2012
With the world markets still in a state of flux
and more and more people realising the power of digital media
and social platforms, 2012 is bringing a new phase of growth
for Staff Training.
Doing things our own way has always been a point of pride
and whilst we will continue to do this, we are also looking
at new client trends and the opportunities that no doubt arise
as a result of these.
For example this Baby Boomer is sometimes a bit old fashioned
when it comes to acceptable forms of advertising, but 2012
is the year in which we start challenging our own boundaries,
so we look forward to some exciting developments in this arena.
Speaking about boundaries, 2011 for the first time saw us
training outside of the country's borders and we are definitely
looking at increasing those markets. We are also adding new
divisions to the fold to ensure that we continue to bring
you specialist solutions.
Altogether I am looking forward to 2012 as a year of new ideas,
new approaches and new experiences. Thank you for all your
support in the past and we all hope to see you again in the
future.
Kind Regards
Debbie
2011
This is going to
be an interesting year. At Staff Training we have dug even
deeper and spent many hours on research of trends and generation
changes and we believe that our offerings are exactly what
is needed in the workplace. We have added advanced workshops
to our existing basic, tested and successful workshops and
we have added some brand new 2 day as well as 3 day workshops
and seminars to help you expand your knowledge and continue
to challenge us in our offerings. We are taking our cultural
awareness programme to a new level of implementation and "keeping
it real".
Our trainers are amped and ready to GO after two challenging
trading years. We would like to thank all our clients that
have remained committed to their skills development plans
and we would like to congratulate those who have shown growth,
determination and ultimately success through facing some tough
challenges head on and having faith in the implementation
of the new, suggested processes. (* remember to check out
our free resources secion on this site for some free training
and hr tools)
For us, Durban is on board and we are happy to announce that
it is growing much quicker than anticipated.
Finally, IF 2010 was exciting with the Soccer World Cup, for
me personally, 2011 should be better..GO BOKKE.
Warm Regards
Debbie
2010
It's 2010! South Africa is
gearing up for the world cup and much excitement is in the
air. We have stepped up our Customer Care and Retail Training
offerings to do our bit in ensuring that the soccer fans get
value for their
money when visiting our country. This year, the Staff Training
team would like to focus on adding value to our offerings.
We would also like to wish our clients well and remind them
that sometimes when opportunity is not knocking, it is time
to put up more doors...happy 2010...
Please visit our blog
page for an introduction to a new series of management
tools...
2009
Keep it real
I suspect that 2009 is going to be a year demanding
change.....
At Staff Training we are gearing up for that. Accountability and empowerment is
our main focus this year. With improved understanding and EQ, this will be a better
country, a better world. We plan to contribute, we invite you to do so as well.
On a personal level I am keen to explore the relationship between fairy tales,
fables and business and will devote some time to sharing this with you...I hope
you will enjoy reading them and mostly pondering the reality of these tales as
much as I enjoy writing them. See the blog here.
A huge thank you to all of you who helped to make 2008 our best year ever, we
hope to see a lot more of you in 2009. Please let us know at any time what we
can do to assist, as always, we have the motto: The impossible simply takes a
bit longer.....
Regards
Debbie
2008
Put your feet up .................
This year the Staff Training team are focussing on excellence. We will strive
to make every system, every function, every bit of client contact, every workshop
and every daily duty one of excellence. Tweaking, honing and polishing is our
aim for 2008. Revisiting the little things and making sure that we are doing them
well. Our trainer feedback forms for 2007 showed a 91% excellence rating, it is
our goal to push this up to 95% for 2008.
Our IT team are performing little miracles on a daily basis as we are keen to
give you a truly pleasurable online experience. 2008 will be an explosive year
on the internet if the gurus are to be believed. At Staff Training it is our passion
to keep up with trends and we are particularly proud of our online presence and
vision. We trust that it will continue to make your life easier.
The employee tendencies and management challenges mentioned in my 2007 address
are still very much at the forefront of our areas of interest as a training company,
as people remain the most valuable and effective asset (area) of any business.
Highly skilled and highly motivated staff cannot help but be successful. How to
get everyone there is the challenge. Towards the end of 2007 we developed an Accountability
workshop to assist with this and we believe that it will be a popular one in 2008!
