Complete VBA programming training course description This course helps you extend the capabilities of the entire Office suite using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA). Even if you have no programming experience, you'll be automating routine computing processes quickly using the simple, yet powerful VBA programming language. We start at the beginning to get you acquainted with VBA so you can start recording macros right away. You'll then build upon that foundation to utilize the full capabilities of the language in Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. What will you learn Record, write and run macros. Work with VBA Editor. Use the huge library of built-in functions. Create simple dialog boxes and complex forms. Customize Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access. Program the Office 2016 ribbon. Complete VBA programming training course details Who will benefit: Anyone looking to extend the capabilities of the entire Office suite using VBA. Prerequisites: None. Duration 5 days Complete VBA programming training course contents Macros and getting started in VBA VBA syntax, variables, constants, and enumerations, array variables, finding objects, methods, and properties. Working with VBA 1 VBA syntax, variables, constants, and enumerations, array variables, finding objects, methods, and properties. Decisions, loops and functions Built-in functions, creating your own functions, making decisions in your code, using loops to repeat actions. Using message boxes, input boxes, and dialog boxes Getting user input with message boxes and input boxes, creating simple custom dialog boxes, creating complex forms. Creating effective code Building modular code and using classes, debugging your code and handling errors, building well-behaved code, exploring VBA's security features. Programming the Office applications The Word object model and key objects, working with widely used objects in Word, the Excel object model and key objects, working with widely used objects in Excel, the PowerPoint object, model and key objects, working with shapes and running slide shows, the Outlook object model and key objects, working with events in Outlook, the Access object model and key objects, manipulating the data in an Access database via VBA, accessing one application from another application, programming the Office 2016 ribbon.
Complete C programming training course description A hands-on introduction to programming in the ANSI C programming language. The course initially moves at a fast pace in order to spend as much time as possible on the subject of pointers - the area which cause the most bugs in C programs. What will you learn Write ANSI C programs Use the C libraries Debug C programs Examine existing code and determine its function. Complete C programming training course details Who will benefit: Programmers wishing to learn C. Programmers wishing to learn C++ or Java. Prerequisites: None, although experience in another high level language would be useful. Duration 5 days Complete C programming training course contents Getting started The compilation process, comments, main(), statement blocks, printf(). C data types and operators char, int, float and double, qualifiers, arithmetic and assignment operators, precedence, Associativity. Basic I/O C libraries, stdin and stdout, getchar(), putchar(), printf() formatting. Flow control if else, dangling elses, else if, while and for loops. switch statements, the null statement, break, continue and gotos. Functions Function calls, arguments and return types, function declarations (prototypes), function definitions, scope of variables. The preprocessor Preprocessor actions, macros, #include. Libraries and their relationship with header files. Conditional compilation. More data types and operators Logical, bitwise and other operators, type conversion, casting, typedefs and access modifiers. Arrays Declaring and handling arrays, common gotchas, multidimensional arrays. Pointers What are pointers? Why they are so important, declaring and using pointers,The three uses of the *,pointer example - scanf, pointers as arguments. More pointers Golden rules of pointers and arrays, pointers to arrays, pointer arithmetic, arrays of pointers, multiple indirection. Character/string manipulation Arrays of characters, string definition, working with strings, String library. Program arguments argc and argv, example uses,char *argv[] versus char ** argv. Program structure and storage classes Globals (externals), multi source programs, the look of a C program. Structures Declaration, the . and - operators, unions and bitfields. Library functions File handling, fopen and fclose, reading from and writing to files, fseek().calloc() and malloc()
