Generating new leads and new business can be both time-consuming and frustrating. It's not easy - it takes skill, careful preparation and the creation of effective models and methods, even perhaps using formal approaches and scripts. Once generated, a new lead or enquiry must also be carefully managed to maximise the potential revenue it can generate. But it's crucial to get it right. If your company can afford not to worry about getting new business - congratulations! If your company is completely confident that it is performing at peak potential in generating new leads - again, congratulations! But if your company is working in the real world, couldn't your team do with some help, to become even just that little bit more effective, to make the process just that little less painful? This highly practical, intensive workshop gives sales teams the proven strategies and tactics they need to build a sustainable new business pipeline. This course will help participants: Develop a clear and consistent process for new business development and lead-generation Master the secret of effective new business development and lead-generation - 'only sell the appointment or next stage of the sales process, not your product or service' Set and achieve the right level of new business development and lead-generation activity to achieve your personal and organisational sales goals Apply the key principles of effective prospecting and pipeline management using a proven toolkit and approach Overcome the most common 'put-offs' when conducting telephone or face-to-face business-development and lead-generation activities Develop an engaging telephone voice and manner - and a 'networking personality' Qualify potential opportunities with more accuracy on a consistent basis Prioritise opportunities and manage their time when sourcing new business Discover online sources of leads, contacts and referrals Overcome psychological blocks to cold or warm calling - theirs and the client's Identify potential prospects - and decision-makers and influencers within target prospects - with greater accuracy Make outbound sales or appointment calls with improved confidence, control and results Improve the conversion of calls to appointments by using more effective questions and sales messages Get past gatekeepers and assistants more effectively Make the most of your CRM software and systems 1 Online marketing - what works! Workshop overview and learning objectives Choosing your social media channels LinkedIn for sales and marketing Designing and implementing an effective new business email campaign online Creating a lead-generation strategy online - with case studies Avoiding common mistakes in social media marketing Case study: 'Best practice in social media sales and marketing' Using blogs and video-based marketing (eg, YouTube) New trends and how to keep your finger on the 'social media' pulse Twenty essential websites and online marketing tools 2 Making appointments by telephone Planning the call, telephone techniques, integrating with email and online marketing Developing a clear and consistent process to appointment-making Setting and achieving the right level of telephone activity to achieve your appointment goals Applying the key principles of effective prospecting and pipeline management generation, using a proven toolkit and approach Overcoming the most common 'put-offs' to seeing or engaging with you Overcoming psychological blocks to cold or warm calling - yours and the client's Identifying potential prospects - and decision-makers and influencers within target prospects - with greater accuracy Making outbound sales or appointment calls with improved confidence, control and results Improving conversion of calls to appointments by using more effective questions and sales messages The five keys to developing an engaging telephone voice and approaching manner 3 Power networking Strategies for networking and B2B referral-based marketing The importance, and different types, of networking How to work a room - preparation and strategy Communication dynamics in networking - the power of the listening networker Assumptions when networking Business networking etiquette Making connections, asking for cards, contact details and referrals, gaining follow-up commitments Building relationships - follow-up and follow-through 4 Developing new leads Strategies for first-time sales calls Gaining rapport and opening first-time and new business sales calls effectively Advanced consultative selling - questioning techniques to quickly and efficiently uncover opportunities, need areas and preferences Presenting your solution to a new or first-time customer - creating an enthusiastic and compelling personalised and persuasive summary of your proposal Value message - differentiate your solutions clearly and accurately, with tailored value statements Presenting the right initial USPs, features and benefits and making them relevant and real to the customer Smart ways to position price, emphasise value and be a strong player without being the cheapest or leading on price Learn and use advanced techniques to determine customer needs, value and decision-making criteria in depth on a first-time call 5 Organised persistence - CRM and prospect-tracking Organised persistence - sales tracking, following up on 'sleeping' customers, gaining referrals, time and territory management Maintaining a good database for maximising new business ROI Developing a contact strategy with different types and levels of contact Analysing your contact base using state-of-the-art software and tools Making the most of your CRM systems and solutions Understanding that your attitude makes a difference when sourcing new business Setting SMART objectives for new business development and lead-generation Practical exercise - setting personal development and business goals Time management tips to improve daily productivity New business pipeline management strategies for peak sales performance 6 Workshop summary and close Practical exercise - developing your new business action plan Review and feedback
