If you want to be better at making to-do lists or managing time better this is NOT for you! The time challenges we all face at work need to be addressed with a different approach. This 'bite-size' session takes a fresh approach to how we deal with time personally and challenges the belief that we don't always have enough time. The workshop will be participative, interactive, and will cover the personal relationship we have with time and how this impacts on dealing with challenges and ever-changing priorities on a daily basis at work. The workshop will give you some practical tools and ideas on dealing with your thieves of time from a different perspective, including interruptions and emails. To enable participants to organise and use their time effectively, using strategies to help with both 'thinking' and 'doing' that are fit for purpose. This workshop will enable you to: Recognise the barriers to effective time management and set goals to overcome them and get things done Understand how their mindset affects how they use time and use better ways to deal with the inbuilt patterns of behaviour this produces when at work Plan for tasks and projects in a productive way Use some new tools and techniques to tackle time thieves, including email and interruptions Review and evaluate their learning and have an action plan to take back to work 1 Welcome, introductions and objectives Exploring your relationship with time and how you focus your mind on daily work pressures in relation to time Past, present and future - where do you focus your energy at work? Time thieves - exploring the results of the pre-workshop questionnaire and learning strategies to deal with the roots of your time thieves 2 Personal strategies and tools: having a new mindset Emails, interruptions and curve balls Review and evaluation of learning Action-planning
This one-day workshop is intended for participants who have a basic understanding of Outlook but who want to know how to use its advanced features to manage their email communications, calendar events, contact information and other communication tasks. This course will help participants: Gain confidence using Outlook and its advanced features Organise and prioritise email messages Archive messages for safe-keeping Use rules to process received or sent messages automatically Manage scheduled meetings with others Give others permission to view and manage their folders and items Use contacts and commands to find out more about a person or company Prioritise work-flow using tasks and assigning tasks to others 1 Email messages Combining multiple clicks with quick steps Following up flag options Saving multiple attachments Attaching a folder of files Recalling and replacing a message Categorising messages with conditional formatting 2 Message options Adding options to messages Marking a message as private Receiving quick responses with voting buttons Directing replies to specific users Delaying sent messages Inserting links in messages 3 Stay organised with rules Using rules to automate message flow Moving messages with rules Using the rules wizard Setting up rules with conditions Using rules that work whilst you are away 4 Message clean-up Using conversation clean-up Using mailbox clean-up Moving messages to the archive folder Archiving folder properties Auto-archiving properties 5 Managing calendars Creating calendar groups Sharing calendars with permissions Setting up working days and times Managing time zones Categorise appointments with conditional formatting Publishing a calendar 6 Schedule meetings Scheduling a meeting Managing meeting responses Proposing new meeting times Adding attendees to a meeting Viewing multiple appointments 7 Using contacts Merging contacts to letters Merging contacts to labels Mail merging contacts in Word Exporting contacts to Excel 8 Managing tasks Organising your workload with tasks Categorising tasks Assigning tasks to others Sending a task status report Allocating time for tasks Regenerating a new task Viewing your tasks in the calendar 9 Adding message items Adding calendars to messages Adding business cards to messages 10 Email accounts Adding multiple user accounts Adding account permissions
This one-day introduction workshop is intended for users who need to get to grips with the essentials of Microsoft Outlook. It will provide you with the basic skills you need to effectively start using Outlook to manage your emails, calendar, contacts, tasks and notes. This course will help participants: Send messages with added email options applied Quickly file messages away for safe keeping Manage messages and attachments Organise calendar meetings and check other people's schedules Respond to a meeting request Create a contacts list Manage daily tasks Use reading and folder panes Create and manage folders Use auto reply Use notes Utilise Outlook's printing functionality 1 Getting started Using the reading pane Using the folder pane Changing inbox views Managing the to-do bar 2 Emailing messages Replying to and forwarding messages Adding message options Attaching files to an email message Opening and saving attachments 3 Outlook folders