L&D news round-up: 21 Jan
This L&D news round-up covers key industry developments including leadership development innovation, digital skills gaps in local government, HR leadership strategies, and the importance of aligning education with industry needs to address UK skills shortages.
What are soft skills and why do you need them?
Soft skills like communication, time management, and conflict resolution are intangible qualities that enhance hard technical skills and drive workplace performance. Essential for career advancement, they become increasingly important in leadership roles and can be developed through personal development planning and feedback.
New Year’s Resolutions: How to make sure you get the best out of your learning
Make your New Year’s learning resolution stick by creating a dedicated study space at home, using printed materials for better retention, and maintaining proper posture with feet flat on the floor to stay focused and concentrated.
Creating Workshop Activities
Learn practical strategies for designing engaging workshop activities that help participants apply training concepts. Discover methods for creating interactive exercises, skill-building practice sessions, and creative activities for training delivery across various topics.
A vision of leadership
World-class leaders inspire shared vision by looking beyond day-to-day operations to create meaningful roadmaps that drive results, enhance customer experiences, and develop their teams. Great leadership requires not just vision, but also providing training and support to help employees develop the skills needed to translate that vision into action.
Succession Planning
Succession planning is essential for school leadership sustainability. This post seeks recommended workshop activities for head teachers to explore recruitment strategies and succession planning within their organizations.
The TrainingZone podcast: December 2015
Jamie and Jon recap 2015 in learning and development, while Video Arts CEO Martin Addison discusses survey results about L&D trends and the challenging skills outlook for 2016.
Care Industry – Advice Required
A trainer seeks guidance on qualifications needed to deliver core training in Scottish care homes, including manual handling and health and safety, alongside soft skills and IT training for elderly care providers.
L&D news round-up: 10 Dec
This L&D news round-up covers critical leadership lessons from Yahoo’s decline, emerging tech skills in demand for 2016, essential skills everyone should develop, and new findings on digital skills gaps in government and healthcare sectors.
How can a well-rounded cyber skills set keep you safe online?
Building a well-rounded cyber skills set across your organization is essential for reducing your attack surface and protecting against evolving threats like phishing, malware, and social engineering. Staff awareness training on digital footprints, social media privacy, and security best practices helps limit vulnerability, since many breaches target people rather than technology alone.
Succeeding in the Board Room
Effective boardroom leadership requires a balanced, diverse board with merit-based selection, ongoing training, and robust succession planning. Organizations must identify and develop future directors early, ensuring they have the skills in communication, decision-making, and governance needed to lead effectively.
Soft Skills are not soft.
Soft skills like communication, empathy, and emotional intelligence are essential, not secondary, to business success. Despite their misleading name, these interpersonal abilities require tremendous effort and resilience to develop, making them as critical as technical expertise.
Continuing language learning in employment
Language learning throughout employment offers significant career benefits beyond fluency, developing critical skills like problem-solving and cultural awareness that employers increasingly demand. With an estimated £50 billion annual loss to the UK economy from language skill gaps, companies investing in employee language training gain competitive advantage and access to talent with the global mindset today’s businesses require.
Nurse Re-Validation – How has the new guidelines set by the NMC effected you?
The NMC has introduced new nurse re-validation guidelines, prompting NHS Trusts to adopt different approaches—from digital portfolios to traditional methods. Learn how these updated requirements are reshaping validation practices across healthcare organizations.
L&D news round-up: 19 Nov
This week’s L&D news highlights key trends including data analytics in HR, skills gaps across industries, evolving leadership approaches, and the growing importance of technology education. Featured stories explore executive strategies, corporate innovation challenges, and how digital platforms are reshaping skills development and training.
L&D news round-up: 13 Nov
Stay updated with this week’s top L&D stories, including insights on credible leadership, employer training gaps in Wales, the World Bank’s MOOC initiative, and essential digital skills for Scotland’s workforce.
Leadership – Nature or Nurture?
Research suggests leadership is approximately one-third nature and two-thirds nurture, meaning leadership skills can be learned and developed. A University of Illinois study found that individuals with self-confidence and prior life experiences showing “readiness” benefited most from formal leadership training, advancing their abilities to influence and motivate others.
Are your maths skills up to scratch?
Many UK adults avoid jobs requiring basic maths skills, with one in five women actively steering clear of numeracy-focused roles. New research reveals employers prioritize mathematical abilities, yet significant gender gaps and skills shortages threaten UK productivity and global competitiveness.
Are you your own worst enemy when it comes to Personal Development?
Self-imposed pressure and fear of failure often sabotage personal development efforts. By identifying whether goals are genuine desires or “shoulds,” and creating supportive learning environments, you can overcome the resistance between intention and action.
The TrainingZone podcast: October 2015
The TrainingZone podcast for October 2015 features discussions on TechCrunch Disrupt, automation’s impact on jobs, and coaching in the workplace, with insights from industry expert Kim Morgan.