Securing Linux systems training course description This course teaches you everything you need to know to build a safe Linux environment. The first section handles cryptography and authentication with certificates, openssl, mod_ssl, DNSSEC and filesystem encryption. Then Host security and hardening is covered with intrusion detection, and also user management and authentication. Filesystem Access control is then covered. Finally network security is covered with network hardening, packet filtering and VPNs. What will you learn Secure Linux accounts. Secure Linux file systems. Secure Linux access through the network. Securing Linux systems training course details Who will benefit: Linux technical staff needing to secure their systems. Prerequisites: Linux system administration (LPIC-1) Duration 5 days Securing Linux systems training course contents Cryptography Certificates and Public Key Infrastructures X.509 certificates, lifecycle, fields and certificate extensions. Trust chains and PKI. openssl. Public and private keys. Certification authority. Manage server and client certificates. Revoke certificates and CAs. Encryption, signing and authentication SSL, TLS, protocol versions. Transport layer security threats, e.g. MITM. Apache HTTPD with mod_ssl for HTTPS service, including SNI and HSTS. HTTPD with mod_ssl to authenticate users using certificates. HTTPD with mod_ssl to provide OCSP stapling. Use OpenSSL for SSL/TLS client and server tests. Encrypted File Systems Block device and file system encryption. dm-crypt with LUKS to encrypt block devices. eCryptfs to encrypt file systems, including home directories and, PAM integration, plain dm-crypt and EncFS. DNS and cryptography DNSSEC and DANE. BIND as an authoritative name server serving DNSSEC secured zones. BIND as an recursive name server that performs DNSSEC validation, KSK, ZSK, Key Tag, Key generation, key storage, key management and key rollover, Maintenance and resigning of zones, Use DANE. TSIG. Host Security Host Hardening BIOS and boot loader (GRUB 2) security. Disable useless software and services, sysctl for security related kernel configuration, particularly ASLR, Exec-Shield and IP / ICMP configuration, Exec-Shield and IP / ICMP configuration, Limit resource usage. Work with chroot environments, Security advantages of virtualization. Host Intrusion Detection The Linux Audit system, chkrootkit, rkhunter, including updates, Linux Malware Detect, Automate host scans using cron, AIDE, including rule management, OpenSCAP. User Management and Authentication NSS and PAM, Enforce password policies. Lock accounts automatically after failed login attempts, SSSD, Configure NSS and PAM for use with SSSD, SSSD authentication against Active Directory, IPA, LDAP, Kerberos and local domains, Kerberos and local domains, Kerberos tickets. FreeIPA Installation and Samba Integration FreeIPA, architecture and components. Install and manage a FreeIPA server and domain, Active Directory replication and Kerberos cross-realm trusts, sudo, autofs, SSH and SELinux integration in FreeIPA. Access Control Discretionary Access Control File ownership and permissions, SUID, SGID. Access control lists, extended attributes and attribute classes. Mandatory Access Control TE, RBAC, MAC, DAC. SELinux, AppArmor and Smack. etwork File Systems NFSv4 security issues and improvements, NFSv4 server and clients, NFSv4 authentication mechanisms (LIPKEY, SPKM, Kerberos), NFSv4 pseudo file system, NFSv4 ACLs. CIFS clients, CIFS Unix Extensions, CIFS security modes (NTLM, Kerberos), mapping and handling of CIFS ACLs and SIDs in a Linux system. Network Security Network Hardening FreeRADIUS, nmap, scan methods. Wireshark, filters and statistics. Rogue router advertisements and DHCP messages. Network Intrusion Detection ntop, Cacti, bandwidth usage monitoring, Snort, rule management, OpenVAS, NASL. Packet Filtering Firewall architectures, DMZ, netfilter, iptables and ip6tables, standard modules, tests and targets. IPv4 and IPv6 packet filtering. Connection tracking, NAT. IP sets and netfilter rules, nftables and nft. ebtables. conntrackd Virtual Private Networks OpenVPN server and clients for both bridged and routed VPN networks. IPsec server and clients for routed VPN networks using IPsec-Tools / racoon. L2TP.
