With a mixture of other trainees from a range of organisations by booking a place on a public session open to all. Think scheduled airline.
With colleagues exclusively from your own organisation by booking a private group session. Think charter airline.
One-to-one with a trainer by booking a largely off-the-peg session just for you or a colleague. Think up the front with the pilot!
By booking bespoke coaching and/or mentoring sessions by the hour. Think holding all the controls.
And soon there'll be a fifth option: by sitting one of our self-guided online courses. They're authored by the same experts who facilitate our live courses but are designed to be taken at your own pace and in your own time with the same access to our brilliant client-only training resources. Think flight simulator.
BOOKING - AS EASY AS 1, 2, 3, 4, (5)...
All you have to do is navigate to the course of your choice and opt for your preferred delivery method. Or weigh up the pros and cons and prices of each option first.
ZOOM, TEAMS, WEBEX...
We use a range of platforms to deliver our interactive, facilitator-led training - live from our brand new, purpose-built, online training studio. Our first choice is Zoom because we reckon it's the easiest for non-techy trainees to get to grips with. But we know some organisations are concerned about its security so, within reason, we're happy to use whatever system you choose.
NOT INTO THE BOOM ZOOM?
We absolutely get that not everybody wants the live, interactive experience of our virtual training studio; that some of you would much rather learn at your own pace, in your own time, in private. So we’re also authoring a series of self-guided courses - the fifth option mentioned above. Think of them as a series of videos – each one in the box set short enough not to induce screen blindness or deep vein thrombosis. If at any point you’d like a bit of supplementary one-to-one help from our trainers then you only have to ask.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE PANDEMIC IS ALL OVER?
One thing’s for sure – we'll continue to offer online training. We think that for a whole heap of reasons virtual is not just the unavoidable present but the future too. Which is why we've invested in a brand new virtual training studio. That said we know that some of you may be hoping for our face-to-face workshops to restart. All we can say for now is they may! But not in a hurry. And not until it's entirely safe. So why wait to fulfil those urgent training needs? Book an online course today.
ONLINE COURSE LIST
Here's a list of all the courses we're currently offering online. Some are scheduled to book as open courses in the coming weeks and months. Others operate a waitlist system or are available only to order. Click on the magnifying glass to see a short overview of each course or on the name to read the full description.
A hugely practical and highly effective online workshop where, with no more than five other delegates, you'll learn how to: stay in control of media interviews; discover techniques to focus on your key messages instead of worrying too much about the questions you're asked; and find ways to deliver those messages in a clear, concise and compelling manner. All without sounding like a slippery politician!
Awkward customers. Prickly colleagues. Meddlesome managers. Difficult behaviour can manifest itself in many ways in the workplace. But whoever it comes from, one thing’s for certain: the stress it causes can really hurt - even to the extent of illness and absenteeism. It also takes its toll on productivity and can be extremely time consuming. So, in this virtual training course you’ll learn how to deal rationally with difficult people whose behaviour can become demanding and aggressive. Find out how to say no and mean no. Discover how to be more assertive. Develop skills to cope by not taking things personally. And recognise the key stages in conflict escalation.
Listening, like all skills, can be mastered through guidance, practice and persistence. This three hour practical and cost-effective online course is designed around numerous examples of good and bad listening techniques so delegates can see clearly which methods work and which do not. All sessions include exercises to allow delegates to practice the listening skills discussed. Delegates will explore listener personalities, types of listening, bad listening habits, toxic words, questioning skills to encourage constructive conversations and much more.
For press and PR people, heads of departments/services and senior managers who already have a good understanding of the interview process – in particular the importance of identifying key messages and “selling” those messages through techniques such as repetition. The workshop will build on existing skills and benefit anybody who may have to represent their organisation in times of emergency and/or crisis. Participants are likely to have been interviewed many times before on radio and by the print media but perhaps have less experience in front of camera.
For those who've already been on our (or other) presentation skills course or have reached an intermediate skill level through experience and want to lift their presentations to the next level. Delegates will, in particular, get to explore the use of storytelling (narrative) as a way of engaging their audience in a powerful and compelling way.
If you find yourself saying yes when you should really be saying no or saying sorry when no apology is warranted then this course is for you. Learn how to be more assertive and say what you mean without worrying that you might cause offence.
There's never been a better time to start a blog. Professionally blogging can boost your business. Personally it can promote you. In both cases it can be fun. Or at least it should be! In this online short course you'll learn how to tackle the twin challenges facing bloggers: the technical and the editorial.
Hour-long interview sessions via Zoom aimed at those who've already attended our (or other companies) broadcast media training and want to develop their broadcast skills further. Can be booked as a one-off session, perhaps as a dress rehearsal in advance of a significant real life interview or as a series of sessions over a period of weeks or months.
