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Today's administrative professional needs flexibility and a broad portfolio of skills including self-motivation, assertiveness, and the ability to deal with difficult people. You will benefit from this course if you are an administrator, medical/legal secretary or PA, who wants to enhance your administrative support skills, as well as evaluating your existing techniques. This course will help you identify: your areas of strength and your areas for improvement in the work environment ways to accept new challenges and responsibilities with confidence what motivates you at work techniques to improve your planning and time management ways of improving your influencing and assertiveness skills your preferred working style (and relate it to your interaction with others) ways of using your initiative how to deal with challenging people, using recognised communication methods The course will help you develop a flexible set of skills that will allow you to succeed at work, no matter what the day throws at you. It will help you communicate effectively with a diverse range of colleagues and others with tact and diplomacy. And, finally, it will help you provide the administrative support that is essential for the smooth running of your area and of the organisation as a whole. 1 Introduction Overview Introductions Individual objectives 2 What exactly is your role? Before looking at new skills and techniques, where are you now? Do you have the skills, knowledge and attitude required to be an exceptional administrator? Understand your job criteria Identifying your strengths and areas for development Activity - skills analysis Activity - action plan 3 Building trust How can you build trust? Understanding the links between reliability, consistency and trust What is required to deliver efficient service? Activity: efficient service requirements of the professional administrator 4 Working styles Identifying your working style preference Understanding the importance of a flexible approach Identifying areas of improvement to become a more effective team member Activity: Questionnaire (completing, scoring and charting) Activity: drawbacks of my style Developing your working style 5 Assertiveness Understand the differences between behaviours Activity: Definition and characteristics of assertive / aggressive / passive behaviour Activity: Identifying different behaviours Understanding how to be more assertive How to use assertiveness techniques How to ask for feedback Activity: Making requests assertively Activity: Refusing requests assertively 6 Time management The importance of planning for success The importance of managing interruptions The importance of having clear purpose Time management best practices Activity: How do you plan your time? What prevents you improving your time management? How will you recognise success? 7 Prioritisation How to prioritise work to meet deadlines The prioritisation matrix Activity: Post it! 8 Dealing with interruptions The impact interruptions have on productivity How to manage interruptions Activity: What interruptions do you experience? What tactics can be employed to reduce these interruptions? 9 Close Open forum Summary Action planning

Software comes in a variety of guises - application software, firmware, middleware, system software. Increasingly, however, it doesn't necessarily present that way, especially as the boundaries between software, data and source code are becoming more and more blurred. And as software becomes more complex and more difficult to disentangle, so it becomes harder to manage and to value. But as it becomes more integral to every aspect of a business, so it is ever more important to keep on top of the technical, legal and commercial issues that arise, issues such as: To address these issues, organisations need a process for evaluating their current situation from all perspectives and for identifying the key actions they need to take to ensure holistic management of their software. This very practical programme will help set your organisation on the right path. Note: this is an indicative agenda, to be used as a starting point for a conversation between client and consultant, depending on the organisation's specific situation and requirements. This programme is designed to give you a deeper understanding of: The technical, legal and commercial risks associated with software development, procurement, use and commercial exploitation The most appropriate processes and responsibilities for managing those risks Note: this is an indicative agenda, to be used as a starting point for a conversation between client and consultant, depending on the organisation's specific situation and requirements. 1 Software business model What is the software business model? What options exist? Has the software business model been thoroughly reviewed to ensure its viability? This means fully understanding the market opportunity, the business environment and customer and end-user expectations. 2 Technology What are the technologies? How has the technology selection been validated considering the competitiveness, structure, and potential for future innovation? 3 UI and UX What is the UI and UX? How to best articulate this? Has the user interface and user experience been studied from both a subjective and objective view to give insight into customer behaviour? 4 Legal framework / commercial aspects Has the necessary legal framework or commercial aspects that may impact upon use or operation of the software been understood and risks identified and mitigated? 5 Software development What is the software development process? Are both the business management and development team's processes resilient in order to improve the company's capability and the maturity of the software? 6 Software quality What is quality? What are the metrics around software quality? What is the maturity level, based around a qualitative and quantitative assessment? 7 Intellectual property associated What IP should be considered when it comes to software? Does the company understand both the intellectual property risks and potential opportunities associated with this software? 8 Security What does software security mean in this context? How is it being addressed? 9 An holistic approach Review of roles and responsibilities to ensure appropriate management and protection