Programming in HTML5 with CSS course description This course provides an introduction to HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript. It is an entry point into both the Web application and Windows Store apps training paths. The course focuses on using HTML5 / CSS3 / JavaScript to implement programming logic, define and use variables, perform looping and branching, develop user interfaces, capture and validate user input, store data, and create well-structured application. What will you learn Create and style HTML5 pages. Use JavaScript. Style HTML5 pages by using CSS3. Use common HTML5 APLs in interactive Web applications. Create HTML5 Web pages that can adapt to different devices and form factors. Enhance the user experience by adding animations to the HTML5 page. Programming in HTML5 with CSS course details Who will benefit: Website developers. Prerequisites: HTML5 development fundamentals. Duration 5 days Programming in HTML5 with CSS course contents Overview of HTML and CSS Overview of HTML, Overview of CSS, Creating a Web Application by Using Visual Studio 2012. Hands on Exploring the Contoso Conference Application. Creating and Styling HTML5 Pages Creating an HTML5 Page, Styling an HTML5 Page. Hands on Creating and Styling HTML5 Pages. Introduction to JavaScript Overview of JavaScript Syntax, Programming the HTML DOM with JavaScript, Introduction to jQuery. Hands on Displaying Data and Handling Events by Using JavaScript. Creating Forms to Collect and Validate User Input Overview of Forms and Input Types, Validating User Input by Using HTML5 Attributes, Validating User Input by Using JavaScript. Hands on Creating a Form and Validating User Input. Communicating with a Remote Data Source Sending and Receiving Data by Using XMLHTTPRequest, Sending and Receiving Data by Using jQuery AJAX operations. Hands on Communicating with a Remote Data Source. Styling HTML5 by Using CSS3 Styling Text, Styling Block Elements, CSS3 Selectors, Enhancing Graphical Effects by Using CSS3. Hands on Styling Text and Block Elements using CSS3. Creating Objects and Methods by Using JavaScript Writing Well-Structured JavaScript, Creating Custom Objects, Extending Objects. Hands on Refining Code for Maintainability and Extensibility. Creating Interactive Pages using HTML5 APIs Interacting with Files, Incorporating Multimedia, Reacting to Browser Location and Context, Debugging and Profiling a Web Application. Hands on Creating Interactive Pages by Using HTML5 APIs. Adding Offline Support to Web Applications Reading and Writing Data Locally, Adding Offline Support by Using the Application Cache. Hands on Adding Offline Support to a Web Application. Implementing an Adaptive User Interface Supporting Multiple Form Factors, Creating an Adaptive User Interface. Hands on Implementing an Adaptive User Interface. Creating Advanced Graphics Creating Interactive Graphics by Using Scalable Vector Graphics, Programmatically Drawing Graphics by Using a Canvas. Hands on Creating Advanced Graphics. Animating the User Interface Applying CSS Transitions, Transforming Elements, Applying CSS Key-frame Animations. Hands on Animating User Interface Elements. Web Sockets for Real-Time Communications Introduction to Web Sockets, Sending and Receiving Data by Using Web Sockets. Hands on Implementing Real-Time Communications by Using Web Sockets. Creating a Web Worker Process Introduction to Web Workers, Performing Asynchronous Processing by Using a Web Worker. Hands on Creating a Web Worker Process.
