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Welcome to Edinburgh Training and Conference Venue
Greetings!
Another thank you to all those who had something to say about using Twitter in the training world from September's E-newsletter. This time the spotlight is on another phenomenon, YouTube!
And if you've missed any of the articles about the catchy method of presenting - Pecha Kucha, or the new nemesis for PowerPoint - Prezi, or the training power of Twitter and would like a copy, please get in touch and I'd be delighted to send it to you.
Kind regards
Mike Glaire
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You've been Tubed!
YouTube, amazingly, is ranked as the second biggest search engine in the world after Google. But why should that fact make you want to slot this video sharing website in to your learning and development strategy?
Continuing with somewhat of a theme from previous e-newsletters on a few of the newer technologies for the training world, here again is an unexpected player, having risen to number three in the Centre for Learning and Performance Technologies' Top 100 Tools for 2009. Is that really a fair ranking or merely the views of a minority group of tech-hungry trainers? More...
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Train to Engage 
Has "employee engagement" become just another trendy term in the HR and training industry, best left to the Americans, or is it a critical success factor for your organisation?
Employee engagement has been viewed as a subject with ill-defined boundaries, yet when you learn that business units operating in the top half of employee engagement (compared to those in the bottom half) have 70% better productivity and 44% better profitability*, it must be worth taking note. More...
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You've been Tubed!
YouTube, amazingly, is ranked as the second biggest search engine in the world after Google. But why should that fact make you want to slot this video sharing website in to your learning and development strategy?
Continuing with somewhat of a theme from previous e-newsletters on a few of the newer technologies for the training world, here again is an unexpected player, having risen to number three in the Centre for Learning and Performance Technologies' Top 100 Tools for 2009. Is that really a fair ranking or merely the views of a minority group of tech-hungry trainers?
Less than a year old when it was bought by Google in November 2006 for $1.65 billion, YouTube has certainly taken root as a means of communicating ideas and lessons and its use as global depositary for everything from guitar lessons, cute animals, and more serious videos is likely to continue for the foreseeable future, says Jon Wilcox, writing for Training Zone in September.
So can you really use YouTube to improve the learning experience of your team? A few thoughts ...
Improving your presentations
Whilst there are plenty of videos offering you tips on how to engage with your delegates, there are plenty more opportunities to find footage that can be embedded into your presentation to illustrate a point of learning.
Using video footage to achieve this is not new of course, it's just the source of that footage that is different and the vast range of video content available on YouTube. Would that fresh approach appeal to some of your team and help you accelerate their learning?
Improving your follow-up
Could YouTube offer your trainers the chance to distribute post-learning reminders and tips to those delegates and line managers who have a smartphone with internet access? According to Verity Gough, writing for TrainingZone in September, mobile Learning is becoming quite established as a complimentary way of knowledge transfer, and is expected to continue to proliferate rapidly in the coming few years.
Your online library
Finally you could store individual video clips and indeed whole training presentations (converted to video) free of charge within your own account on YouTube. This way your team could re-access any element they need at any time, helping to further embed any training as well as aiding "informal learning"; another important element in the toolkit of the modern learning and development department!
Using YouTube as a storage facility relieves you of the additional bandwidth charges associated with storing video on your own site.
Tell us what you think
As always, do let us know what you think! Have you used YouTube? Will you use YouTube? Email to give us your views.
NB: Although the vast majority of non-music clips on YouTube are not subject to copyright regulations, you still need to be careful about copyright.
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Train to Engage
Has "employee engagement" become just another trendy term in the HR and training industry, best left to the Americans, or is it a critical success factor for your organisation?
Employee engagement has been viewed as a subject with ill-defined boundaries, yet when you learn that business units operating in the top half of employee engagement (compared to those in the bottom half) have 70% better productivity and 44% better profitability*, it must be worth taking note.
Sainsbury's experience
And to back that up, Sainsbury's HR Director, Imelda Walsh, revealed in People Management this month that their 10 stores with the highest employee engagement outperform others on sales, service, availability and absence, while those with the lowest engagement scores remain below target on the same measures.
Perhaps the whole subject came of age with the publication of the MacLeod Review "Engaging for Success" in July. This far-reaching report, commissioned by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills looked at the potential benefits of engagement.
