Catherine Mattice's Blog, page 31

Case Study: 8 Tips for Successfully Converting Classroom to Virtual Training

Recently, I was to attend a two-day consultant’s workshop in New York City put on by David A. Fields. David is a consultant to consultants, and I was excited to sit in a room with other consultants to learn from him and from them. 

But, alas, the in-person workshop was cancelled, and David forged ahead with a virtual two-day meeting in its place.

David did not disappoint! He did such a great job transforming his in-person workshop to virtual I was inspired to write this.

I’m sure David has a lot of his own ideas on this topic, but from my perspective as a student here were the 7 things David did that made his transition successful. 

Sent a box of stuff. A week before the workshop, David sent a box with the training binder we would’ve received in NYC, a book (value-add), a high-quality headset so we’d all have great sound, and two boxes of chocolates. The chocolates emulated the bowls of candy laying around at these types of events and I thought it was a nice touch.



Stood up next to his slides, rather than shared his slides from his computer. It was a subtle move on his part, but I kept thinking about how brilliant it was. I just haven’t seen much of that at all, and while he already stood out as an expert, he does even more so now.







Had a team to help with logistics. Zoom has a lot of cool features, such as breakout rooms, and David was also moving between two cameras so that he could either have the screen next to him or not. He had at least two people that I know of helping him manage all the technical stuff. This way he could focus solely on teaching us and facilitating good conversation.



We used the breakout rooms regularly, and had different people in each breakout. All throughout the training we were in different groups, which gave us a chance to learn from everyone. And, where it made sense for the exercise, we switched groups several times. In one breakout, for example, we had 5 minutes with a team member and then were moved, had 5 minutes with someone new and then were moved, and so forth. 



Used a timer. For every break and breakout session, David used a timer. It was up on the screen and when it hit 0, he was right back on track. David knew he had two days of content to get through, and he stayed on track to be sure it was all covered.



Speaking of breaks, we took them often. In addition to the lunch break, we took several 5-minute breaks all throughout the day to stretch our legs. This was helpful to keep the blood flowing and avoid information overload. 



Monitored and commented on the group chat. One of my favorite parts of this virtual training was the group chat. As David was hitting some point or answering someone’s question, naturally we were all adding in our two cents. (We’re consultants, what can I say?) Valuable learning nuggets were shared there and David often pointed them out, added to them, or posed a question back to the group.



Treated it like a conversation. We’ve all attended webinars with Q&A strictly at the end. While I understand the presenter is worried about time, a good presenter will make time for questions throughout. It builds rapport and makes the webinar way more engaging. David took questions whenever someone had one, just like he would’ve in person.

Of course, the group in the training affects its success. The group of consultants I met were amazing, and I look forward to building the friendships I formed over those two-days. 

Let us know what your tips are for converting training to virtual! We’d love to do a Part 2 of this blog post. 

Sincerely,

Catherine

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DON’T FORGET THESE RESOURCES!

Discuss your unique challenges with a group of HR professionals, leaders, and business owners. We’re all here to help each other out. Register here.Online harassment prevention training. Your employees still need training by Dec 31, 2020. Sign them up here. We’ll be adding dates throughout the year.

The post Case Study: 8 Tips for Successfully Converting Classroom to Virtual Training appeared first on Civility Partners.

Case Study: 8 Tips for Successfully Converting Classroom to Virtual Training

Recently, I was to attend a two-day consultant’s workshop in New York City put on by David A. Fields. David is a consultant to consultants, and I was excited to...

The post Case Study: 8 Tips for Successfully Converting Classroom to Virtual Training appeared first on Civility Partners.

Playlist: 25 Songs for…Well… This

According to this article researchers have found evidence that certain songs will maximize productivity and creativity.

I buy it. I think we all know music can affect our mood.

Apparently, “songs by Queen, 50 Cent, Kanye West and Coldplay were among those…” most likely to inspire productivity.

While I haven’t done any fact finding on the article’s assertions it’s a recommended read, and my team and I had a blast putting together our own playlist for you! 

Here’s the link to our YouTube playlist if you want to have a listen. Our own research finds it’s good for sheltering in place, working on your reopening the workplace plan, or maintaining a little sanity. 

Playlist: 25 Songs for…Well… This

According to this article researchers have found evidence that certain songs will maximize productivity and creativity. I buy it. I think we all know music can affect our mood. Apparently,...

The post Playlist: 25 Songs for…Well… This appeared first on Civility Partners.

5 Tips and 5 Questions: Helping Employees with Stress

This is the week we’re hearing our clients’ employees cry out. The stress of the current situation and the need to wear so many hats at all times is breaking some. Others are already there.

Work, homeschooling, meals, groceries, and household stuff are pulling them in every direction. Yet we’re all expected to go back to normal when “at work.”

And you’re also stretched and stressed out as the boss, supervisor or business owner. Adding to the pressure, you know that how you respond right now will leave lasting impressions on your employees.

To make things a little easier on you, here are 5 tips for conversations with employees about their stress:

Make time to listen, and video calls are best. In times of stress we need connection, and you need to see their nonverbal communication to understand how they’re really doing. Have the conversation when you truly have time, not 5 minutes before your next client call.Be supportive. Let them know you understand, and all you can ask for is their best given the circumstances. Communicating and finding new ways to get things done are the two most important things to focus on right now.Offer working alternative times to get all things accomplished. Employees may be self-imposing time constraints and therefore making themselves crazy. It’s just not possible to homeschool and work regular hours, period. Maybe a 6am to 6pm day could work, so that employees can work for a chunk of time, clock out and do “home stuff,” and then come back to finish their work later in the day. Getting permission from you to stretch their 8-hour day over 12-hours will go a long way. Let employees know of CARES/EFMLA. If employees need to stay home due to caring for a minor child, they are able to take paid time off (2/3 their normal salary). There is also 80 hours of federal sick time (on top of state required sick time) all the information can be found here. Have an honest conversation about reducing to part time. The employee could apply for unemployment to make up for some of the wages lost, and you can relax knowing your payroll expenses have reduced. This option works well if it’s an open, collaborative conversation about what’s best for all parties. 