Java training course description A comprehensive introduction of the Java language and environment. It is important to note that the course will assume that the delegates are already familiar with the C language as this enables more advanced features of the Java language to be covered in the course. The course will also give an overview of areas related to programming in Java. What will you learn Describe the Java architecture. Write Java applets and applications. Debug Java programs. Examine existing code and determine its function. Use multimedia extensions, the awt, multithreading, exceptions within Java Java training course details Who will benefit: Those wishing to program in Java. Prerequisites: Complete C programming Duration 5 days Java training course contents Review of UNIX fundamentals What is Java? What Java is, history of Java, reasons for success. The Java Virtual Machine, Bytecodes, getting up and running with Java, Java resources. Simple Java applications. C features in Java Java data structures, Java flow control, differences from C, arrays, strings and packages. OO features in Java Java classes and objects, inheritance, overloading, packages. Differences from C++. Java applets Applications vs. applets, HTML, the applet tag, applet methods, life cycle, testing and debugging. Multimedia applets Images, sounds, fonts, colours and animation. Java products The JDK in detail, other development environments. Javabeans and JDBC overviews. Abstract Window Toolkit JFC and Swing versus AWT. Event handling (JDK 1.1), GUIs, panels, buttons, lists, scrollbars, text areas, frames⦠Exception handling and multithreading Handling exceptions. Starting, pausing, stopping threads, producers, consumers, monitoring. More standard classes Java file I/O, Streams, The system class. The networking model, java.net classes. Security and Java Types of attack, the security manager, craplets, securing the network. Integrating legacy code with Java
Perl training course description A hands on introduction to programming in Perl. What will you learn Write Perl programs. Use Perl modules. Debug Perl programs. Examine existing code and determine its function. Perl training course details Who will benefit: Anyone wishing to learn Perl. Prerequisites: None although experience in another high level language would be useful. Duration 5 days Perl training course contents Introduction to Perl What is Perl? When to use Perl, downloading Perl, installing Perl, documentation, perldoc, running Perl, the Perl environment. Perl under UNIX, Perl under Windows. "Hello world". Variables Scalars, data types, $_, strings and numbers, assignment, constants, strict, scope, STDIN. Operators Number operators, string operators, precedence and associativity, converting numbers and strings, shortcut operators. Flow control Blocks, if, else, elseif, unless, foreach, while, for do, until. Regular expressions What are regular expressions? Pattern matching, Perl as a filter, file editing. Strings Comparing strings, concatenating, substrings, chomp, chop, formatting, string manipulation. Subroutines Comparing strings, concatenating, substrings, chomp, chop, formatting, string manipulation. Arrays and hashes Working with arrays, element access, push(), pop(), shift(), unshift(), <STDIN> as an array, associative arrays, hashes of arrays, hash references, arrays of hashes, hashes of hashes. Files Simple file handling, open, close, <FILEHANDLE>, <>, file tests, directory access, directory handles, database access, packing and packing binary data. I/O STDIN, STDOUT and STDERR, Command line arguments,@ARGV. Perl debugging The built in debugger, running the debugger, debugger commands, graphical debuggers. Script syntax errors, single stepping, breakpoints, watches. Packages and modules CPAN, Finding modules, installing modules, using modules, scope. Report formatting Formats, defining a format, invoking a format, field holders. Process management System interaction, system(), exec(), signals. Security issues.
About this Virtual Instructor Led Training (VILT) Electrification of the transportation sector will impact the power system in several ways. Besides the additional load, local impact on the grid needs to be managed by the grid operators. Simultaneously charging of many electric vehicles (EVs) might exceed the limits in specific locations. On the other hand, EVs can provide flexibility and other ancillary services that will help grid operators. This 3 half-day VILT course will provide a complete overview of integrating electric vehicles (EVs) into the power grid. It will cover the whole value chain from grid operations to the car battery. This includes the control room, possible grid reinforcement, demand side management and power electronics. This course will demonstrate the impact on the grid and solutions for a safe & cost-effective grid plan and operation, with examples of successful integration of EVs. The course will also provide vital knowledge about technology used for EVs such as power electronics, demand side management, communication and batteries. In this context, the focus will be on power electronics as it has the highest impact on the grid. The grid planning tool, pandapower, is introduced as an open source tool for power system modelling. The set-up of the training course allows for discussion and questions. Questions can be formulated by the participants upfront or during the training. This course is delivered in partnership with Fraunhofer IEE. Training Objectives At the end of this course, the participants will: Understand the charging options for EVs and its impact on the grid and batteries Identify system services for EVs with regards to voltage quality at the point of common coupling Discover what are the 'grid friendly' and grid supporting functions in EVs Uncover the different applications, standards and data researched on EVs Examine