to work with others.

• Distinguish between difficult people, difficult situations, and difficult systems.

Workplace Conflict:  Successfully Managing Interpersonal Conflict 

Course Duration:   1 day - 6 hours

Maximum Class Size:   35

Description of Target Population:   All Staff

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Explore the nature and dynamics of conflict, assertive communication, styles of dealing with conflict, fairness issues, and the value of joint problem solving.

• Practice the three critical communication skills for reducing the differences between you and the other person.

• Understand the positive and negative aspects of conflict.

• Learn what are your choices when dealing with difficult people.

• Assess your preferred styles for dealing conflict, communication and level of assertiveness.

• Be able to identify the 5 typical responses to conflict.

• Become more adept at diagnosing people during conflict and developing constructive approaches to managing them.

• Increase your ability to take the actions that are most effective with different difficult people and different difficult situations.

• Engage successfully in constructive disagreement.

• Create an action plan to effectively address a difficult situation you are currently experiencing in the workplace.

Who Moved My Cheese

 

Course Duration:   1 day - 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:   35

 

Description of Target Population:   All Staff

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Understand the lessons of �Who Moved My Cheese�.

• Learn to not only survive, but also thrive with life�s constant changes.

• Assess your personal style for dealing with change.

• Discover how to adapt quickly to any organizational change.

• Understand ways for working, learning and growing during change.

• Learn how to thrive with life�s constant changes.

• Develop positive and pro-active choices that allow you to cope with change in the workplace.

Coping with Organizational Change

 

Course Duration:   1 day - 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:   25

 

Description of Target Population:   All Staff

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Identify the key drivers of Change.

• Learn how to proactively change with "change".

• Understand the phases of change and how to manage these phases successfully.

• Develop strategies for surviving organizational change.

• Cope with stress related to change.

• Develop strategies for surviving organizational change.

• Utilize "outcome" thinking for positive change.

EI: Dealing with Difficulty

 

Course Duration:  1 day - 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:  25

 

Description of Target Population:  All Staff

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Learn to use emotional intelligence.

• Develop conflict management skills.

• Understand how to respond vs. react.
  Demonstrate the application of Choice and Control Model.

• Practice strategies for working with difficult situations.

Time Management Leveraging Time at Work

 

Course Duration:  1 day - 6 hours 

 

Maximum Class Size:  20

 

Description of Target Population:  Staff and Management

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Create a job map and identify high leverage activities.

• Use a time management organizing tool to manage priorities and redirect efforts to the most important and valid tasks.

• Self- assessment profile effectiveness in 12 key time management areas � attitudes, goals, priorities, analyzing, planning, scheduling, interruptions, meetings, written communications, delegation, procrastination and team time.

• Discover time management strengths and discover self-management opportunities.

• Create individualized action plans to address skill gaps and skills that are job critical.

• Provide peer coaching to each other.

• Use Implementation Workbook to continue creating new action plans and developing new habits.

• Learn in a supportive environment.

Facilitating Meeting Effectiveness as a Participant

 

Course Duration:   1 day - 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:   30

 

Description of Target Population:   Staff and Management

 

Program Results

Participants will be able to:

• Conduct a self-assessment which defines ones meeting-participation strengths and development needs.

• Identify behaviors/personality types that commonly sabotage meeting success; List the problematic behaviors exhibited by the chairs/leaders of meetings one attends regularly.

• List the problematic behaviors of attendees for meetings one attends regularly. 

• Identify and demonstrate specific techniques for circumventing and responding to problematic behaviors commonly exhibited by attendees at meetings.

• Discuss approaches for diplomatically facilitating change with meeting Chairs/Leaders who are at higher organizational levels and/or with whom one has a direct reporting relationship.

• List strategies for correcting time management-related problems.

• Model the characteristics of an ideal meeting participant.

• Set objectives based on the development needs list from the personal assessment.

• Develop an action plan for achieving these and sustaining the results.  

Building Teams

Course Duration:  2 days - 12 hours

Maximum Class Size:  24

Description of Target Population:   Staff and Management

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Apply best practices and tools to build and develop teams.

• Understand the seven factors of high performing teams.

• Use team communication strategies to assure positive outcomes.

• Identify the stages of team development.

• Develop confidence and ability to deal with difficult team behaviors.

• Gain best practice for leading virtual teams.

• Understand and utilize team member differences in styles, communication and motivation.

• Learn methods for team problem solving and overcoming
  project obstacles.

• Use ongoing evaluation and feedback tools to monitor
  teams progress.

Intact Team Development: Becoming a High Performing Intact Team

 

Course Duration:  1 day - 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:  30

 

Description of Target Population:  Team

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Distinguish teams from work groups.

• List the characteristics of �real� teams.

• Describe a seven-step model of team evolution/growth  resulting in High Performance.

• Identify the areas within each of the seven steps that ones team has resolved/mastered and those which remain unresolved.

• Give concrete and specific examples of positive outcomes and successes achieved by the team, stemming from the resolved areas.

• Identify the most critical unresolved areas based on their ramifications for team performance.

• Present practical strategies for resolving these critical areas and demonstrate a couple of these as possible and appropriate.

• Set objectives to resolve these areas, and, using a proven planning model and tool, prepare a short-term, readily-implemented action plan for achieving them.

