Time and training budgets are tight for everyone and so it is important for us all to make the most of any courses we are able to attend each year. CPD Manager, Dearbhla Carmody and her Dublin team - Amy, Dee, Margaret and Vanessa - run in the region of 350 training courses per year, plus online eCPD courses and the Chartered Accountants Ireland Annual Conference. Here, they share their tips and advice for getting the maximum benefit from any training course.
Before the course
| Dearbhla's Top Tip: "Think about what you specifically hope to achieve from a training course before you look for a course to meet those needs, and check carefully that the course outline covers the topics you are looking for." |
1. Firstly, think about your gaps;
- gaps in knowledge or experience identified at your review
- a new project that you need more training in
- changes in practices or standards that you need to be aware of
- areas that you would like to move into in future
- transferable/business skills that would help in all areas of your life
2. Consider the most appropriate way for you to fill these gaps;
- one day courses/half day courses
- diplomas or certificates
- evening courses
- online courses
- distance learning
- degrees/postgraduate qualifications
- professional qualifications
3. Consider a mix of courses - some courses you may need to attend immediately and others you may benefit from day-to-day or they may fit into longer-term career goals.
4. When sourcing a training course consider the course outline carefully and think about whether the outcomes of the course will fit into your role and your goals, and what you want to achieve from the course. Think about your role at the moment and how the course objectives might complement this, and how the things you learn will fit into your current work practices.
5. Practical considerations;
- Read the course outline carefully - for example, if you are working on a version of MS Office 2003 and the course you are booking covers Excel 2007 then it probably won't be of much use to you.
- If refreshments are provided during the course and you have specific dietary requirements contact the course provider in plenty of time before the course date and let them know; if you tell them in advance they should usually be able to accommodate you on the day.
During the course
| Margaret's Top Tip: "Try to connect what you learn on the course with the day-to-day tasks or situations you are involved in, linking them together and finding suitable solutions that will work for you once you're back in the office." |
1. Be an active participant; interact with the presenter and raise any questions you have, engage in any discussions going on and learn from other attendees' experiences, get involved in group activities, and take notes on the things you want to remember or implement back in the office.
2. When you are listening to the presenter or completing activities, continually think back to how you work at the moment and how this information can fit into your role - it will enable you to more easily apply what you have learned in a practical way when you get back to the office.
3. Half-way through the course, think about what you originally wanted to achieve and how things are going - are there any topics that haven't come up that you hoped would be covered? If so, raise this with the presenter before the course comes to an end and it's too late.
4. Use the course as a networking opportunity. Chat to other attendees when you arrive, during the breaks and at lunch time.
5. Try to enjoy being out of the office and focus your energies on making the most of the day and of what you are learning, rather than worrying about the work you've left behind. If at all possible, leave your Blackberry behind!
6. Practical considerations:
| Vanessa's Top Tip: "Don't be afraid to mention it if you're not happy with the room. Things like temperature and brightness can usually be fixed very easily and it makes a huge difference to the rest of the day." |
- Dress comfortably - you may be sitting at a desk concentrating for most of the day so make sure you are comfortable.
- Drink plenty of water - concentration requires us to be sufficiently hydrated and helps to avoid headaches or fatigue setting in during a longer course. If you can't find the water cooler or the bottles of water have run dry, ask the presenter for more rather than suffering in silence.
- If you are too hot or too cold ask the presenter if they can change the temperature in the room - it's a shame to sit there thinking about how cold you are rather than being able to concentrate on the course, when this could be very easily fixed in no time at all.
- If you can't hear the speaker, either ask them to speak up or consider moving to a desk nearer to the front of the room.
- If you can't see the screen or if the writing is too small, either ask the presenter about this or move closer to the screen/flipchart.
Giving feedback
| Amy's Top Tip: "Taking a few minutes to provide feedback will not only be appreciated by the presenter; it will also give you a good opportunity to think about what you got out of the course, how you can implement what you've learned, and whether you need any follow-up training." |
Remember that while the course provider will be happy to hear your suggestions on all aspects of the course including the course materials, venue, or refreshments, the constructive feedback that really matters is whether the course covered what it claimed to, and whether you achieved what you wanted to as a result of attending.
If you are asked to complete an assessment form or to offer your feedback about a training course perhaps consider some of the following questions when providing your comments;
- Did the course cover everything it set out to in the course description? If not, which topics were missing?
- Was there anything else that you feel should have been included in the course? Were there any topics that didn't seem to fit or that could have been left out?
- Was there too much material to be covered or too little? Should the course have been longer or shorter?
- Was the course at the level it suggested? If the course title said 'Introduction to...' did it start from the beginning of the topic as you might have hoped, covering definitions and basic principles before moving on to more detail? Or, if it was advertised as an 'Advanced' course did it go into sufficient detail?
- Did the presenter invite enough discussion and interaction? Was there appropriate emphasis on case studies, practical applications or tests and other activities? Would you like to have seen more or less of this on the course? What other activities might you have included?
Feedback forms are usually not responded to unless you request this specifically so if you would like some feedback on your comments in return, make this explicit on the form or contact the course provider as soon as you can after the course and tell them what you have to say. If you have a complaint or if something wasn't to your satisfaction, be specific about what went wrong, and let them know how you think they could rectify the situation for you. Contact them as soon as possible as it's much easier to resolve issues at the time than it is a few months after the course.
After the course
| Dee's Top Tip: "Put whatever you've learned from the course into practice as soon as you possibly can. The longer the gap, the less likely you'll ever really implement what you've learned." |
1. Go through your notes and the course materials as soon as you can (e.g. on the bus home), while the information is still fresh in your mind, in order to reinforce what you have learned.
2. As soon as you are back in the office think about what you learned and how it applies to your role. Try out any new techniques immediately - the longer you leave it to make a start the less chance there is that you will implement what you have learned.
3. Review the course in terms of what you hoped to achieve before attending - was this enough detail? Do you need an additional course to expand on what you have learned here, or has this been enough?
4. Share the knowledge, skills and techniques you have learned with colleagues where you can - this will add-value to your organisation as more people are able to learn from your experience. Consider presenting what you have learned at a team meeting, or sending a memo/briefing with the main points to colleagues who might find it useful.
Enjoy yourself!
You want to benefit as much as possible from attending a training course, and the good news is that course providers want that for you too. So, why not test out some of this advice and see if it helps to make your training experiences more practical, more valuable and ultimately more enjoyable.
The CPD team would like to thank you for your continued attendance at courses and events this year, and we hope to see you again very soon.
For more information on upcoming CPD courses please visit www.charteredaccountants.ie/cpd