the application of a grid planning tool (pandapower) for power system modelling Be able to develop code snippets with pandapower Apply and execute a code example for power system modelling with pandapower Target Audience EV and grid project developers and administrators Power grid operators and planners EPC organisations involved in grid development EV/ battery manufacturers and designers EV transport planners and designers Government regulators and policy makers Training Methods The VILT will be delivered online in 3 half-day sessions comprising 4 hours per day, with 2 x 10 minutes breaks per day, including time for lectures, discussion, quizzes and short interactive exercises. Additionally, some self-study will be requested. Participants are invited but not obliged to bring a short presentation (10 mins max) on a practical problem they encountered in their work. This will then be explained and discussed during the VILT. A short test or quiz will be held at the end of every session/day. Trainer Our first course expert is Head of Department Converters and Electrical Drive Systems at Fraunhofer IEE and Professor for Electromobility and Electrical Infrastructure at Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences. He received his engineering degree in automation in 2008 by the THM Technische Hochschule Mittelhessen (FH Giessen-Friedberg). Afterwards he studied power engineering at University of Kassel and received his diploma certificate in 2010. In 2016 he received the Ph.D. (Dr.-Ing.) from the University of Hannover. The title of his dissertation is Optimized multifunctional bi-directional charger for electric vehicles. He has been a researcher at the Fraunhofer IEE in Kassel since 2010 and deals with power converters for electric vehicles, photovoltaics and wind energy. His current research interests include the bidirectional inductive power transfer, battery charger and inverter as well as new power electronic components such as SiC MOSFETs and chokes. Additionally, our key expert is Chairman of the IEEE Joint IAS/PELS/IES German Chapter and a member of the International Scientific Committee of the EPE Association. Our second course expert is deputy head of energy storage department at Fraunhofer IEE. Prior to this he was the Director of Grid Integration department at SMA Solar Technology AG, one of the world's largest manufacturers of PV power converters. Before joining SMA, our course expert was manager of the Front Office System Planning at Amprion GmbH (formerly RWE TSO), one of the four German transmission system operators. He holds a degree of electrical engineering of the University of Kassel, Germany. In 2003 he finished his Ph.D. (Dr.-Ing.) on the topic of wind power forecasting at the 'Institute of Solar Energy Supply Technology' (now Fraunhofer IEE) in Kassel. In 2004 he started his career at RWE TSO with main focus on wind power integration and congestion management. Our course expert is chairman of the IEC SC 8A 'Grid Integration of Large-capacity Renewable Energy (RE) Generation' and has published several papers about grid integration of renewable energy source and forecasting systems on books, magazines, international conferences and workshops. Our third course expert is Research Associate at Fraunhofer IEE. He is actively working on different projects related to the integration of electric vehicle charging into the electric distribution grid. The focus of this work concerns time series based simulations for grid planning and operation in order to investigate the effect of a future rollout of electric vehicles and charging infrastructure on economics e.g. costs for grid reinforcement. He completed his master degree (MSc.) in Business Administration and Engineering: Electrical Power Engineering at RWTH Aachen University, Germany. Our trainers are experts from Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology (Fraunhofer, IEE), Germany. The Fraunhofer IEE researches for the national and international transformation of energy supply systems POST TRAINING COACHING SUPPORT (OPTIONAL) To further optimise your learning experience from our courses, we also offer individualized 'One to One' coaching support for 2 hours post training. We can help improve your competence in your chosen area of interest, based on your learning needs and available hours. This is a great opportunity to improve your capability and confidence in a particular area of expertise. It will be delivered over a secure video conference call by one of our senior trainers. They will work with you to create a tailor-made coaching program that will help you achieve your goals faster. Request for further information about post training coaching support and fees applicable for this. Accreditions And Affliations
Blue CSCS Card Level 2 NVQ Diploma in Construction Operations and Civil Engineering Services - Highways Maintenance Induction - As soon as you register you will be given a dedicated assessor. They will arrange an induction and together with your assessor, you will get to decide on the pathway which best proves your competency. The induction is used to plan out how you will gather the relevant evidence to complete the course. During the course - The assessor will work with you to build a portfolio of evidence that allows you to showcase your knowledge, skills and experience. The assessor will also regularly review and provide you with feedback. This will allow you to keep on track to progress quickly. You will be assessed through various methods such as observations, written questions, evidence generated from the workplace, professional discussion, and witness testimonials. On completion - Once all feedback has been agreed, the Internal Quality Assurer will review your portfolio and in agreement with your assessor the certificate will be applied for. To download our PDF for this course then please click here.