The work of a technical team is invariably challenging and often unpredictable. Definition of the work can be problematic, timescales can be hard to estimate and the right technical approach difficult to select. Staff involved in this type of work usually have very high levels of specialist knowledge in their field and have high expectations of those who lead them. In addition to the challenges of the work, the team leader often has to balance the need for professional excellence with financial and commercial considerations and to ensure that team goals are realistic by being an effective negotiator with other project and senior managers. These characteristics make technical team leadership a demanding and complex activity. This programme aims to help participants develop the skills needed to become an effective technical team leader. The objectives of this programme are to help participants: understand the significance of leadership skills and their impact on team performance review the key skills needed to be an effective, 'multi-dimensional' team leader and learn how to develop, adapt and apply them in practice learn how to identify the preferred leadership style for the context and organisational culture and how to develop personal style versatility understand the role of the project leader in building an effective team and the skills required to promote and sustain team performance gain a better understanding of the interpersonal skills needed to motivate individual team members and harness the full potential of the team DAY ONE 1 Technical teams and leadership What is a leader? How much can leadership be learned? The team environment and the impact of leadership skills The characteristics of high performance teams and their leaders Some useful models and theories of leadership explored Types of leadership; choosing how to use leadership power Evaluating personal leadership style; how to develop style flexibility 2 Essential skills for team leaders 3 key dimensions of effective leadership: inwards, outwards and upwards Developing and promoting a 'team vision': strategic thinking skills The vital role of communication skills and how to develop them Understanding others; emotional intelligence skills Being a visible leader; behavioural and influencing skills Building effective relationships; the importance of trust and respect DAY TWO 3 Leading inwards to build the team The role of leadership in developing team performance Understanding individuals in the team; recognising team role preferences Managing conflict and promoting positive team dynamics Setting standards, maintaining discipline and rewarding performance Harnessing team potential: building motivation within the team Promoting team learning; the team leader as coach / mentor 4 Leading outwards and upwards to support the team Negotiating realistic team goals; effective influencing skills Gaining empowerment and support from the key stakeholders Leading upwards: knowing when and how to take the initiative Building team credibility within the organisation; helping the team deliver Becoming an effective team player in leadership teams Building and maintaining rapport with influential stakeholders

Wouldn't sales be a 'walk in the park' without challenging customers? Why is it that some customers are so difficult to please, so quick to call 'foul' at the slightest blip and so mean with their gratitude after we've bent over backwards to accommodate them? Whether we are looking at prospective or existing customers, there is a toolkit for dealing with the most challenging of them. This course will help participants: Use broad open questions to give the customer a platform for their opinions or issues Improve listening skills to really understand what's behind the customer's challenging style Probe specific phrases to show listening and earn deeper disclosure Use silence to let challenging customers 'blow off steam' Understand the negative impact of certain phrases on a challenging customer Summarise effectively and reassure the customer of our understanding of their needs Recognise the 'behaviour cycle' and avoid emotional escalation Understand 'transactional analysis' and how to bring people from 'child' to 'adult' state Create loyalty in customers who are slow to give trust 1 What makes a customer 'challenging'? Why customers challenge us - understanding their drivers 'Wearing their shoes' - seeing things from their perspective Understanding our own personality style How to flex with a style that is different from our own Ways to quickly recognise a customer's style The benefits of flexing with a challenging customer's style 2 Practical exercise - forum theatre Participants take it in turns to deal with the trainer (who plays the role of the challenging customer) Observers stop the action when they hear or see something they deem wrong The participant in the seat gets a chance to use a suggested alternative line The participant who makes the suggestion has the chance to occupy the seat and deliver it themselves Frequent feedback from the trainer as to how the participant's words are making him feel Opportunities to rewind the action if an ill-advised line is suggested and delivered Flipchart for capturing what worked, what didn't work and why Mehrabian principle - the importance of body language and tone over words used 3 Questioning and listening skills How to use open questions to get the customer talking What questions to avoid and why The use of pauses and silence to reduce tension and build trust What listening is and what it isn't Question funnelling - how to earn deeper disclosure through probing The power of summary 4 Transactional analysis explained What is transactional analysis (TA)? Exploring the TA states and why people behave in that way under pressure How to bring challenging customers to 'adult' state to reduce tension How 'parent' or 'child' behaviours can be inadvertently triggered Understanding the 'behavioural cycle' and how to break it Mini-role play 'vignettes' to demonstrate real time impact of ill-chosen words 5 How to build trust with challenging customers Techniques for placating current challenging customers Methods that the participants have already used effectively - understanding why those methods worked and how other participants can model them Participants' experiences of trust having been lost - understanding why those experiences had that negative outcome How to 'go the extra mile' with challenging customers 6 Bringing a 'real' challenging customer to life Participants give the trainer a brief profile of a specific challenging customer of theirs 5-10 minute roleplay in which the trainer brings that individual to life Observing participants - without interrupting - make notes on what is and isn't working Trainer stops the action half-way through to give feedback on how he is feeling Participant goes back into the roleplay having recalibrated their approach based on feedback Observers give feedback on what did and didn't work Trainer comes out of character to explain the impact of the participant's words and behaviours 7 Wrap-up Key learnings from each participant Individual action planning - steps that can and will be implemented in the workplace

