Professional development
Professional Development Goals, and the Workshops That Reach Them
Sixteen goals corporate teams set most often, from leadership to time management, each matched to a facilitated workshop from our 30 professional development programs. Half day or full day, at your site or online, for any group size.
- 10,000+ programs delivered since 2010
- Professional hosts and facilitators on every program
- Groups from 30 to 6,000+
- No added travel costs in the continental U.S.
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Tell us about your group
Rough headcount, city and date are plenty. A program specialist replies the same business day.
- Workshops & trainings
- 30
- Half-day format
- 3 to 4 hours
- Full-day format
- 6 hours to one day
- Group size
- Any
- Delivery
- On site or online
How does a professional development goal become a training day?
You name the goal and we match the program. Goals about self-awareness and working styles run on an assessment workshop: DiSC, Myers-Briggs (MBTI), Strength Finders or Colors, each 3 to 4 hours with a certified trainer. Goals about a specific skill run on a skills workshop: Presentation Skills, Conflict Resolution, Time Management, Meeting Management, Delegation Styles or Essential Supervisory Skills for new managers.
Goals about how the team works together run on an experiential training. Competition to Collaboration® and Igniting Team Performance® put the group through a progressive series of initiatives, then a processing discussion draws out the lessons the team identifies itself. Every program is facilitated by a BEST trainer, at your site or over video conferencing.
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See the DiSC Workshop
The assessment workshop most teams start with: how each person communicates, and how colleagues hear it.
Sixteen professional development goals, and the program for each
The goals below come up in almost every conversation we have with HR and team leaders. Each card names the program that builds it and how long it runs, so you can see what a half day or a full day buys.
Build leadership skills
The responsibilities and skills a new manager needs, from delegation to difficult conversations.
Essential Supervisory Skills3 to 4 hoursStrengthen communication across teams
Each person learns how they communicate and how colleagues hear it, with a shared language to use after.
DiSC Workshop3 to 4 hoursDevelop emotional intelligence
Each member understands their E.Q. and how to use it for growth and better working relationships.
Emotional Intelligence Training3 to 4 hoursSupport continuous learning
Natural strengths, identified and put to work. One assessment workshop a quarter builds the habit.
Strength Finders3 to 4 hoursManage time better
The techniques for the individual working day, in a world that keeps interrupting it.
Time Management Workshop3 to 4 hoursRun meetings that end on time
Agendas, preparation, running the room and following through, for the hours a team loses in meetings.
Meeting Management3 to 4 hoursResolve conflict and mediate
Turn a bump in the road into a conversation rather than lost productivity and long-term animosity.
Conflict Resolution TrainingOne DayPresent with confidence
Every participant presents and receives feedback, with time to try again.
Presentation Skills Training6 hoursSharpen problem-solving
Sub-group initiatives built on strategy and decision-making under time pressure, then processed as a room.
Competition to Collaboration®2.5 to 3 hoursBoost collaboration
A progressive series of team initiatives with a rich processing discussion after each.
Igniting Team Performance®2 to 3 hoursCoach rather than direct
A coaching style that makes the goals conversation between a manager and each report routine.
Delegate and set people up to succeed
Diagnose what each employee needs, delegate the right work, and follow through.
Delegation Styles3 to 4 hoursAdapt to remote and hybrid work
Lead and manage a virtual team, delivered live over video conferencing.
Leading Virtual Teams3 to 9 hoursWork across differences
Personality preferences explained: how differently people take in information and decide, and how to work with it.
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Training3 to 4 hoursRead the team at a glance
A quick four-quadrant behavioral assessment, done in the session or in advance, for teams new to assessments.
Colors Behavioral Assessment3 to 4 hoursGive better feedback, remotely
Coaching and feedback that stays engaging and effective when the team is on a screen.
Virtual Coaching and Feedback3 to 6 hours
How a goals-based training day runs
- Tell us the goals
- Use the form on this page. Name the goals, the group and the time you have, and how you would like the session personalized.
- We propose the program and the facilitator
- You get the workshop that fits, its length and room setup, and a facilitator who teaches it.
- Pre-work where the program uses an assessment
- DiSC, MBTI and Strength Finders participants complete their assessment in advance; Colors can be done during the session.
- The session
- Classroom style or round tables for a workshop, indoors or outdoors for an experiential program, or live over video conferencing for a distributed team.
- The processing discussion
- Every program closes with the discussion that connects what happened in the room to the goal the team set.
