Learning Opportunities from Staff Development 5/2/12-5/23/12

Do you still need Continuing Education credits for 2011-12? There are plenty of great learning opportunities scheduled in the month of May. We’re confident that you’ll find one that catches your eye!

Nonverbal Communication
Wed May 2, 2012 | 10:00 AM-12:00 PM | 214 Sneden

People communicate with more than words. Other means of communication include movement, posture, gestures, eye contact, facial expressions, tone of voice, and use of space and time. Participants will learn how to control their nonverbal communications to make their communications more effective.

Feedback and Critical Conversation
Tues May 8, 2012 | 9:00 – 11:00 AM | 226 Main

What every manager wants to know – how to give effective feedback (even if it’s sensitive) and how to prepare and hold a conversation that is critical to performance. Step-by-step models will be taught that can be used right away. Learning Objectives: To solve many organizational and relationship issues by learning how to talk to anybody about anything; to become a more honest and confident communicator, and to reduce the stress that comes from what’s left unsaid.

Time Management for Peak Performance
Thurs May 10, 2012 | 9:00 – 11:00 AM | 106 Cook

Time is money, the saying goes, and frequently it gets lost in disorganization and disruption. In this workshop, participants will learn how to make the most of their time by getting a grip on their office space, organizing their workflow, and learning how to use their planner effectively.

Personal Listening Profile
Thurs May 10, 2012 | 9:30 – 11:30 AM | 228 Main

Listening is more than hearing. Listening is the ability to receive, attend to, interpret, and respond to verbal messages and other cues, like body language, in ways that are appropriate to the purpose. If the message is entertaining, our purpose is to enjoy, so we listen and respond in a relaxed manner. If the message is intended to persuade us, our purpose is judgment, so we listen and respond critically. It is estimated that people screen our or misunderstand the intended meaning or purpose of a message in over 70 percent of communications, making listening the biggest contributing factor to miscommunication. The Personal Listening Profile helps individuals identify which of the five listening approaches they use to process, organize, store, and retrieve information. Participants will be given an access code to the Inscape Personal Listening Profile and asked to take the online assessment prior to date of the class.

GroupWise 8: Customization
Mon May 14, 2012 | 10:00 – 11:30 AM | 351 Main

GroupWise 8 offers innovations that will improve nearly every aspect of the way you organize and communicate. In this class you will learn how to fully customize the Home View to design and lay out the content that matters most to you. You will also learn effective tips on using tasks to keep track of all of your “to-dos” in our ever-growing busy world.

Smart Cycling – Road Rules Event
Tuesday May 15, 2012 | 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM | 108 Sneden (Multi-Purpose Room)

We are encouraging staff and students to participate in Active Commute Week – leave the car at home and Ride the Rapid, bike, roller blade or long board into GRCC! Officer Tony Myers will teach basic bike safety to keep you safe on the roads while commuting to work

Bridging the Communication Gap (THIS IS A 2 PART COURSE)

Part 1 of 2: Tues May 15, 2012 | 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM | 103 Sneden

Part 2 of 2: Tues May 29, 2012 | 12:30-4:30 PM | 103 Sneden

‘Bridge the Communication Gap’ enables people to get through to others more easily, obtain agreement with less effort, and get things moving quickly. This workshop gives individuals and teams the skills they need to recognize what’s important to other people and to translate their requests, proposals, and instructions so that they will hear, understand, and act on them. This workshop helps teams set priorities and maximize the contributions of all team members. It encourages real problem-solving and real teamwork without creating hassles, hard feelings, or harsh confrontation. It creates long-lasting results by enabling participants to see situations from multiple points of view and take advantage of diversity — rather than resisting it. Learning Objectives: In this 2-part workshop, teams and individuals learn how to: Reduce resistance and increase acceptance by using communication strategies tailored to the needs of their audience; Create a non-defensive, open atmosphere in which information flows more freely, leading to more effective planning and decision making; Resolve differences in values, priorities, and interpretations of information for identifying mutually satisfying solutions; Recognize: Identify other people’s preferred ways of communicating by what they do, say, write, and ask; Translate: Adjust their requests, proposals, and presentations to match other people’s preferred ways of communicating; Answer: Address the key questions uppermost in other people’s minds that must be answered to win their support.

Get the Most Out of Excel 2010 (Webinar)
Wed May 16, 2012 | 1:00 – 2:00 PM | 351 Main

This is a New Horizons Webinar that Staff Development will “show” for employees to participate in and get professional development credit: Explore how Excel 2010 takes advantage of a new, results-oriented user interface that provides easy access to powerful productivity tools, offers a larger workspace, and delivers faster performance. This presentation will demonstrate useful tips and tricks about new features and timesavers to help in your day-to-day work with Microsoft Excel

Team Leadership
Tues May 22, 2012 | 1:00 -3:00 PM | 214 Sneden

Team roles, processes, and effectiveness are explored. Best practices for team leadership are presented. Diagnostic tools for teamwork and team effectiveness are completed.

Get the Most Out of PowerPoint 2010 (Webinar)
Wed May 23, 2012 | 1:00 – 2:00 PM | 351 Main

This is a New Horizons Webinar that Staff Development will “show” for employees to participate in and get professional development credit: Discover the synergy of working with Microsoft PowerPoint to present and deliver information to your audience. You will learn about new features and timesavers to help in your day-to-day work. This session is good for beginner, intermediate, or advanced users- everyone will learn something!