Read and discuss this witty, best-selling murder mystery - clever and compelling Highlights Join this book club and gain extra motivation to read in English 7 hours of live classes to help you develop fluent speaking in English Read this amusing book to develop your understanding of colloquial English Be corrected by an expert English teacher to remove errors and mistakes Practise and develop your English online in this 7 week English book club course using the Richard Osman's new series after The Thursday Murder Club, We Solve Murders. Each week you read some chapters, discuss them in class and improve specific areas of vocabulary or grammar while also examining literary aspects of the novel. Personalised feedback improves your grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation. The Book Club book This is the first in a new series for detective duo Steve and Amy Wheeler. Steve is happily retired and likes his routines: the pub quiz, sitting outside, his cat. His past was full of adventure, but now he likes a quiet life. His daughter-in-law Amy, however, loves adrenaline. She's a private security officer, protecting a world-famous author Rosie D’Antonio on a remote island. It should be a simple job, until there's a murder, a lot of money and someone trying to kill Amy. This thriller is filled with action, amusing lines and warmth. And you need to work out "whodunnit" - who committed the crime! 'The thing that shines through in Osman’s writing is that he really likes people and revels in all their foibles and eccentricities. All of which makes for a delightful read' THE OBSERVER Geoff says: "Richard Osman is the famous author of the best-selling Thursday Murder Club series. This new book has broken all records as the best-selling adult hardback fiction book in the UK. It is full of action, yet witty, with interesting characters, and full of British English idioms and colloquialisms - great for improving your knowledge of how English is actually spoken!"

Read and discuss this modern retelling of The Iliad by award winning writer Madeline Miller Highlights Join this book club and gain extra motivation to read in English 7 hours of live classes to help you develop fluent speaking in English Discuss this modern retelling and develop your cultural knowledge Be corrected by an expert English teacher to remove errors and mistakes Practise and develop your English online in this 7 week advanced English book club course reading and discussing the modern best-selling novel The Song of Achilles by award winning writer Madeline Miller. Each week you read some chapters, discuss them in class and improve specific areas of vocabulary or grammar while also examining literary aspects of the novel. Personalised feedback improves your grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation. The Book Club book A gripping tale of love, ambition and immortal fame. This book was the winner of the Orange Women's Prize for Fiction and has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. It retells the story of The Iliad for modern times. The young prince Patroclus is exiled to the court of King Peleus, and is befriended by his son, Achilles. As the young men learn of war and medicine, their bond deepens, in spite of Achilles's mother Thetis. But when news reaches them that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, Achilles must fulfill his destiny and go to war in far off Troy. Not knowing what will become of them Patroclus accompanies him, and the years that follow test everything they value. 'Captivating' DONNA TARTT 'I loved it' J K ROWLING 'Ravishingly vivid' EMMA DONOGHUE Geoff says: "Modern day retellings of the stories from the classical Greeks have become very popular over the last decade - and this is the book that started the trend!"

Read and discuss this novel of what it is to be human Highlights Join this book club and gain extra motivation to read in English 7 hours of live classes to help you develop fluent speaking in English Read this contemporary novel and discuss love, emotional intelligence and humanity Be corrected by an expert English teacher to remove errors and mistakes Practise and develop your English online in this course featuring Matt Haig's The Humans. Each week you read some chapters, discuss them in class and improve specific areas of vocabulary or grammar while also examining aspects of the novel. Personalised feedback improves your grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation. The Book Club book From the writer of The Midnight Library and How to Stop Time comes The Humans - a funny novel about alien abduction, mathematics, and what it is to be human. It combines hilarious moments with thought-provoking insights into how we interact. Maths professor Andrew Martin, is dead. His body is now taken over by an alien, who discovers that the professor wasn't very nice. The alien finds himself learning more about the professor, his family, and “the humans”. When he starts to feel for his own wife and son - who have no clue he’s not the real Andrew- the alien has a decision to make - complete his mission or abandon it and start a new life with the humans. Geoff says: "I laughed out loud reading this - but it also addresses serious themes. It shines a light on what it means to be human, and gaining emotional intelligence."

