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
To provide a fundamental understanding of building services in the context of: The working environment The success of the core business The health and safety of the occupants Operating cost and environmental impact The optimisation of cost and value Strategies for continuous improvement DAY ONE 1 Building services fundamentals The function of services in commercial buildings and their importance to the core businessElectrical servicesLightingHeatingVentilation and air conditioningLiftsWater Understanding IT and communication systems Practical exercises 2 The provision of comfort and safety Statutory requirementsHealth and safety legislationControl of contractorsRisk assessmentFire precautionsLegionella, sick building and other risks Business requirementsUnderstanding user requirementsMatching systems to business needs Practical exercises 3 Getting the design right What the FM needs to know about design and its procurementSuccessful space planningRelationship between services, space planning and designGetting the brief rightSupplier selection and management Practical exercises DAY TWO 4 Operation and maintenance Why maintain?Maintenance contractsInput and output specificationsResource optionsContracts - principal elementsTendering - key stepsSelection criteriaOperational criteriaMaintenance trends Performance-based service provisionInput and output specificationsKPIs and thresholdsRisk containmentValue-add opportunitiesPerformance contract strategy Practical exercises 5 Contingency planning Being ready for the unexpected Identifying and reducing riskInternal risksExternal risksIdentifying threats at your site Managing riskProtective systemsOccupier obligationsFire managementTesting Practical exercises 6 Commissioning services systems Physical commissioning Common problems Typical costs Commissioning stages Continuous commissioning Energy efficiency and the scope for environmental improvement Practical exercises 7 Satisfying the occupants Obtaining and responding to feedbackWhen to get feedbackWhyHowWhat to do with it Practical exercises 8 'Air time' Sharing experience and addressing specific issues of interest to participants Course review Close
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.
This course aims to provide managers and supervisors with a thorough understanding of the different aspects of health and safety in the workplace. With a focus on the role of supervision, learners on this course will develop the essential knowledge and understanding to enable them to discharge their health and safety responsibilities and ensure the safety of their workplace colleagues. The programme has a particular focus on:
Happiness? Are you serious? I'm struggling enough as it is! Not a nice feeling is it, when things aren't going well? But you push on regardless. Now you tell me, how's that strategy going? What are the consequences of that? Discover the hard facts about long-term success and resilience. This inspirational but hard-hitting presentation will give you the inside track on motivation, success and, yes, what it's got to do with happiness. No ten-point magazine-checklists to brighten your day, that change nothing. Just the straight physics of happiness.
Harness the energy is an explorative workshop introducing the notion of utilising and intuitively listening to the energy shared between a group of people. Whether we realise it or not, we all give off certain energies at any time. These energies can affect change, sometimes positively, sometimes negatively. This workshop enhances understanding of the power of our own energy transmissions through the use of compliciteÌ-based theatre techniques and exercises. This workshop will help participants become active and aware listeners, able to work better collaboratively to produce strong results. It will demonstrate the power of our own individual energy and the positive impact we can have when we learn to utilise the energy beneficially in different situations.
This comprehensive one-day programme has been designed to provide participants with an overview of basic supply chain principles and concepts and to identify potential opportunities for reducing costs, minimising risks and adding value across the supply chain. This could include reducing inventory, procurement, transport and storage costs. Fundamentally, the object of the programme is to empower participants to be able to collaborate with all key stakeholders across the supply chain. This course will help participants: Appreciate the importance of the supply chain as a source of competitive advantage Understand the tools and techniques available to improve supply chain performance Analyse and mitigate risks across the supply chain Identify opportunities for improvements in their respective supply chains Demonstrate competence in the pro-active management of the supply chain
A high-impact programme designed to be fun and to get people fully involved. The first-class, jargon-free content is based on what people need to know in practice, not off-putting legal language. This introductory course covers: Introducing Working Safely: Accidents can happen to anyone. The realities of the human suffering behind the statistics. The importance of personal responsibility. Defining hazard and risk: Focusing on the six broad hazard groups, participants are asked to think about the hazards and risks they come across in their own work. 'Risk assessment' demystified. Identifying common hazards: All the main issues - aggression and violence, asbestos, bullying, chemicals and harmful substances, computer workstations, confined spaces, drugs and alcohol, electricity, fire, getting in and out, height, housekeeping, lighting, manual handling, noise, personal hygiene, plant and machinery, slips and trips, stress, temperature, vehicles and transport, and welfare facilities. Improving safety performance: Bridging the gap between management and workforce, encouraging participants to play their part. Also covered: contract work, inspections, safe systems and permits, protective equipment, signage, emergency procedures, reporting and health checks.
Recognising the value of, and practising, clear and open communication at all levels is the first step to improving performance, whether at an individual, team, management, leadership or organisational level. We all know this, but why is it so difficult? This unique programme will make it much, much easier for you by giving you a robust framework to use - and the opportunity to practise your skills in a safe, supportive environment. It will help you have conversation that deliver tangible results. The programme will help you: Overcome the barriers to effective performance conversations Handle feedback conversations effectively Improve working relationships with your staff Set realistic expectations and targets (and get 'buy-in' for them) Improve your communication style Plan and prepare for honest conversations in the workplace 1 What is an honest conversation? Why don't we have them more often? What stops us? The cost of not having them 2 The feedback conversation Dealing with the impact of feedback conversations 3 Preparing for conflict 4 Effective working relationships 5 The expectations conversation 6 The targets conversation 7 Your communication styles 8 Planning and preparing for an honest conversation 9 Giving and receiving feedback skills
Budgeting is more than mere vague oversight. Budgeting should deliver the corporate strategy, add shareholder value and lead to a well-run business - for the benefit of all involved in it. Effective budgeting leads to real control - effective day-to-day operational control and more. This course demonstrates what proper budgeting and operational control can do. This course will help ensure that participants: Appreciate the importance of the budgeting process Take ownership of it Use it as a daily working tool - not an annual exercise - to help run their part of the operation Improve their reporting against budget Ensure their delivery against budget 1 Objectives of budgets The budget process Stages - what is the prime aim of a budget? What is forecasting? ObjectivesPlanningImplementation 2 Budget and cost control focus Choosing objectives Links with corporate strategy Links with resource management Can the accounting systems cope? 3 Traditional budgeting and control Benefits and drawbacks The process Control and feedback Reporting - what can be expected? 4 Advanced budgeting and control Understanding the business process Taking out costs Cost awareness ZBB - as valid as ever 5 Reports Reports for action The purpose of a report Content - deliverables and feedback Culture is so important