Hello – I’m Tracey, the Training coordinator at Stephen Green & Associates. I joined the team in 2020 in the middle of Covid. Training courses in the past have always been held at our offices in Snetterton, Norfolk. With the arrival of Covid we had to rethink how best to deliver these courses safely. Because of lockdown, many people took to the internet on zoom and Teams to keep in touch with loved ones. With many more people using the internet to meet, we decided it would be a good idea for SG&A to trial an RPS course using one of these platforms. Our first course delivered live via Microsoft Teams was a hit. Many people who would otherwise not be able to attend our offices in Norfolk were able to, for the first time, access one of our courses. The success of that first course has led to use delivering many more courses than we would have, had it have not been for Covid. We therefore anticipate this is how all future courses will be delivered. Certainly, the feedback from each course generally features at least one comment, that attending a course as a live online session is much preferable to driving to Norfolk to attend in person.
Even though we are all now quite used to this new online way of communicating, the prospect of attending a training course remotely can seem quite daunting for some. If you do happen to be booked onto one of our live online courses here are my tips for a smooth and stress-free training day.
Although we are all communicating a lot more online, if you are not familiar with Microsoft Teams, make sure you use the guide sent to you to download and install the programme in good time before the day of the course. As with all things electronic, random issues can occur and it’s good to get these kinks ironed out beforehand. It’s good to open the programme once it is installed and become familiar with the different view options, how to participate in the chat fields and also simple things like turning your camera and microphone on and off.
If possible, do a test Teams call before the day of the course. We are always happy to do a test with any course delegates if you are unable to find somebody willing to do this on Teams with you.
When you do your test, make sure you can hear the other person and be heard yourself. As you can imagine, you will want to hear the RPAs delivering the course and you will also be asked to participate from time to time so it will be key that the RPAs can hear you. Speaker and microphone settings can sometimes be hidden away on some computers and laptops and you don’t want to be struggling to find these on the day of the course.
Our courses have comfort/refreshment breaks built into the timings (as well as a break for lunch) but it’s always a good idea to ‘visit the facilities’ and have a cup of your usual morning brew to hand (if you’re able to) at the start of the course.
Make sure you are in a quiet well-lit room of your house/office, and remember people will see you and the room you are in. Make sure you are happy with what people see on the screen, if not, position your camera in such a way others can only see what you what them to see.
And finally, please remember we are always on hand if you experience any issues with your training. The office is manned from 9am – 5pm Monday to Friday, and emails are checked throughout the day.
