Testimonials

“Seeing the enthusiasm the participants now have for learning. I know they have been sharing their new skills and knowledge with others, both in and out of the workplace. They have also been changing their own attitudes and behaviour, which has brought about changes for the better in others around them. Most have developed ownership of their learning and now feel empowered to find ways to continue developing their skills in the future.”

“There are several aspects of the programme that I am particularly proud of:

The final presentations showed great skill development and there was no ‘death by PowerPoint’! All participants showed fabulous confidence when speaking to the ‘stakeholder’ group.

Everyone completed the assessments by the deadline they were given.

The quality management projects were outstanding.”

“I was able to gain each learner’s trust and that the unit standard assessments were taught in accordance with all the requirements.”

“The positive response I received from my learners especially with regard to their appreciation of being enabled to use the computer confidently and creatively. The success level has been very rewarding; the learners far exceeded my expectation in developing their PowerPoint presentations. It has been an interesting two way learning curve and I have enjoyed having the opportunity to learn more about other cultures.”

“For me this was seeing the huge increase in confidence of the people I saw over the few weeks I had them, two in particular were very shy at our first session, they grew immensely in their personal development – and in their confidence. The two in question actually went into the sessions, a truly remarkable state as one had never used one before and the other felt embarrassed in front of his family because of his lack of knowledge in how to use one.”

Via the advanced leadership skills and the emerging leaders workplace training, SILC has given people the skills and initiative to solve problems, be good communicators and work more effectively. SILC tell us staff have loved the Edvance training.

“It’s really pertinent to their roles and they’re enjoying the material they’re working with. We’re getting some fantastic feedback and they enjoy the tutors too, so across the board it’s been brilliant.”

“Despite challenges attending the tutoring sessions, there are many positive changes: emails are more professional; the younger guys have opened up and there is more team spirit; the potential supervisor has stepped up and taken more responsibility, the manager is more able to step back now and work on the business not only in it.”

“I am really pleased with the assessment outcome for all learners but feel that the greatest success is the confidence the learners have gained and the motivation for further development. All learners have expressed a desire to aim for promotion and are keen to embark upon additional training.”

“My successes —there were successful OFI’s (opportunity for improvement) acknowledged by Fulton Hogan Head Office and there were many positive comments from Management. A change in attitude from the learners, i.e. a willingness to learn! Fulton Hogan may also be implementing a form I produced as a training aid and to assist drain layers working on commercial sites.”

“For me it was seeing the success and increased confidence of my learners and the positive interaction between the learners and myself. Also seeing new skills, processes, tools and quality management knowledge they’d learnt being integrated into their daily workplace.”

No wonder Edvance’s learners consistently meet or exceed the Tertiary Education Commission’s (TEC) targets.

When you have 20 staff members to oversee, good communication skills are vital.

Michelle Moir is a Service Manager at SILC and part of her role is to support staff, as well as people with disabilities, to live fulfilling lives.

This year she has undertaken Edvance’s ‘Skills for Leadership’ programme, which has helped improve her job satisfaction and performance.

“A lot of it for me has been about learning to communicate in better ways. It’s been really, really valuable. It’s definitely changed the way that I interact with people and has made my job easier.”

Michelle says she found the information about different personality types was particularly interesting, and feels she has improved her own listening, verbal and written communication skills as a result.

“Our tutors, Diana and Louise, have both been really nice. I would definitely recommend Edvance’s training programmes.”

SwitchedOn’s General Manager, Richard Coad, knows the value of effective workplace training.

His decision to partner with Edvance last year to upskill his workforce is one that’s paying off.

SwitchedOn is the training arm of Supported Individualised Lifestyle Choices (SILC Ltd) who employ 150 staff in the Bay of Plenty.

“SILC provides support for people who have physical and intellectual disabilities, to live in their homes and lead a quality life out in the community,” Richard explains.

“Their staff are really busy people and they often work independently. So if they encounter any difficulties or issues they need to be able to solve it on the spot.”

Edvance are running several training programmes with SILC, including advanced leadership skills, emerging leaders and workplace documentation.

“It’s not about asking staff to work harder, it’s about asking them to work smarter and giving them the tools to do it,” Richard says.

“We want people to have the skills and initiative to solve problems, be good communicators and work more effectively. It doesn’t matter what job you do, if you improve in these areas you become a more skilled worker.”

Richards says staff have loved the Edvance training. “It’s really pertinent to their roles and they’re enjoying the material they’re working with. We’re getting some fantastic feedback and they enjoy the tutors too, so across the board it’s been brilliant.”