This course is aimed at individuals and organisations who may have to deal with the media during a crisis, whether that event is externally triggered – for example, by a so-called “act of God” – or internally by some kind of error, omission or malpractice. Participants are likely to be experienced in media and communications or hold senior management positions. During a crisis their roles may be public-facing or behind-the-scenes. Attendance is strongly recommended for staff from organisations such as local authorities, health trusts and housing associations that have a legal obligation to plan and prepare for emergencies under the Civil Contingencies Act.
We all find ourselves handling awkward conversations from time to time. The natural response is to avoid such discussions. But avoidance is often the worst option. This course will show you the right options.
This virtual training course is designed to help delegates improve their management and leadership skills. You'll learn how to influence and motivate others to achieve exceptional performance and increased productivity. You may be new to the role or perhaps have had some practical experience of leadership and management but, would like to gain new skills, knowledge and attitudes required to move onto the next level.
More and more of us are finding ourselves working alone - either from home or in the field. The law requires employers to consider carefully, and then deal with, any health and safety risks for people working alone. If you work alone, particularly visiting clients or service users, then this course is a must. It's also ideal for those responsible for ensuring the health and safety of lone workers in their organisation.
This practical and effective course is aimed at those who are managing awkward or dysfunctional teams. It can take just one difficult team member, or someone who displays challenging behaviour, for a team to stop performing and lead to low productivity. If you are managing a difficult team, which will ultimately reflect badly on you, then this course is an ideal way to learn how to turn things around.
Aimed at anyone who needs answers or training in a hurry. You may have been asked to appear on Newsnight tonight, The Today Programme tomorrow morning or BBC News may call to say they're sending a reporter to your home or office in three hours. A media coaching session with will optimise your chances for a winning on-air experience.
An ability to handle the media is increasingly becoming a key competency in the recruitment of senior personnel in both the public and private sectors. ACM Training offers tailor-made media exercises that enable selection panels to assess the ability of candidates in a fair, objective and transparent manner.
This practical online course is designed to help delegates to understand the principles of mediation and negotiation, the differences between being a mediator and a negotiator and the benefits of a mediation approach in the workplace. Disputes happen. That's life. But people often aren’t good at negotiation, or are so determined to get their own way at the expense of others that the dispute spirals out of control. Most of the time people sort things out by talking, active listening, compromising and collaborating. But, when that doesn’t work, we get stuck in a dispute, which can, often quickly turn disruptive, not only to those involved, but the wider team. Any unhealthy conflict is stressful, costly and distracting.
This course is aimed at anyone who wants to become a more effective negotiator, or who has the responsibility for mediating between two parties in dispute, as well as at those organisations who want a valuable resource of trained staff who can be offered as mediators, saving on the cost of employing outside agencies. It will provide an opportunity to practice key skills of effective mediation and negotiation, in a safe and engaging environment. Delegates will develop confidence in managing everyday workplace conflicts and be able to reduce grievances and disputes.
Giving a presentation fills most of us with dread. Even the thought of standing up in front of a few colleagues (or, these days, sitting down in front of a webcam) can turn our legs to jelly. So, the prospect of speaking to an audience of hundreds can render normally calm and coherent individuals into gibbering, nervous wrecks. It doesn't need to be this way. Say hello to your nerves. Embrace them and turn the energy they bring into something productive rather than destructive. Let that energy stir your creative juices and make your next presentation – online or offline - extraordinary instead of ordinary. Memorable instead of forgettable. Enjoyable instead of tolerable (for you and the audience). But, most important of all, effective instead of ineffective.
How can you use Facebook to help you achieve your organisational aims and objectives? Can you Tweet for profit (or however else you measure success in your business)? Does blogging actually work and if so how should you go about it? Should I start a YouTube channel? What about pictures to Instagram? And isn't LinkedIn just a place for job seekers? If you've been grappling with these sorts of questions then this workshop is for you.
Rich or poor we all have the same when it comes to time: 24 hours a day, seven days a week. So how come there never seems to be quite enough of it? Because we fail to make the most of what we’ve got. This practical and effective online training course is designed to show delegates how to spend more time on important, value-adding tasks and less on time-consuming, unimportant ones.
Too much business writing is still formulaic, flowery or, worse still, both. It uses words nobody understands - least of all the writer. And lacks clarity and creativity. It doesn't have to be this way. If you want to write right this course is a must.
We don’t read like we used to. In a linear fashion. Line by line. Page by page. Chapter by chapter. These days words are viewed more on screens than they are on paper. The web has turned us into skimmers and dippers - skimming online content until we see something interesting and only then dipping deeper. Which presents writers with a huge challenge. Because reading differently means writing differently.
A well written press release can get you, your product or service in the editorial media for free. But how you actually write that news release can make the difference between success and failure.
Zoom has rapidly become the go-to platform for home workers everywhere. But few are using it and other services like Microsoft Teams to their full potential. So this three hour online workshop will help you make the most of the Zoom boom by guiding you through the technical, editorial and presentational barriers to effective communication.
Some courses are fiendishly difficult to categorise so if you can’t find what you’re looking for under this heading maybe it’s listed elsewhere. You can check on the complete range on our A-Z course finder page.