Goals for managers, for whole teams, or for individuals
- Managers: Essential Supervisory Skills, Delegation Styles, Manager’s Guide to Business Coaching and Leading Virtual Teams.
- Whole teams: DiSC, MBTI, Colors, Strength Finders, Competition to Collaboration® and Igniting Team Performance®.
- Individuals within a team: Presentation Skills Training, Time Management Workshop and Emotional Intelligence Training.
- Distributed teams: the virtual editions of DiSC, Presentations, Coaching and Feedback and Competition to Collaboration®, for groups up to 20 to 25.
Programs that meet these goals
Twelve of the 30 professional development programs, in person or virtual. The full list is on the professional development page.
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Training
Our MBTI training workshop uses the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) assessment to help individuals and teams uncover their personality preferences…
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DiSC Workshop
The DiSC Workshop is a powerful professional development experience designed to enhance individual self-awareness, improve team communication, and…
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Strength Finders
Strength Finders is a personality and talent assessment that helps individuals identify their natural strengths and how to use them effectively in…
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Emotional Intelligence Training
An Emotionally Intelligent company is one in which each member understands their Emotional Quotient (E.Q.) and how best to tap into it for…
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Essential Supervisory Skills
Our Essential Supervisory Skills workshop covers the essential responsibilities of a supervisor, and enhancing the skills that are required for new…
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Presentation Skills Training
The ability to present effectively can mean the difference between career development that’s limited and one with continuing growth and opportunities.
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Conflict Resolution Training
Managing conflict can be the difference between a simple “bump in the road” or lost productivity and long-term animosity in the workplace.
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Time Management Workshop
While technology has revolutionized how the world does business, it has also created a crisis in time management.
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Meeting Management
This one-day workshop focuses on the three steps necessary to manage meetings effectively, including creating agendas and preparation, how to run the…
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Delegation Styles
This Delegation Styles course discusses how to better diagnose employees’ needs, effectively delegate, and set them up for success.
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Manager’s Guide to Business Coaching
Constructive guidance and consistent coaching are critical responsibilities of all managers, but the best managers have a coaching style which is…
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Competition to Collaboration®
Our engaging, trademarked training program that highlights the positive impacts of organizational synergy, both in sharing best practices and…
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The Igniting Team Performance event at the One Ocean Resort yesterday was “Outstanding”!! Your lead facilitator did an incredible job in getting that event completed in 2 hours. Our client was absolutely thrilled with the exercise and the results. The great debrief overview at the end and the client was very impressed. I watched and saw the team morph from ‘oh here we are another event again’ to totally immersed in the exercises and the results. The client was providing feedback and commentary on what they were learning, etc. I was in the corporate world for over 33 years and never had a team-building event done as exceptional this one. Truly remarkable, I was very impressed. I can really se
Gary
Active Escapes
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Frequently asked questions
Which professional development goal should a team start with?
Self-awareness, in most cases. A DiSC or MBTI workshop gives the team a shared language for how each person works, and the communication, conflict and leadership goals that follow build on it.
Can one day cover more than one goal?
Yes. A half-day workshop in the morning and a 2 to 3 hour experiential program such as Competition to Collaboration® in the afternoon fit inside one day with the same facilitation team, so a communication goal and a collaboration goal can share a date.
How do you match a goal to a program?
You tell us the goals, the group and the time you have in the form on this page. We reply with the workshop that fits, its length and setup, and the facilitator who teaches it.
Do DiSC and MBTI need pre-work?
Participants complete the assessment in advance so the session starts with results in hand. The workshop, its design, preparation and a certified trainer are included; the assessment and profile materials are an additional cost per participant.
Are these programs for managers only?
No. Essential Supervisory Skills, Delegation Styles and Business Coaching are built for managers. DiSC, MBTI, Strength Finders and the experiential programs are for whole teams, and Presentation Skills and Time Management suit any individual.
How large a group can a workshop take?
Classroom workshops run for any group size, sized to the room. Virtual workshops take 20 to 25. Competition to Collaboration® has run for groups of 1,000 or more.
Can the session use our own goals and language?
Yes. The intake asks how you want the program personalized, and the facilitator builds the examples and the processing discussion around the goals your team set.
Where do the programs run?
At your site or a venue you choose, or live over video conferencing for a distributed team. Delivered nationwide with no added travel costs in the continental U.S.
Tell us the goals
Send the goals you want the team to reach, the group and the time you have. We reply with the workshop, the facilitator and a plan for the day.