Creating and managing folders Moving messages into folders Adding folders to favourites Using search folder Always moving messages in conversation Automatically move messages with rules 4 Managing messages Using instant search Finding messages by criteria Grouping and sorting messages Categorising messages Adding message follow up flags Filtering messages with the people pane 5 Using auto reply Replying to messages whilst you are away Managing auto reply settings Applying rules to auto reply 6 Outlook calendars Adding and editing appointments Adding calendar reminders Moving and copying appointments Creating all day events Recurring appointments Sharing your calendar Opening another user's calendar 7 Planning a meeting Arranging meetings Inviting attendees to meetings Responding to meeting invites 8 Outlook contacts Creating and editing a contact Saving emails as contacts Finding contacts Sending messages to contacts Creating contact groups 9 Adding tasks Creating and editing tasks Completing tasks Assigning a task to another user Responding to a task request 10 Notes Creating and editing tasks Emailing notes Sticking notes on your desktop 11 Printing Printing messages Printing calendars Printing contacts
This one-day workshop is designed to give participants an understanding of the fundamentals of Microsoft Word and its commands, with quick ways to enter text, control formatting and edit paragraphs. This course will help participants: Create, manage and save documents, files and folders Create paragraph lists, bulleted and numbered paragraphs Edit, modify and format paragraphs Create and format tables Use shortcuts to navigate documents Format the layout of documents Manage page headers and footers Insert and managing pictures and diagrams within a document Learn time saving tips and tricks to obtain a professional finish to documents Use printing options 1 Creating documents Getting help Creating and saving documents Accessing recently used documents Managing files and folders 2 Entering and editing text Inserting and editing paragraph text Cutting, copying and pasting text Using tool tips to manage content Applying and removing text formatting Correcting spelling and grammar 3 Creating paragraph lists Creating bulleted paragraphs Creating numbered paragraphs Managing bulleted and numbered lists 4 Modifying paragraphs Changing paragraph alignment Indenting a paragraph Adding borders and shading to paragraphs Formatting paragraphs using styles 5 Navigating documents Using shortcuts for navigating documents Using 'Go To' to navigate documents Finding and replacing text Changing to read view 6 Document layout Inserting page breaks Changing page orientation Adjusting page margins Adding borders to pages 7 Page headers and footers Inserting page headers and footers Using header and footer commands Inserting page numbers Using different first page 8 Inserting pictures and diagrams Inserting pictures from your computer Inserting online pictures Flowing text around a picture Changing a picture Inserting SmartArt diagrams Entering text into SmartArt 9 Inserting tables Using tabs to create tables Resizing and repositioning tables Inserting and deleting rows and columns Using a table's commands Changing a tables text direction Formatting tables 10 Printing documents Previewing and printing documents Using the printing tools Printing parts of a document
This one-day workshop is designed to build upon skills already acquired using Microsoft Word, whether participants are self-taught or have previously attended a course. It gives participants a good understanding of managing different types of paragraph indents, and managing automated numbered paragraph lists. This course will help participants: Create and manage the layout of paragraphs Create and manage multi-level numbered paragraphs Effectively insert, use and manage section breaks Create and manage columns Find, create and apply styles Create and update a table of contents from styles Work with styles to manage formatting Work with sums in tables and use table headings Input and edit text using AutoText Work with SmartArt graphics Link to other files using paste special 1 Managing paragraph layout Controlling paragraph layouts with indents Creating and managing paragraph hanging indents 2 Numbering paragraphs Creating a new multi-level numbered paragraph Managing existing multi-level numbered paragraphs 3 Inserting columns Creating columns from existing paragraphs Setting up columns Managing columns 4 Document section breaks Controlling document layout using section breaks Managing page orientation using section breaks Managing page numbering using section breaks 5 Using styles Applying quick styles Finding existing styles Creating and saving styles Modifying styles Creating a table of contents from styles Updating a table of contents 6 Using quick parts Saving content to quick parts Modifying saved quick parts Inserting content using AutoText Editing AutoText entries Inputting text using AutoCorrect 7 Advanced table features Sorting table columns Running sums in tables Repeating table headings at top of page Importing Excel content in tables Using table properties 8 Creating a mail merge Creating letters, labels and emails Merging addresses from external files Using Outlook's address book to merge Merging to email 9 SmartArt graphic Visually communicate content with SmartArt Choosing a SmartArt graphic Inputting into SmartArt Modifying and formatting SmartArt graphics 10 Linking to other files Linking to files using paste special Linking an Excel chart to a document Managing linked content from Word