Now, employees may reach out to you, but it’s more likely you will need to reach out to them. They desperately want you to believe they’re holding it together while they’re melting behind the scenes. 

Part of their stress is wondering if you can see them cracking, and if that would result in their name coming up in the impending layoffs. 

Since it’s possible employees won’t be entirely honest with you regarding their stress, we recommend a company-wide pulse survey.

We’ve put together one with 13 questions, and are offering it for $97 – no matter the size of your organization. 

Here are a few examples of what we’re asking our clients’ employees to rate on a four-point scale, from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.”

I am currently getting all of the information I need to do my job well.From a technology standpoint, I have everything I need to get my work done.Leadership has done a good job of keeping people informed about the present and future of our organization.I am concerned that I am not as productive as I should be.Given the circumstances, I am satisfied with the amount of social connection I am getting with my peers through our virtual channels.

If you’re interested in a survey for your organization – so that you can get honest answers about how to help your employees – just reply to this email. 

This is new and unchartered for all of us. There are struggles and challenges on both sides, but remember your response and support will carry long after we get back to our “normal” lives. 

Sincerely,

Kendra Wilson
Director of HR Compliance & Awesome

P.S. The survey is just $97, no matter the size of your organization.

The post 5 Tips and 5 Questions: Helping Employees with Stress appeared first on Civility Partners.

5 Tips and 5 Questions: Helping Employees with Stress

This is the week we’re hearing our clients’ employees cry out. The stress of the current situation and the need to wear so many hats at all times is breaking...

The post 5 Tips and 5 Questions: Helping Employees with Stress appeared first on Civility Partners.

Parents, You’ve Got This

Something really amazing happened last week.

One of my team members has a son, Davis, with quadriplegia and blindness. He was born this way; doctors told his parents to prepare for the worst.

Now at age 7, Davis is working hard to overcome all odds.

And last week, for the first time ever, Davis stood up. All by himself.

My team member sent us all a video, and I’ve watched it probably 15 times. It gives me such a wonderful feeling of hope.

It reminds me that a mother’s belief in her child is perhaps more powerful than anything else in the world.

I also need to be reminded that I must believe in myself. 

As a parent of a 10-month-old son and a 6-year-old daughter, I’m doing what many others are – trying to work full-time while homeschooling my child.

Except none of us are homeschooling our children. That would be an overstatement. What we’re actually doing is trying to hold it together, while we try to ensure our children’s brains get some sort of useful stimulation, while we try to remain on top of business. 

I don’t know about you, but at night I often experience a lot of guilt for all those moments throughout the day I chose work over my children. It would be great to dive into true homeschooling, but it’s not realistic. I’m also a career woman at heart, and Civility Partners is my baby too. 

So I’m learning to let loose, be okay with not working 40-50 hours, and to relax on the rules.

I don’t apologize for the sound of kids in the background. It doesn’t make me unprofessional; it makes me human. 

But I’m lucky because I’m the leader here. I don’t report to a boss. (Though I’m not totally bossless. I do report to my employees and clients as they expect certain things from me.)

I implore all leaders out there to make it clear that you understand your workforce is challenged to stay on task, work normal hours, and keep kids out of sight during video calls. Let them know you just want them to do the best that they can, and that you’d be satisfied with that. 

Just to be clear, I’m not throwing professionalism out the door completely.

I am suggesting that the definition of professionalism now include keeping a straight face while your child is throwing pieces of apple at you while you’re talking to a client via webcam. 

Stay strong. You’re extraordinary. 

Catherine 

PS. We’re doing a mastermind group, where you can talk with others about how they’re managing today’s challenges with their workforce. Join us by registering here. It’s free and every other Friday. Upcoming topic is managing equality, inclusivity and equity during a time that will most certainly impact some groups much more than others.

PPS. None of the COVID-19 laws and regulations have changed California’s harassment prevention training rules. We’ve got a live interactive webinar on Wed, April 16 if you’ve got people you need to train. Register any of your team members here.

The post Parents, You’ve Got This appeared first on Civility Partners.

Parents, You’ve Got This

Something really amazing happened last week. One of my team members has a son, Davis, with quadriplegia and blindness. He was born this way; doctors told his parents to prepare...

The post Parents, You’ve Got This appeared first on Civility Partners.

[Webinar] Using DISC to Increase Civility, Engagement and Personal Leadership

DISC is such a useful tool when it comes to building cohesive, collaborative, civil teams. Check out this hour long webinar on Using DISC to Increase Civility, Engagement and Personal Leadership hosted by our very own Catherine Mattice Zundel and Toni Herndon.

The post [Webinar] Using DISC to Increase Civility, Engagement and Personal Leadership appeared first on Civility Partners.

[Webinar] Using DISC to Increase Civility, Engagement and Personal Leadership

DISC is such a useful tool when it comes to building cohesive, collaborative, civil teams. Check out this hour long webinar on Using DISC to Increase Civility, Engagement and Personal...

The post [Webinar] Using DISC to Increase Civility, Engagement and Personal Leadership appeared first on Civility Partners.