Mandelson says
As business secretary, Lord Mandelson says in his foreword, "Only organisations that truly engage and inspire their employees produce world-class levels of innovation, productivity and performance". And the report has been the catalyst for the planning of a national awareness campaign to improve engagement across the nation, led by government.
They must be aware of research quoted in People Management, which found that 70% or more of the workforce in some successful organisations demonstrate attitudes of engagement ... though the average for the UK is between 30 and 50%!
Are your team engaged?
Engaged employees will be passionate about performing well, will go the extra mile to get the job done and keep your customers happy. They will consider themselves to be valued members of your team and will consistently give their best.
The relevance to learning & development?
The MacLeod review itself specifically recommends that managers at all levels should be trained in engagement and people skills and that placing employees' abilities and commitment at the heart of the organisation should be an underlying strategy.
And in November's Training Journal, Jane Sullivan specifically points out that "employees choose to engage, or not, based on their perception of the deal that exists for them in that relationship. After all, why engage if the understanding of reciprocity is not there. The provision of training and development is invariably a key ingredient in that deal."
Win Win
So, your organisation stands to gain from increased productivity and profitability, while for the employee, increased engagement could transform the lives of those for whom work is no more than a method of paying the bills!
*Curt Coffman and Gabriel-Molina in Follow This Path
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Art Car Parade? 
Yes! Come into Edinburgh this Saturday, November 28th and enjoy a packed weekend of festivities, including yet another first for Scotland - an electrifying Illuminated Art Car Parade.
This magnificent procession of vehicles of all shapes and sizes will be filled with light, colour, music and special effects as artists move their incredible creations through the heart of the city.
The Cars
You should expect to see an array of spectacular, surprising and mesmerising machines ... there's one covered completely in fake grass and a black cab made entirely of red corrugated rubber!
There will be an ice palace, a dragon car, a fish mobile, a crazy 'hall of mirrors' vehicle and many more eccentric creations.
The procession will feature a combination of existing vehicles, specially commissioned cars and new ones created by local Scottish artists and community groups, including a Robert Burns poetry van, and a Burke and Hare barrow.
Homecoming Year Finale
This dazzling parade marks the official launch of Edinburgh's Christmas programme, as well as taking pride of place in the finale weekend of celebrations for Homecoming Year.
In case you missed it, the year 2009 marks the 250th anniversary of the birth of Scotland's national poet and cultural icon Robert Burns and Burns is the inspiration behind the year-long celebration, Homecoming Scotland 2009.
As part of the Homecoming programme The Art Car Parade will celebrate Scotland's history of invention, culture and great contributions to the world including golf, whisky, great minds and innovation.
Where and when?
Starting at 5pm and brimming with light, colour, music and special effects, the electrifying procession will be pushed, pedalled and driven from St Giles Cathedral on the Royal Mile, past the Christmas Tree on the Mound, before weaving its way to the stage show finale at St Andrews Square Gardens.
There you will enjoy more events as part of the Homecoming Finale Weekend.
And if you want to get up close and personal, the cars will be on display at Parliament Square from 3pm.
For more information, click here
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Art Car Parade?
Yes! Come into Edinburgh this Saturday, November 28th and enjoy a packed weekend of festivities, including yet another first for Scotland - an electrifying Illuminated Art Car Parade.
This magnificent procession of vehicles of all shapes and sizes will be filled with light, colour, music and special effects as artists move their incredible creations through the heart of the city.
More...
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Mike Glaire
Edinburgh Training and Conference Venue
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All the Stationery
you need, when you need it
... Guaranteed!
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There's nothing more niggling than having to make do without that vital bit of stationery!
Of course you'll want a flip chart with at least two full pads of paper, an interactive white board in addition to a traditional one, and a selection of black, red, green and blue marker pens, all stored "nose down" to make sure the tips don't dry out ... and tested before you arrive!
And who knows what else you might need on the day?
Batteries, blue tac, brown tape, calculator, correctional fluid, document binders, drawing pins, highlighters, hole punch, pens, pencils, paper clips, post-it-notes, rubber bands, ruler, sellotape, stapler, staple remover, treasury tags?
It's all available. And if that still doesn't cover your needs, we'll just run out and pick something up.
So really you can just carry on with your event!
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Offer Expires: Whenever you tell us it's a bad idea!
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