LearningWire #81 - 28 December 1999

TrainingZone

LearningWire #81 – 28 December 1999

By TrainingZone

=============================================================
LearningWIRE #81 28 December 1999
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk The Learning Community
=============================================================

THIS WEEK FEATURING -
- Win tickets for TrainingZone's Day at the Dome
- Personal learning plans
- Questions on psychometric testing and on senior manager training
- More topic experts to answer your detailed queries
- Y2K, the latest on the bug

Assuming that the world doesn't end at midnight on Friday, we'll see you again next century. Wherever you are, here's to an enjoyable and successful New Year from the TrainingZone team.

4,800 professionals engaged in training, development and HR will receive LearningWire this week. For details on reaching this audience see
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/help/advertise.html
and please Forward your copy of LearningWire to a friend.

Latest News
===========
Send us news for inclusion on https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/news

Y2K - will the bug strike?
--------------------------
This issue has been put together to entertain those of you who find yourselves still at work between the holiday weekends. One of the talking points for anyone with a computer is likely to be whether the Y2K bug is finally going to be turn out to be fact or fantasy. Following all its campaigning, the government seems optimistic that there will be no big problem. Official advice is that the only countries to avoid are Ukraine, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan and Mongolia - we'd be very interested to hear from any TrainingZone members seeing in the new Millennium in any of these locations. Meanwhile, did you find anything of value in the millennium bug leaflet drop to every UK household?; isn't it reassuring to know that my TV and microwave is unlikely to be affected! Perhaps contrary to all this optimism, the government is operating a website from 29 December carrying live news updates throughout the Millennium of problems as they appear.
http://www.millennium-centre.gov.uk

Research and ideas about CPD
----------------------------
The online CPD Journal has made available a couple of papers about developing your CPD. 'Professional bodies, CPD and informal learning' explores the different ways in which several of the professional associations are attempting to promote CPD amongst members. 'European learning in smaller companies' looks at research into the use of CPD amongst businesses within the EU.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=10501&d=1
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=10502&d=1

More cheap Internet access companies
------------------------------------
Following the purchase of UK supermarket chain Asda by American Wal-Mart, the company has announced a tie-up with AOL in which AOL will create and distribute a cheap ISP service through the global supermarket empire. It will be a branded version of the AOL/Compuserve interface with a range of customised features. Pricing remains to be announced.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=10527&d=1

Welcome to new Topic Experts
----------------------------
A couple of new people have joined out team of topic experts ready and willing to answer questions and respond to issues. Leslie Rae is a well known training professional with wide experience. You're welcome to contact him on issues relating to management skills and trainer training. Barrie Smale is the right person to approach with questions about NVQs and related topics, including the creation of 'paperless portfolios'. Do feel free to contact any of our Topic Experts direct. They're all listed at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/topic_experts.html

Christmas Day
-------------
Just for the record, no-one actually registered with TrainingZone on Christmas Day, although 100 pages of the site were actually visited. Normal service resumed shortly afterwards with another ten registrations; a particular welcome to those cruising the site over the holiday.

ADVERTISEMENT
TrainingZone's Day at the Dome - free tickets
---------------------------------------------
We've got three tickets to give away to TrainingZone members for our day at the Millennium Dome on Friday 17 March. Our Day at the Dome is an opportunity to explore the Learn and Work Zones (we plan to write reviews) and enjoy the atmosphere during a full-day visit. There are several ways to enter the competition. This week, just enter your company details into the Trainers and Consultants Directory at https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/tzprov.cgi
Three lucky Directory members will be drawn at random in mid February.
http://www.dome2000.co.uk

Telework: Setting the Stage for Success
---------------------------------------
Your company has given the go-ahead to implement a teleworking strategy. Now what? The first order of business in ensuring that your employee telecommuting program works, according to HRWire interviews with top experts, is to lay a foundation that realistically defines the scope of the program and supports a structure for creating flexible policies and procedures.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=10407&d=1

Independent survey shows success of New Deal
--------------------------------------------
At a world jobs conference in America, Employment Minister Tessa Jowell set out independent new research findings which underline the success of the New Deal.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=10411&d=1

Any Answers?
============
Post your own question direct to Any Answers? by clicking the Post a Question button on the page. All replies are automatically emailed to you. You're virtually guaranteed a reply!.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/anyanswers
Here are a selection of new questions:

** Can anyone recommend a good distance learning provider/package
which will assist us in taking German to a more advanced level?

