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Training & Personal Development - All the skills required in the modern workplace – and how to get them

Linda Narbeth, Cherryblue

(Picture: Photo of Linda Narbeth)

Whether you are in work, a graduate or seeking a new career you can benefit from the huge wealth of training resources that can be found on the Internet. Access to training materials, reference books and on-line learning is now a huge market and offers the individual learner the opportunity to develop their skills at their own pace and at a time to suit their individual needs. As a self confessed “geek” when it comes to business and management books I find the Internet invaluable when it comes to accessing new techniques from all over the world.

As the Managing Director of a training company the Internet is potentially my competition when it comes to learning and development. However I feel that access to on-line materials enhances the learning experience and can further develop the individual after the classroom work is done. Gone are the days when you could rely on your employer to provide all of your training
needs; the onus is now on the individual to develop themselves, particularly if you want to climb the career ladder. The Internet offers everyone access to training, sometimes for free! Typically you can expect to pay either a one off fee to secure your learning materials or a monthly subscription and receive regular updates and enhancements to your training library.

If you are seeking work potential employers will be impressed that you are taking charge of your own development by using on-line resources. It indicates commitment and dedication to learning in your own time. Whatever course or skills you are looking to pursue on-line I would recommend you consider the following points before signing up:

• Try a demonstration of the learning materials before you purchase. What they tell you on the website and what you actually get can be two very different things!
• If they don’t offer a demo, look elsewhere.
• Email colleagues or friends or experts in the field you are researching for their advice on the best materials available.


Customer Services

Customer Service is a very hot topic and one that gets plenty of press coverage when organisations fail to deliver it. So if Mr Angry of Abersoch puts pen to paper after getting poor service this can have a devastating effect on a company’s profit margins.

Little wonder then that employers are keen to recruit people who understand the value of good customer relations and who are trained to a high standard. They know that it is far easier to keep existing customers happy than to go out and find new ones.

But customer service is not just limited to profit making organisations. All industries working in a public facing environment have a need for well-trained staff in this area. Industries such as nursing, teaching and community care have a real need for customer-focused staff. Don’t forget too that internal customers are as important as external ones, so the same skills apply when working across departments. Ensuring that you constantly review your customer service skills will open up many career opportunities for you. Most skills are acquired at ‘the coal face’ as it were, with on the job training a key element in organisations with limited resources. Shadowing someone in the workplace is one way you can learn to develop your own until you are able to work with people under your own initiative. But there is a danger that you could pick up bad habits so formal training is far superior.

Obviously it helps if you already have certain qualities, and you should ask yourself these questions before you start to think about working with people.