The 'golden rule' of negotiation is simple - don't! But life's rarely that simple and very often we do have to negotiate, particularly if we want to win the business and especially if we want to win it on our terms. Such negotiations are crucial. We need to prepare for them. We need a strategy, and the skills to execute it. Does your team have a structured approach? Is it flawlessly executed, every time? Or is there room for improvement? This programme will help them master the six fundamentals of closing better business: Manage all these elements well and you will win more business, more profitably. This course will help participants: Negotiate from a position of partnership, not competition Deal more effectively and profitably with price objections Identify and practise successful sales negotiating skills Identify strengths and weaknesses as a sales negotiator Understand different types of buyer behaviour Learn to recognise negotiating tactics and stances Apply a new and proven structure to their business negotiations Identify and adapt for different behavioural styles Be alert to unconscious (non-verbal) communication Prepare and present a proposal at a final business negotiation stage Project confidence and exercise assertiveness in all sales negotiations 1 Planning for successful business negotiations This session introduces the concept of business negotiation and looks at its importance in the context of the participants' roles and activities. It briefly examines why we negotiate and the dynamics involved. Session highlights: What kind of a negotiator are you? Negotiation skills self-assessment and best practice How to establish roles and responsibilities for both parties How to identify and set objectives for both buyer and seller How to research and establish the other person's position (business negotiation stance) 2 How to structure your negotiations This module presents an eight-step framework or structure for use in negotiations and considers how best to prepare and plan your negotiations within the context of a supplier/customer relationship or business cycle. It also includes a brief review of legal responsibilities and what constitutes a 'deal'. Session highlights: Learn and apply a formal structure to use when negotiating How to establish short- and longer-term objectives and opportunities How best to plan, prepare and co-ordinate a major business negotiation meeting, or on-going negotiations Understanding of basic legal and organisational requirements 3 Verbal negotiation skills This session examines the human and communication dynamics inherent in any negotiation situation. It emphasises the importance of professional skills in preparing for a negotiation by identifying needs, wants and requirements accurately and by qualifying the competitive and organisational influences present. Session highlights: How to fully 'qualify' the other party's needs, requirements and constraints during the negotiation process by using advanced questioning and listening skills How to pre-empt negotiation objections by promoting and gaining commitment to options, benefits, value and solutions How best to propose and suggest ideas, using drawing-out skills 4 Non-verbal negotiation skills This module highlights how different personal styles, corporate cultures and organisation positions can influence events, and demonstrates practical methods for dealing with and controlling these factors. It also examines key principles of body language and non-verbal communication in a practical way. Session highlights: Gaining rapport and influencing unconsciously Understanding the importance of non-verbal communication; reading other people's meaning and communicating effectively as a result Ensure that non-verbal behaviour is fully utilised and observed to create maximum impact and monitor progress (eg, buying signals) Recognising that business negotiations are precisely structured and agreements gained incrementally 5 Proposing and 'packaging' This session highlights how best to present and package your proposal. It looks at how to pre-empt the need for negotiating by creating minor-options and 'bargaining' points, as well as how to manage the expectations and perceptions of the customer or buyer. Session highlights: How to identify the key variables that can be negotiated The power and use of 'authority' within your negotiations How to structure and present your proposal, ideas or quotation to best effect The importance of when and how to identify and influence buyer's objections 6 Dealing with price This module highlights how to best present and package price within your proposal or negotiation. In most cases, price has more to do with psychology than affordability and preparation and careful handling are essential. Session highlights: The three reasons that people will pay your asking price How to set price in a competitive market The key differences between selling and negotiating Ten ways to present price more effectively and persuasively 7 Getting to 'Yes': tactics and strategies There are many different tactics and strategies common to successful negotiators. This session looks at those that are most appropriate to the participants' own personal styles and situations. The importance of 'follow-through' is also explained and how to deal with protracted or 'stale-mate' business negotiations. Session highlights: How to negotiate price and reduce discounting early in the process How to recognise negotiating tactics and strategies in your customer or supplier Key strategies, techniques and tactics to use in negotiation The importance of follow-through and watching the details How to deal with stalled business negotiations or competitor 'lock-out' 8 Case studies and review This session examines a number of different situations and participants discuss ways to approach each. This will allow learning to be consolidated and applied in a very practical way. There will also be a chance to have individual points raised in a question and answer session. Session highlights: Case studies Question and answer Planning worksheet Negotiation 'toolkit' and check-list 9 Personal action plans Session highlights: Identify the most important personal learning points from the programme Highlight specific actions and goals Flag topics for future personal development and improvement