• Set a schedule for developing a long-term action plan.

Myers-Briggs Team Development

 

Course Duration:   � or full day - 3 or 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:   Team Size

 

Description of Target Population:   Team

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Understand their won MBTI profile and what it suggests about strengths, development needs, and blind spots.

• Use MBTI framework as taxonomy for discussing, assessing, and problem solving team dynamics.

• Use MBTI framework as tool for moving past judgment to effective problem resolution.

• Understand limitations of MBTI and appropriate applications of the material.

• Identify conditions that support effective team functioning.

• Develop team and personal action plans for continued development.  

Balancing Work and Family

 

Course Duration:  1 day- 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:  30

 

Description of Target Population:  Staff and Management

 

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Identify the main causes of tension and stress arising from work and family role conflicts.

• Identify results of work and family role conflicts including physiological, psychological, and sociological implications.

• Better understand positive and negative coping behaviors at work and family settings.

• Identify and practice tools for effectively balancing work and family roles.

• Develop an action plan for supporting increased work/family balance.

Aspiring Supervisor Program

 

Course Duration:  1 day � 6 hours

 

Maximum Class Size:  35

 

Description of Target Population: all staff interested in exploring the role and responsibilities of supervisors

 

Program Results

Participants will be able to:

• Learn the skills and attitudes supervisors need to carry out a supervisor's important duties and responsibilities effectively.

• Assess your current skill level for areas of strength and potential.

• Explore effective supervisor communication skills, conflict management and the dynamics of leading others.

• Understand how to effectively deal with the challenges and conflicts new supervisors face.

• Apply principles to build credibility as a supervisor.

• Create an ACTION PLAN for implementing the steps needed to get started as a new supervisor.

Managing Your Caseload: Time Management within Human Services

 

Course Duration:  � day � 3 hours

Maximum Class Size:  25

Description of Target Population:  all caseload managers

Program Results

Participants will be able to:

• Analyze and assess current use of time.

• Review tools and techniques for more effective time management strategies.

• Discuss electronic tools for improving case management practices.

• Explore best practices for effective caseload management.

Ethics for Counselors and Social Workers

Course Duration:  � day � 3 hours

Maximum Class Size:  25

Description of Target Population: Counselors and Social Workers

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Guidelines for counseling ethics.

• Opportunity to explore ethical dilemmas faced in daily practice.

• A network of support for counseling best ethical practices.

Young Professional Women's Workshop

Course Duration:  1 day � 6 hours

Maximum Class Size:   minimum 6 � maximum 20

Description of Target Population:  Young women in their 20s

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

Are you a young woman who's been working for a few years, or who is soon to enter the working world? Are you feeling overwhelmed or confused about your career choices? Unsure about office etiquette or politics, your attire, or how to act in a "man's world"? Join us in a workshop designed especially for women in their 20�s. In a relaxed, conversational environment, we'll share our stories, celebrate successes, and tackle your concerns. You'll learn how to:

• Build confidence and credibility.

• Be proactive about your career.

• Tap the leader within.

• and much more.

Attention, Boundaries and Choices: The ABCs of Sustainable Time Management

Course Duration:  3 hours � half day

Maximum Class Size:  25

Description of Target Population:  all employees

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Attention skills foster flexibility or focus as needed so participants stay with important tasks rather than get distracted by less important ones.

• Boundary skills give tasks �clear edges� so participants finish what they start while giving other tasks their due, and make effective transitions between tasks.

• Choice skills help participants identify priorities and work with them to increase effectiveness.

Managing Up

 

Course Duration:  6 hours � one day

Maximum Class Size:  25

Description of Target Population:  All employees interested in working more effectively with their supervisor and their management team.

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

�Managing Up� is a term for describing how people can �manage� those people who manage them�by effectively asking for what they need and advocating what they want�in order to create a more dynamic environment that ultimately best serves
the team.

You will learn how to:

• Understand the advantages of managing up as both a manager and an employee.

• Build confidence in approaching your manager.

• Know when and how to adapt your style to the work at hand.

• Take a central role as both team member and leader. 

• Identifying key moments and opportunities in your relationship with your manager.

• Identify your style.

• Clarify when and how your style works well.

• Identify and eliminate barriers to working together.

• Communication techniques that get the message through.

• Respond to requests with clarity.

• Action plans to change �the way we do things�.

Working Here is Killing Me

 

Course Duration:  6 hours � one day

Maximum Class Size: 20

Description of Target Population: All employees

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Identify confining roles that impact performance.

• Develop 5 Emotional Intelligence Competencies

• Apply four strategies to unhook from stressful situations and difficult people.

• Understand how achieve a more satisfying work environment.

Delivering Outstanding Customer Service During Challenging Times

 

Course Duration:  6 hours � one day

Maximum Class Size: 25

Description of Target Population:  All employees responsible for delivering services to the citizens of the Commonwealth

Program Results
Participants will be able to:

• Project a positive, professional image for yourself and the organization.

• Demonstrate high-quality communication in all customer interactions.

• Learn ways to diffuse anger in others as well as effective techniques for not becoming angry yourself.

• Stay composed under pressure and coping with stress.

• Use appropriate styles of communication.

• Deal more effectively with difficult customers and practicing the techniques which gain cooperation from an angry person.

• Feel confident in your ability to handle every customer.