This one-day workshop will give you a better understanding of the components and operations of an Access database. It is designed to build on a user's existing skills and includes useful action queries to allow greater manipulation of a database. This workshop will help participants: Ensure the integrity of their databases Manage field properties Use the query functions effectively Save time with the query expression builder Create different types of query more quickly Design better forms Link expressions in forms Create better and more useful reports Import and export tables more easily 1 Table relationship integrity Identifying relationships Identifying criteria for data integrity Applying referential integrity Managing relationship join types 2 Table field properties Field properties overview Using input mask field Using default value fields Using field validation rules 3 Query functions Running aggregate function calculations Running sum, average, count, max and min functions Grouping calculated data 4 Query calculations Using query operators and expressions Adding calculated fields to a query Using the query expression builder 5 Action queries Creating make table queries Creating append queries Creating update queries Creating delete queries 6 Designing forms Adding form controls Aligning and arranging form controls Adding pictures and labels to forms Adding new fields to a form Controlling tab order Adding command buttons Adding a combo box control Formatting data using conditional formatting 7 Form expressions (calculations) Using the form expression builder Working with a property sheet within a form Linking expressions within a form 8 Working with reports Creating reports with the report wizard Inserting report fields Formatting fields Inserting report headers and footers Working with a property sheet within a report 9 Grouped reports Creating groups with the report wizard Sorting grouped data Grouping alphabetically Grouping on date intervals Creating sub reports Adding calculations to groups 10 Importing and exporting tables Importing tables into Access Exporting tables from Access Importing and linking data in Access
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.
There is a lot to learn in Power BI, this course takes a comprehensive look at the fundamentals of analysing data and includes a balanced look at the four main components that make up Power BI Desktop: Report view, Data view, Model view, and the Power Query Editor. It also demonstrates how to utilise the online Power BI service. It looks at authoring tools that enable you to connect to and transform data from a variety of sources, allowing you to produce detailed reports through a range of visualisations, in an interactive and dynamic way. It also includes a detailed look at formulas by writing both M functions in Power Query, and DAX functions in Desktop view. This knowledge will allow you to take your reports to the next level. The aim of this course is to provide a complete introduction to understanding the Power BI analysis process, by working hands-on with examples that will equip you with the necessary skills to start applying your learning straight away. 1 Getting Started The Power BI ecosystem Opening Power BI Desktop Power BI's four views Introduction to Dashboards 2 Importing Files Importing data sources Importing an Excel file Importing a CSV file Importing a database Connect to an SQL Server Database Import vs. Direct Query Importing from the web Importing a folder of files Managing file connections 3 Shape Data in the Query Editor The process of shaping data Managing data types Keeping and removing rows Add a custom column Appending tables together Hiding queries in reports Fixing error issues Basic maths operations 4 The Data Model Table relationships Relationship properties 5 Merge Queries Table join kinds Merging tables 6 Inserting Dashboard Visuals Things to keep in mind Inserting maps Formatting Maps Inserting charts Formatting Charts Inserting a tree map Inserting a table, matrix, and card Controlling number formats About report themes Highlighting key points Filter reports with slicers Sync slicers across dashboards Custom web visuals 7 Publish and share Reports Publishing to Power BI service Editing online reports Pinning visuals to a dashboard What is Q&A? Sharing dashboards Exporting reports to PowerPoint Exporting reports as PDF files 8 The Power Query Editor Fill data up and down Split column by delimiter Add a conditional column More custom columns Merging columns 9 The M Functions Inserting text functions Insert an IF function Create a query group 10 Pivoting Tables Pivot a table Pivot and append tables