Blue CSCS Card Level 2 NVQ Diploma in Construction Operations and Civil Engineering Services Construction Operations (Groundworks) Induction - As soon as you register you will be given a dedicated assessor. They will arrange an induction and together with your assessor, you will get to decide on the pathway which best proves your competency. The induction is used to plan out how you will gather the relevant evidence to complete the course. During the course - The assessor will work with you to build a portfolio of evidence that allows you to showcase your knowledge, skills and experience. The assessor will also regularly review and provide you with feedback. This will allow you to keep on track to progress quickly. You will be assessed through various methods such as observations, written questions, evidence generated from the workplace, professional discussion, and witness testimonials. On completion - Once all feedback has been agreed, the Internal Quality Assurer will review your portfolio and in agreement with your assessor the certificate will be applied for. To download our PDF for this course then please click here.
Our Team Building Programmes are 'simply excellent' (quote from Unilever). They always deliver much greater energy' motivation and efficiently accelerates to a galvanised, integrated team for their Manager/Team Leader. They're great fun and very commercially orientated - the best of both key elements to a successful and long-lasting high performance team. A successful company is always made up of successful teams. Teams that can work autonomously with a clearly defined set of goals, roles, vision, responsibility and culture will always reach for and achieve far greater success than a team that works just as a group of individuals. Our team building solutions are individually built and geared towards teams at any level within an organisation, providing an independent and objective perspective to promote a common purpose such as the creation of a 'high performance team'. Out With The Old Traditionally, team building events have been restricted to certain levels of management where they head off site for a bit of archery, quad biking and paintballing or something along those lines. Then over some coffee and cocktails, business plans and more efficient ways to work are casually discussed. Whilst being out having fun instead of being at work may improve an individual person's mood, the effect will only be short-term, and will not go far in creating permanent and cohesive teams who are able to overcome challenges together and drive the business forward when back in the workplace. In With The New Today's business thinking is more strategic and certainly has to look for returns on the investment. That is why Dickson Training Ltd's team building programmes are bespoke and built to your requirements through research, understanding your business and, most importantly, what results and achievements you are looking to get out of the programme. Once "what success looks like" has been established, we create tasks and activities that will test your leadership, problem solving, communication and team work skills. When the tasks have been completed, the learning - both practical and theory - is debriefed to the group as well as how it will translate back in your business. Not only are our events great fun, but they provide participants with learning points they can act upon to improve or enhance the working practices/environment. Team Building That Gets Results We have a highly innovative team who design team builds to suit all budgets and time or space restrictions. Large or small, we will develop the perfect event to meet your commercial objectives, keeping in line with your values and company culture. More recently we have combined team galvanising events with ways to engage the participants with and support their local communities. This solution has proved extremely popular with our clients and we are continuing to develop more and more programmes doing exactly this. " Phil did everything in a very professional and focused manner, without losing sight of the overall aims or having 'fun'. When I moved to Airbus UK and subsequently European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company (EADS), I had no hesitation in recommending Phil and the team to deliver the required training and team events. Without doubt Phil and his team are excellent providers of training, to suit even bespoke requirements, and I would not hesitate in recommending the team to any business in the future. " Glenn Brown, Systems & Expertise Manager, Airbus Personnel Service Augmented Skills – an Essay by Phil Dickson All of you, who are reading this, and all the people you meet and work with will have – ‘Augmented Skills’. So – if you are an IT Engineer or a Pharmacist; perhaps you are, or know, a Departmental Leader and you work with a Logistics Project Manager; these roles will demand core skills, whether they be technical know-how or qualifications in the discipline. But to be that bit better; more reliable; more effective & productive and therefore more valuable and, frankly, marketable – capitalizing on ‘Augment Skills’ comes into play. The I T Engineer who was a Chess Champion at Uni, which would indicate that they possess some key ‘Augmented skills’ including how they plan 3 steps ahead and are always prepared for the unexpected. The Pharmacist, who is a keen sportsperson in their private life, will likely be tenacious, team-orientated and disciplined – again these are superb qualities to have in this – or any – role. Your colleagues, as well as yourself, will have ‘Augmented Skills’ that will be an asset if only they are explored and applied to their role and indeed, career. Everyone has their own 'Super-power' If they love gardening, they are probably strategic, patient and inclined to research; if they cook or bake, they are usually well organized and comfortable with multi-tasking. A big reader will tend to be considered and possess good critical thinking faculties, and an amateur mechanic or keen DIY person will often be practical, resourceful and very determined. I have observed that many new Parents discover they have ‘Augmented Skills’ they didn’t know they had... such as getting order out of chaos and displaying industrial amounts of patience and good grace when they really do not feel like it. They very often become far more compassionate and empathetic. Most people have their very own ‘Superpower’. Invite your team members to offer their ‘Augmented Skills’ to your work-place – and just watch as it elevates the motivation levels and improves results. It’ll be very rewarding for all concerned – and for meeting the Team’s objectives, to encourage the person who is a talented artist to be a sounding board on some of the marketing imagery and layouts; for the team member who is great at Maths or resolving crosswords to be asked for their input to solving a problem that is causing logistical or operational headaches. Never exploit a Team member’s unique special skills at their expense I would like to stress, however, that it must never be an area where a team member gets exploited by harvesting their unique special skills to coerce them into taking on greater responsibilities and tasks without providing them with the commensurate salary and status. To do so would be immoral and, ultimately, counter-productive as it would lead to resentment and disenfranchisement. This is about encouraging people’s capability and inviting their input to boost confidence and enhance the team’s capability. Often, we need to be more than what our Job Description says It is also important to highlight that whatever a person’s role or function is – they will definitely need to have additional capabilities to be effective. The best example of this is when we designed and delivered a range of ‘Advanced Customer Care skills’ training sessions for the Met Office a few years ago…we met so many remarkably super-bright Meteorologists, many of whom were having to make significant adjustments to answering questions from Customers that seemed to be illogical and often, obtuse. It wasn’t enough for these Meteorologists to be highly skilled at interpreting data and identifying patterns – they needed ‘Augmented skills’ to make that information accessible to members of the public (and Council workers and Air Traffic controllers and Shipping agents) and many other people, as to what that particular weather system was going to be like in their area and at what time. They have to know how to ‘de-jargonise’ the material and provide succinct, clear, and yet temperate, descriptions without ever appearing exasperated, impatient or judgmental in response to sometimes quite silly questions. For a highly trained scientist – that can be counter-intuitive. Being Philosophical... and a wee bit pretentious At the risk of being a little Philosophical (and probably a wee bit pretentious) – in my own role of Trainer – my core skills have to include – being a very good communicator, an active listener and have innovative and engaging ways to convert an idea, or a model, into practical application that my Delegates and Clients gain tangible benefits from. This is how it applies to me... I really enjoy composing short, light classical-style piano pieces. Now, to do this well, you need to be able to find a transition from one chord or melody to a different theme or key. It has to be worked out very carefully to have incremental transitions and pleasant-sounding developments as the piece unfolds. I think I have become better at this as I have honed my skills as a composer. But I have realized that these very same skills have ‘Augmented’ my ability to help a Manager, or a Team, move from a state of conflict; tension; disfunction; disenfranchisement; lack of confidence to a place that is more harmonious with far greater productivity. The very same process of careful listening, considering options, taking well-considered steps, having a creative, sometimes brave, move towards a resolution are at play in both Training and Piano Compositions! Scheduled Courses Unfortunately this course is not one that is currently scheduled as an open course, and is only available on an in-house basis. Please contact us for more information.