Effective communication is a skill. This half-day workshop is very interactive - participants can practise their communication skills in a positive, supportive environment. 1 Welcome, introductions and objectives The definition of effective communication Exercise: sending a message 2 Verbal communications Effective communicators - who are they? What skills or attributes do they have? Listening skills, clear use of words, presence, eye contact, body language 3 How good a listener are you? Exercise: listening skills questionnaire and evaluation 4 Impact versus intent - what did you really mean to say? Attitudes influence behaviour and behaviour breeds behaviour Exercise: 'I never said she stole money' The need to avoid misunderstanding or misinterpretation 5 The 5 key principles to effective communication Exercise: 'What would you say?' 6 Written communication What makes an effective written communication? Kipling's 6 Honest Men: who, what, where, when, why and how Planning to write an email 7 Fuzzy meanings Probabilities for misunderstandings and misinterpretations 8 Practical exercise Hone written communication skills and put into practice hints and tips from the session 9 Review of key learning points and objectives
Some 60% of injuries at work are caused by lifting heavy objects. This powerful, practical programme is designed to help stop any of your staff from becoming the next statistic. 1 Introduction and objectives 2 Overview of Health and Safety Legislation and HSE Injury Statistics Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (MHSWR) 1992 MHSWR 1999 specific duties to risk assess Manual Handling Operations Regulations (MHOR) 1992 Breakdown of injury statistics and costs of poor manual handling 3 The musculoskeletal system explained Prevention and ill-health Ergonomics RSI The spine in detail 4 Risk assessment General principles The TILE method Employees' duties Workplace scenarios
Taking minutes is a much under-rated skill. It can be challenging at the best of times. So how do you do it for virtual meetings? This trainer-led session will help. It's a very practical programme which explores the issues specific to minuting on-line meetings and gives solutions to some of the trickier problems. Full of useful tips, the session will enable participants to: Identify how to adapt their current minute-taking skills to on-line meetings Plan and prepare for a meeting Follow a line of discussion Work in partnership with a remote Chair Deal confidently with minute-taking challenges. 1 Welcome Programme objectives Personal introductions 2 Adapting minute-taking to virtual meetings How is it different? What changes in approach are needed? 3 Preparation Preparing for the meeting Technology and equipment Dress and personal presentation Liaising with the Chair Practical preparation tips 4 Minuting tips Managing the 'techie' elements, eg. poor sound/visual quality Knowing who is speaking Following a line of discussion What if I don't hear or understand? Tips for producing a set of minutes 5 Session review Summary, key learning points, feedback and close
This workshop-based bite-size will provide space to explore some practical tools and ideas on how to be more resilient when faced with challenging and tough situations. There is an opportunity to do a self assessment and bring it to the day as a means to identify areas to work on and begin to master skills that will enhance resilient thinking. There will be time to explore what resilience is and understand the range of practical tools and techniques available that can be used beyond the workshop itself. By the end of the workshop participants will be able to: Discuss and evaluate their personal strengths and areas for development in being more resilient at work Understand what resilience involves and how to identify and challenge their own beliefs that undermine resilience Understand the four aspects of resilience - confidence, adaptability, building support and maintaining a clear perspective Understand how to use resiliency tools to help to cope better with the challenge of change Review and evaluate their learning and have an action plan to take back and implement in the workplace 1 Welcome, introductions and objectives Breaking the ice 2 Identifying current challenges in relation to work How we handle these challenges 3 Defining resilience and how and why it helps our personal effectiveness and thinking 4 Resilience skills and how to develop them 5 Learning a resilience tool that promotes new ways of thinking / working 6 Review and evaluation of learning Action planning