** Does anyone have any information or guidance on developing
policies for psychometric testing?

** Any attention grabbing ideas for senior manager training?

** Is the European Driving Licence becoming recognised in the
workplace?

** Can anyone recommend a short course is Risk management for
managers who work in the Oil and Gas sector?

** Do you know of any good web-resource about the use of role play
in training and development?

All the questions and all the answers can be found at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/anyanswers

Tenders 2000 Challenge
======================
Our Challenge is to promote open and competitive tendering for training and consultancy work. You can publish your contract opportunities completely free of charge. This week's opportunities include:

** Management development programme for junior managers in
Gloucester

** Work opportunities with TrainingZone in 2000

** Opportunity to train employees in personnel procedures with
Interaction

Check out the latest opportunities and invitations to tender at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk

ADVERTISMENT: Tenders 2000 Challenge
------------------------------------
Publish your training and consultancy tenders, contracts and jobs openly, online. Search for new work opportunities. No charge!
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/tenders

WebWatch
========
The best training and HR resources from website around the world are featured at https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/webwatch

TrainingZone is a free community - please help us keep it that way. If you like LearningWire and the website please forward this
newswire to a friend and suggest they register for their own copy.

Personal Learning Plans
-----------------------
They have been around for centuries. Anyone who has been able to sustain personal growth through intellectual, physical or spiritual pursuits has done so with the help of a personal learning plan. Barrie Oxtoby offers some suggestions on their form and use on LearningBuzz.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=10464&d=1

My relationship with my mentor
------------------------------
Sir Christopher Ball asked Barrie Oxtoby to be his mentor after hearing Barrie speak about the Rover process using Personal Learning Plans. In an article on LearningBuzz he describes their mentor/mentee relationship which is informal, with no rules, and a very happy one.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=10466&d=1

How to get to your Millennium Party
----------------------------------
If you have to travel to get to your Millennium party, you might want to check out one of the latest and most informative travel information site provided by the RAC.
http://www.redrac.com

And if you have to drive but don't know where a place is, instead of asking directions whilst juggling your mobile phone, why not use one of the many free online location finders? The Internet now offers several sites to help you navigate around the UK.
http://www.ordsvy.gov.uk/home/index.html
http://www.uk.multimap.com/
http://www.rac.co.uk/
http://www.cwlease.com/cwluk1/index2.htm

Millennium Anxiety Disorder !
-----------------------------
Test your MAD score on this helpful little self-assessment device, thoughtfully reproduced this week on the LearningBuzz website.
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=10577&d=1

Reviews
=======
Your products can be reviewed at https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/reviews

'Sales Training Game' by Graham Roberts-Philips, produced by Gower is reviewed by Leslie Rae. These and other Gower products will shortly be available from the TrainingZone online Mall.

All these reviews can be found at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/reviews

---------------------------------------------------------------------

How to Subscribe and Unsubscribe
================================
To receive LearningWire free each week, just register your name at
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk

To stop LearningWire, or to change your email address, go to
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk/profile.html

Alternatively, mailto:unsubscribe@trainingzone.co.uk and put
'unsubscribe learningwire' in the body of the email. (To succeed,
make sure your email address shown in the Header is the same as the
one to which LearningWire is sent.)

==============================================================
TrainingZone, The Mill House, Redcliff Backs, Bristol BS1 6LY
Tel:+44 (0)117 915 9600 Fax:+44 (0)117 915 9630
https://www.trainingzone.co.uk
==============================================================