Pivot but don't aggregate Unpivot tables Append mismatched headers 11 Data Modelling Expanded Understanding relationships Mark a date table 12 DAX New Columns New columns and measures New column calculations Insert a SWITCH function 13 Introduction to DAX Measures Common measure functions Insert a SUM function Insert a COUNTROWS function Insert a DISTINCTCOUNT function Insert a DIVIDE function DAX rules 14 The CALCULATE Measure The syntax of CALCULATE Insert a CALCULATE function Control field summarisation Things of note 15 The SUMX measure X iterator functions Anatomy of SUMX Insert a SUMX function When to use X functions 16 Time Intelligence Measures Importance of a calendar table Insert a TOTALYTD function Change financial year end date Comparing historical data Insert a DATEADD function 17 Hierarchies and Groups Mine data using hierarchies Compare data in groups
Power BI is a powerful data visualisation program that allows businesses to monitor data, analyse trends, and make decisions. This course is designed to provide a solid understanding of the reporting side of Power BI, the dashboards, where administrators, and end users can interact with dynamic visuals that communicates information. This course focuses entirely on the creation and design of visualisations in dashboards, including a range of chart types, engaging maps, and different types of tables. Designing dashboards with KPI's (key performance indicators), heatmaps, flowcharts, sparklines, and compare multiple variables with trendlines. This one-day programme focuses entirely on creating dashboards, by using the many visualisation tools available in Power BI. You will learn to build dynamic, user-friendly interfaces in both Power BI Desktop and Power BI Service. 1 Introduction Power BI ecosystem Things to keep in mind Selecting dashboard colours Importing visuals into Power BI Data sources for your analysis Joining tables in Power BI 2 Working with data Utilising a report theme Table visuals Matrix visuals Drilling into hierarchies Applying static filters Group numbers with lists Group numbers with bins 3 Creating visuals Heatmaps in Power BI Visualising time-intelligence trends Ranking categorical totals Comparing proportions View trends with sparklines 4 Comparing variables Insert key performance indicators (KPI) Visualising trendlines as KPI Forecasting with trendlines Visualising flows with Sankey diagrams Creating a scatter plot 5 Mapping options Map visuals Using a filled map Mapping with latitude and longitude Mapping with ArcGIS or ESRI 6 Creating dashboards High-level dashboard Migration analysis dashboard Adding slicers for filtering Promote interaction with nudge prompts Searching the dashboard with a slicer Creating dynamic labels Highlighting key points on the dashboard Customised visualisation tooltips Syncing slicers across pages 7 Sharing dashboards Setting up and formatting phone views Exporting data Creating PDF files Uploading to the cloud Share dashboards in SharePoint online
This course is designed for those already using Power BI Desktop and are ready to work with more comprehensive elements of analysing and reporting in Power BI. The course maintains a balanced look at data analysis including the Power Query Editor, with a deep dive into writing DAX formulas, and enhanced dashboard visualisations. The aim of this course is to provide a more complete understanding of the whole Power BI analytics process, by working with business examples that will equip you with the necessary skills to output comprehensive reports and explore Power BI's analytical capabilities in more depth. 1 The Query Editor Grouping rows in a table Split row by delimiter Add days to determine deadlines The query editor 2 Fuzzy Matching Joins Matching inconsistencies by percentage Matching with transformation table 3 The Query Editor M Functions Adding custom columns Creating an IF function Nested AND logics in an IF function 4 DAX New Columns Functions Including TRUE with SWITCH Using multiple conditions The FIND DAX function The IF DAX function Logical functions IF, AND, OR 5 Editing DAX Measures Making DAX easier to read Add comments to a measure Using quick measures 6 The Anatomy of CALCULATE Understanding CALCULATE filters Add context to CALCULATE with FILTER Using CALCULATE with a threshold 7 The ALL Measure Anatomy of ALL Create an ALL measure Using ALL as a filter Use ALL for percentages 8 DAX Iterators Anatomy of iterators A closer look at SUMX Using RELATED with SUMX Create a RANKX RANKX with ALL 9 Date and Time Functions Overview of functions Create a DATEDIFF function 10 Time Intelligent Measures Compare historical monthly data Create a DATEADD measure Creating cumulative totals Creating cumulative measures Visualising cumulative totals 11 Visualisations In-Depth Utilising report themes Applying static filters Group data using lists Group numbers using bins Creating heatmaps Comparing proportions View trends with sparklines 12 Comparing Variables Visualising trendlines as KPI Forecasting with trendlines Creating a scatter plot Creating dynamic labels Customised visualisation tooltips Export reports to SharePoint