We all tend to have challenges throughout our lives that cause varying levels of pressure. It is healthy and essential that people experience such challenges because up to a certain point an increase in pressure improves performance and quality of life. Too much pressure can be harmful and affect our health and wellbeing. This participative half-day workshop will explore the causes and impact of stress and provide an opportunity to learn some new ideas and techniques to cope with it. Practical tasks and exercises will be used to promote discussion and participants will be encouraged to share their own experiences and approaches. By the end of the workshop participants will be able to: Understand the causes and symptoms of stress and how to spot them Become more aware of personal habitual behaviours and approaches that get in the way of dealing with stress productively Learn ideas and approaches that help you to cope with the thoughts, emotions and physical feelings that happen in stressful and difficult situations Review and evaluate learning and have an action plan to take back and put into practice at work 1 Welcome, introductions and objectives Breaking the ice 2 Stress Its sources and effects on you Defining stress, its signs and symptoms 3 Exploring your 'default' habits Their consequences in stressful situations 4 Dealing with perception Strategies and approaches for coping with stress 5 Setting goals with positive outcomes Review and evaluation of learning Action planning
The aim of this course is to provide project managers, project engineers and project support staff with a toolkit they can use on their projects. The tools range from the simple that can be used on all projects to the advanced that can be used where appropriate. This programme will help the participants to: Identify and engage with stakeholders Use tools for requirements gathering and scope management Produce better estimates using a range of techniques Develop more reliable schedules Effectively manage delivery DAY ONE 1 Introduction Overview of the programme Review of participants' needs and objectives 2 Stakeholder management Using PESTLE to aid stakeholder identification Stakeholder mapping The Salience model Stakeholder engagement grid 3 Requirements management Using prototypes and models to elucidate requirements Prioritising techniques Roadmaps Requirements traceability 4 Scope management Work breakdown structures Responsibility assignment matrix 5 Delivery approaches Sequential Agile 6 Estimating Comparative estimating Parametric Bottom-up Three-point estimating Delphi and Planning Poker Creating realistic budgets DAY TWO 7 Scheduling Critical path analysis Smoothing and levelling Timeboxing Team boards Monte Carlo simulations Probability of completion 8 People management Situational Leadership The Tuckman model Negotiation Conflict management Belbin 9 Monitoring and control Earned value management 10 Course review and action planning Identify actions to be implemented individually Conclusion PMI, CAPM, PMP and PMBOK are registered marks of the Project Management Institute, Inc.
Running a successful project requires skills in planning, budgeting, tracking deliverables and stakeholder management. An area that can be neglected by project managers is the 'people side' - not the project team themselves but the end-users, those who will be affected by the project. Too often there is a single line at the end of the project plan that says 'Comms and Training'. If people are going to have to work differently and learn some new processes, then there is work to be done by the project team to help them through the emotional side of the change. This session explores why it's important to bring people along when a change is being made. It will provide project teams with the skills and knowledge either to manage the people change plan themselves or to secure the right resources for their project. Understand the importance of the 'people side' of change 8 'Golden Rules' of change management - overview How to create a simple but effective change plan Adoption Benefits of good change management 1 Introduction Objectives and agenda People and projects - why is it important? The Change Curve - the emotional side of change 2 8 'Golden Rules' of change management - including... Role of the sponsor Communication Resistance to change 3 Change plan Elements of a change plan Change impact assessment Alignment with the project plan 4 Adoption Who owns the change? The vital role of the manager Feedback and action loops 5 Benefits Estimating the costs / benefits 6 Next steps Summary of key learning points Reflection on next steps 7 Close
A thorough account of the UK and European legal framework and its requirements as regards managing environmental performance. This course will help staff to understand: The framework of UK and European legislation and its enforcement The principal features of the legislation as they apply to your organisation's activity/product/service The benefit of having an Environmental Management System such as ISO 14001 How their own actions and decisions can either expose or protect the organisation in relation to its legal obligations 1 Introduction and objectives 2 Introduction to environmental law and enforcement Sources of law (European and UK) Structure and enforcement Key legislation 3 Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) and Local Air Pollution and Control (LAPC) Pollution and Prevention Control Act 1999 EC Directives on PPC The meaning of BAT Transitional provisions Fit and proper persons Control of emissions to air National Air Quality Strategy 4 Packaging and producer responsibilities Who, what and how The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations Obligations and exemptions Registration Recycling and recovery obligations Records Duties of the Environment Agency Offences Developments 5 Waste management National Waste Strategy Waste minimisation (re-use/recycling) Waste definition Disposal and recovery Controlled waste management Hazardous waste management 6 Proposed Legislation and EC Directives EU Commission's waste and resources strategies Implementation of ELV (End of Life Vehicles) Directive WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive transposition into UK legislation Other producer responsibility initiatives Other proposals from the EU 7 Conclusion Open forum Summary Close