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UPL launches Secrets of Effective Communicators training


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Developing Effective Behavior Change Communication (BCC) Programmes for the Workplace

Do you need help in developing audience-specific programmes to address health and wellness for the workplace? Or maybe you’ve already heard about Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) but are not sure how to apply the methodology to design and implement effective programmes.

This training is for you!

Developing Effective Behavior Change Communication (BCC) Programmes for the Workplace was designed to address the needs of professionals such as Managers and Officers in the areas of HIV Coordination; Employee Assistance; Communications; Human Resource Management; Occupational Safety and Health; and Industrial Relations.

Why this training?

Health and Wellness are workplace priorities. In Trinidad and Tobago, according to the Ministry of Health, chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer are the leading causes of death. Annually, six out of every ten deaths are due to a chronic disease and 71 per cent of new HIV infections occur in persons between the ages of 15 to 49 – the core of our working population.

Assessing and addressing health risk is therefore becoming a routine part of the risk management framework at the level of enterprise. Those charged with conducting these assessments ask questions such as what the implications to the company if our COO becomes HIV infected or suffers a heart attack? Substitute COO with VP of marketing, top mechanic, sous chef, the crackshot from IT, the award-winning creative director, permanent secretary, police officer, accountant executive, the top Agent, executive assistant, or investigative journalist.

For many organisations, the implications of chronic health diseases among the workforce can mean reduced income, decreased productivity, increased cost, and even loss of human capital. For sole traders or small and micro enterprises, the socio-economic impact of illness can threaten the organisation’s ability to continue as a going concern.

The workplace has been globally recognised as an ideal platform for delivering interventions that promote behavior change. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) defines Behaviour Change Communication as an interactive process for developing messages and approaches using a mix of communication channels in order to encourage and sustain positive behavior change.

In fact, according to the National Workplace Policy on HIV and AIDS for the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, action taken at the workplace can prevent new HIV infections and mitigate the socio-economic impact of HIV on productivity and development. Developing Effective Behavior Change Communication (BCC) Programmes for the Workplace is therefore timely, as provides participants with the tools they would need to build capacity and respond to the needs at their workplaces.

 

 

Training Description

Duration: August 14 to September 6, 2012

Two sessions per week: 9am – noon

Methodology: highly interactive; skill-building

Objectives

  1. At the end of the programme participants will:



Upstream Publications Limited (UPL) has partnered with Kathleen Fergusson-Joseph, founder of CommDev Ltd in the delivery of this training. A Behaviour Change Communication Specialist with 13 years experience, Kathleen, the lead facilitator, holds an Associate Degree in Nursing, and a Masters in Communication for Social and Behaviour Change from the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica. She has extensive experience in developing, designing and managing BCC interventions aimed at HIV prevention and youth development in the Caribbean region. A trained BCC facilitator for the ILO BCC Workplace Programme, Kathleen has been lecturing in the Masters in Health Promotion and Masters in Public Health at the University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus for the past three years.

UPL’s experience as a service provider who has used BCC methodologies in development of campaigns and materials, provides an additional layer of insight into the practical aspects of planning, designing and producing BCC material for the workplace.

Invest in your professional development. Graduates of this training will be well poised to take up leadership roles in the design and implementation of BCC interventions in their workplaces.

 

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More about the Facilitators


Effective Writing for Public Relations

Think about the time you've spent on press releases that never made the paper. And how about that newsletter project that's been in abeyance for the past year. If you feel that writing is just not your thing, we've exciting news for you.

Upstream Publications Limited has introduced a customised training programme that can boost your confidence in your ability to write so you can better contribute to your company's strategic goals. The Effective Writing for Public Relations workshop will equip the practitioner with the tools he needs to hunker down and complete all writing assignments.

PR managers spend millions of dollars outsourcing tasks that could have been handled in-house. Even when staffing is not an issue, a PR manager might still find herself farming out more work than she would like to.

The global realities of saturation and fragmentation have elevated the PR function to new levels of importance in the organisation. Practitioners must demonstrate that their PR acumen is up-to-date and that they are able to respond to the changes in their internal and external environment. The Effective Writing for Public Relations workshop is poised to help PR Managers and/or their team:

UPL's approach to this training is to customise the topics and course material covered to align with the needs of your organisation. The Principal Facilitator, Natasha Coker-Jones, is an experienced writer who began her career in journalism. She started UPL eleven years ago and has worked with a number of organisations to help them produce their newsletters, magazines, annual reports, and special-interest publications. UPL has also conceptualised, designed and produced materials for Behaviour Change Communication campaigns on behalf of its clients. Part of UPL's customised approach involves visiting your office to deliver the initial workshop. This is followed by one-to-one coaching sessions designed to help participants to successfully transition to more effective communication approaches.

 

Learn more about the Facilitator