We are also finding that the number of inhouse workshops we present are increasing
monthly and the extent to which we are able to customise these for our client's
exact demands, has increased. Personally I find these very gratifying as one is
able to see the fruits of your labour when returning to the client a month or
three later. There is little more motivating than a quick 'thank you' from an
individual 3 months after Assertiveness
Training or a copy of a promotion letter emailed to you after a delegate has
attended Management Training. For these
I thank every delegate who has taken the time out to give us feedback, it is the
fuel on which our team operates.
In summary, our new slogan Assess, Address, Achieve encompasses all we stand for
and will continue to strive toward in 2008. Thought, transparency, realism, passion
and success, may this be a great year for all!
Regards
Debbie
PS! Don't forget to take time out, put your feet up and think about what you need
to achieve, often the best ideas come when doing nothing!
2007 Message
Something to think about..........................
As a small business owner, one of my passions is perpetually
seeking knowledge that will assist in the growth and success
of Staff Training. As a team we are only as strong as our
weakest link and I believe that knowledge gives us strength.
I encourage all Small Business Owners to empower yourself
in any way possible and if you can take anything from this
message that will assist you in your often difficult entrepreneurial
quest, please do so. Do so with confidence and know that there
are others just like you that sometimes find it challenging,
but I think it was Thomas Edison that said " I have not
failed, I have just found 2000 ways NOT to make a light bulb!"
Regards, Debbie
South African business optimism is at an all time high
according to a recent survey of SME's (companies with between
50 and 250 employees) carried out by Grant Thornton. (2006)
One of the emerging priorities for this sector is the implementation
of their BBBEE (broad based black economic empowerment) policy.
Consequently there is considerable focus on empowering employees
from within the ranks. One of the only ways to accomplish
this, will be the continued training and education of all
South Africans.
This training needs to be undertaken in a systematic and organised
manner. This is only achievable, firstly with good record
keeping, secondly by appointing a good skills development
facilitator and thirdly by making a decent skills development
budget available.
Learnerships are available where compensatory payments are
made by the SETA's. The claims process is however stringently
documented (read as time consuming) and many providers are
not in the position to educate without being reimbursed within
a reasonable period of time.
The delay therefore often requires that the company wanting
to train, needs the financial resources to do so prior to
being compensated by the SETA's. For documentation on learnerships
and the claims process you can refer to:
WSP and ATR.doc
and our SETA_claims page
Cash Flow
Focussing on the employee, when management is concerned with
daily operational activities, is still a bit of a luxury for
many managers and small business owners. The fact is that
many companies have reached a point where they have proved
profitability on paper, but in reality, cash flow is a problem.
The reasons identified for this include:
Slow payment by creditors - especially government and some
large corporates.
Banks - the waiting period imposed on cheque clearances and
cumbersome process of obtaining finance
Bureaucracy - the plethora of paperwork and documentation
that has to be completed for compliance with legislation and
contractual obligations.
Expansion programmes - the planning and execution
Labour Law - understanding it and remaining compliant
A lack of urgency in the completion of tasks by staff
Poor budgetary planning
Not only do the above factors contribute to cash flow problems,
but they also contribute greatly to the stress levels of your
average SME management and/or owners.
In addition, our own most recent Management
Development workshops have brought certain issues to the
table:
Employee Tendencies
South Africa's young adults are bright and capable, but not
necessarily keen! The 18 to 26 year old group of employees
seem to be showing certain traits that make it difficult for
management to operate at an optimum level.
There is limited ownership
or responsibility.
There is little sense of urgency.
There is a culture of entitlement.
There is a general lack of pride in the workplace and within
the individuals.
These are areas of learning that are being addressed and incorporated
into each and every workshop we offer today!
Management Challenges
Management on the
other hand, face their own challenges:
Balancing an open style of management with getting the job
done on time.
Cross cultural communication and acceptance from all parties.
The feeling of marginalisation amongst minority groups
Finding the time to pay attention to productivity, legislation,
development planning and employee matters in a fast and dynamic
environment
Coping with traditional culture of employee's not to question
authority
Coping with stress - surveys have shown that South African
business owners are the third most stressed group in the world!
Once again we are in a position to address these areas of
learning within our workshops.
Solution
What then appears to be the solution?
As we see it, managers need to take a step back and work at
their job as opposed to working in their job.
