Shortlisted in The Learning Awards!

I love to keep one foot in employment so that I have a real and lived understanding of the challenges faced by your best female talent.

Back in March, I started a part-time fixed term contract at Macmillan Cancer Support. I joined the Volunteering L&D team to work on a project to design and develop digital induction training for their amazing volunteers.

Less than two weeks later the whole nation went into lockdown and Macmillan was faced with the challenge of converting their face to face emotional support volunteering to a remote offer, almost overnight.

I worked with the very lovely Kathryn Palmer-Skillings and colleagues across the charity to create new learning content, repurpose training materials and create a new digital learning programme for Macmillan’s Telephone Buddy Scheme that was ready to be used within a week.

It wasn’t the project I expected to be working on … but oh my goodness what an incredible experience.

I was part of an amazing team and we all worked really hard. As a result our volunteers were able to support more than 2,000 people living with cancer, in part because of the learning that we created.

Just imagine our delight this week when we heard we’d been shortlisted for the Learning & Performance Institute Learning Awards in the Digital Learning Transformation of the Year.

So exciting … now the long wait until February to find out the winner.

UPDATE – WE WON!!!

How to support staff going through redundancy

It makes good business sense to offer as much support as you can to employees going through redundancy, including offering outplacement support.

But it’s also important to support the staff who are not leaving. They are likely to be feeling a mixture of upset, guilt, relief, anger and grief.

Outplacement support helps the staff being made redundant as well as those who are staying:

  • Protects your brand
  • Increases employee engagement
  • Minimises potential litigation
  • Manage a smooth transition

A good outplacement plan will help staff to:

  • Get clarity on their career strengths and experiences
  • Leverage their personal brand
  • Develop a career plan moving forward
  • Identify networking opportunities
  • Navigate the online job market
  • Create a powerful LinkedIn profile
  • Discover how to write and tailor CVs and covering letters
  • Prepare effectively for job interviews, including video interviews

When I run outplacement workshops for organisations we explore:

  • Skills and strengths
  • Values – i.e. what’s most important to you
  • Mindset
  • Behaviour profiling
  • Presentation i.e. LinkedIn profile and CV
  • Interview preparation
  • Networking confidence
  • Action plan

What’s most rewarding is watching the group work together to support and lift each other. For example, often we don’t recognise our own strengths. Sometimes we take a talent for granted because it feels so easy.

When you run an outplacement workshop, individuals get constructive feedback from peers and former co-workers and this can be a huge boost to morale and confidence.

What outplacement support do you offer staff going through redundancy?