Read and discuss this beautiful story of friendship, love and truth set in London, Tuscany and Florence Highlights Join this book club and gain extra motivation to read in English 7 hours of live classes to help you develop fluent speaking in English Discuss this novel of beauty, love and art over 4 decades Be corrected by an expert English teacher to remove errors and mistakes Practise and develop your English online in this 7 week advanced English book club course reading and discussing Still Life by Sarah Winman. Each week you read some chapters, discuss them in class and improve specific areas of vocabulary or grammar while also examining literary aspects of the novel. Personalised feedback improves your grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation. The Book Club book In Italy in 1944 two strangers meet in a Tuscan villa. Ulysses Temper is a young British soldier, Evelyn Skinner a free-thinking independent-minded 64-year-old art historian, come to rescue paintings from the war and relive her memories. This chance meeting with Evelyn will transform Ulysses’ life – and everyone who knows him. ‘THE most beautiful book … it will stay with me a long time’ SARA COX, BBC TWO’S BETWEEN THE COVERS Geoff says: "This is a lovely novel, with references to the great writer EM Forster and his masterpiece "A Room With A View". Much loved by readers, the characters of this novel stay with you for a long time."

Read and discuss these two gripping stories of race, identity and sexuality Highlights Join this book club and gain extra motivation to read in English 7 hours of live classes to help you develop fluent speaking in English Read and discuss these important novels about race, identity and sexuality Be corrected by an expert English teacher to remove errors and mistakes Practise and develop your English online in this advanced course featuring Passing (1928) and Giovanni's Room (1956). Each week you read some chapters, discuss them in class and improve specific areas of vocabulary or grammar while also examining literary aspects of the novel. Personalised feedback improves your grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation. The Book Club books Passing by Nella Larsen: Clare Kendry "passes" as a white woman. She is married to a white man who is unaware of her African-American heritage. On meeting her childhood friend Irene, both women examine and reassess their marriages, confronting their past lies & fears for the future. Nella Larsen's intense, gripping story & insight into identity established her as a key author of America's Harlem Renaissance. Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin: David, a young American in 1950s Paris, plans to get married. However, while waiting for his fiancée to return from holiday, he meets Giovanni, a handsome Italian barman, starting a passionate affair. Tortured by his sexual identity, he has to decide who he is and who to spend his life with. 'Audacious... remarkable... elegant and courageous' Caryl Phillips 'Gorgeous, fearless, tempered by dark knowledge and pain ... the greatest American prose stylist of his generation' Colm Tóibín Geoff says: "These two short novels are both important contributions to literature by black writers. Passing (1929) established Nella Larson as one of the most important black female novelists in American history. Recently made into a Netflix film, Passing is the second and last of Larson's novels, and considered a classic work. She was a pioneer in writing about sexuality, race and the secret suffering of women. James Baldwin's powerful and controversial second novel is his most sustained treatment of sexuality, and a classic of gay literature."

Read and discuss this global best-selling satirical & entertaining thriller set in the publishing industry Highlights Join this book club and gain extra motivation to read in English 7 hours of live classes to help you develop fluent speaking in English Read this thriller set in the publishing industry to discuss questions of diversity, racism, and cultural appropriation Be corrected by an expert English teacher to remove errors and mistakes Practise and develop your English online in this 7 week English book club course using Yellowface by R.F. Kuang. Each week you read some chapters, discuss them in class and improve specific areas of vocabulary or grammar while also examining literary aspects of the novel. Personalised feedback improves your grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation. The Book Club book Author Athena Liu is a literary phenomenon while her friend June Hayward is a literally nobody, and is jealous. So when Athena dies in a freak accident, June sees nothing too wrong in stealing her unpublished work and publishing it herself under the name Juniper Song. When questions start to be asked, what will June do to protect her new-found success...? Yellowface raises interesting contemporary questions of diversity, racism, and cultural appropriation, while being gripping and highly readable. ‘Ingenious, astute, hugely entertaining’ David Nicholls ‘Hard to put down. Harder to forget’ Stephen King Geoff says: "It's funny that this book has been a publishing sensation - given that it satirizes the book publishing industry! It was Amazon book of the year, and the Fiction Book of the Year 2024 at the British Book Awards."