Taking time out to observe and think about the future is the
one most productive exercise any manager
can perform.
What should they be looking for?
Firstly - Their own vision......
Is everyone still on track to implement the vision of the
directors and management of the company?
Is this vision still relevant? Does it need honing and/or
adaptation or a 180 degree turnaround?
Secondly - Your staff......
Employees are your most valuable resource and assett. Are
they well maintained?
Can you find all the paperwork necessary for them within a
second? Are they able to operate as individuals? Do they understand
benchmarking?
Concentrating on Vision
There is no excuse! Take time off to think! Keep on challenging
yourself and your ideas - incorporate De Bono's 6 hat thinking
technique at least once a month - if not more often.
Our management
workshop and advanced
communications workshop incorporate the De Bono 6 hat
thinking if you require any assistance on this!
Concentrating on Staff
Let us use the following analogy:
If you were to purchase a car, the first thing you would do
would be to shop around and take a good look at the models
available on the market. When looking for employees, have
a good look around! Pay sufficient attention to the recruitment
process to ensure that you have the best available selection
to choose from.
Once you have settled on a certain make of car, you would
want to decide on the model. Similarly with job candidates,
once you have decided on your candidates to interview, you
need to whittle them down to a shortlist.
Now that you have the make and model of the car you have in
mind, you would start looking at the best available price
and/or supplier. This is where relationship building really
enters the picture. To decide on the final incumbent, takes
a bit of relationship building from both of you. Is this person
someone you can work with for a few years? Do they have the
same passion for the industry, company, business practice
as you do?
The next step in purchasing the car would be to ensure that
you are satisfied with your final purchase. You will most
probably check out all the extras and take it for a final
test drive. How do you test drive a potential employee?
Using a practical interview has become common practice in
many companies. Let the applicant demonstrate their skills
to you in various ways.
Our interviewing
skills workshop can be of great assistance to you with
this process.
Okay! Decision taken! Now for the paperwork!
In both cases, cars and employees, it is wise and necessary
to have the contractual agreements in place prior to taking
delivery!!
Where to from here?
As you would no doubt proudly introduce your new car to many
of your friends, an induction process needs to be followed
for the staff member as well. This remains true, whether we
are speaking of a new staff member or one that has recently
been promoted and is taking on new duties.
The induction process needs to include all expectations from
the company's perspective, preferably a standard operating
procedure for the company, clear instructions on the policies
and procedures that the new staff member is expected to follow
and preferably someone to "hold their hand"
I'd like you to read the preceding paragraph again!!!
The "Standard Operating Procedure"
This document (the operating manual) should be a well compiled,
well read, well used, occasionally altered, procedure and
policy book that documents the general requirements
for all staff members, the expected duties at individual
posts, the company standards, vision and mission as
well as the disciplinary procedures and appeals process.
Incidently, in case you missed it, that was HUGE JOB NUMBER
ONE for most SME managers!
To assist Small Business Owners, we at Staff Training have
put together a package of links and downloads that will make
this onerous task slightly easier. At the very least, it should
assist you via reassurance that your documentation is up to
scratch.
This will be an ongoing process and we invite you to visit
this page often to access the new documentation as it becomes
available to you. Please also email us at documents@stafftraining.co.za
to add your requests for information that you are unable to
find on the list.
Employee files and good business practice
Letter
of appointment guideline
Why
performance appraisals?
Performance
appraisal template
Certificate
of Service guideline
Legalities
Before you Discipline
Disciplinary
procedures guideline
Notice
to attend a disciplinary hearing guideline
Disciplinary
hearing checklist guideline
Employees
rights guideline
Employees
appeal letter guideline
First
written warning guideline
Final
written warning guideline
Dismissal
letter guideline
Record
for employee file guideline
Basic
conditions of employment act
Useful links regarding employment procedures, legalities
and policies
Various
Basic Guides to Employment from the Department of Labour
Forms
and sample documents from the Department of Labour
Legislation
documents from the Department of Labour
Useful
documents from the Department of Labour
ccma website
Registration
docs for UIF and other SARS docs (SARS e-filing)
Useful information and guidelines regarding training, learnerships
and government policies
National Skills Strategy 2005 to 2010
State
of Skills in South Africa
Human
Resources development strategy
