Theme: Communication

This course is about recharging your communication. It will cover:

• Determine what effective communication means. Where do we start?
• How to strengthen the relationships most important to us; work & home
• Defusing difficult conversations; How to respond to difficult behaviour
• The power of Active Listening to understand and communicate meaning more effectively

Successfully managing upwards depends on your confidence, diplomacy and influencing skills.

This workshop will empower you to handle tricky situations with your manager or colleagues:

• Benefits of ‘managing up’, what’s in it for you and them?
• Agreeing priorities and setting realistic expectations and boundaries
• Influencing when you don’t have authority
• Getting clarity on delegated work and appreciating the difficulties colleagues may be facing
• Challenging decisions in a way that is solutions-focussed and enables an open two-way discussion

You will also learn how to adapt to different personal styles in order to build an effective working relationship and understand how different drivers and motivators may affect someone else’s thinking, (why do they do that?).

Email is a problem that is hiding in plain sight. We all use email every day. Yet, too often, email fails to be the effective communication tool it deserves to be.

In this intensive, practical session, we’ll show you how to produce effective communications. You will leave the session to:

• easily build a logical structure into emails and letters
• write clearer responses that result in fewer escalations
• get your message across, whatever you’re writing
• match your tone and level of language precisely to each reader

and much more!

The workshop includes a pre-course individual writing analysis to help identify areas for improvement.

Come along to our lunchtime session for an explainer and an introduction to AI tools that could be useful to you. We will present some examples of using them in our work in communications and service delivery, and talk about why we all need to follow simple guidelines to maximise the benefits and minimise possible harms. There will be time for discussion so if you are already experimenting or using any AI tools then please bring and share an update of your experiences.

At work and at home, it’s all too easy to speak and act without thinking – and then regret it afterwards. Acting on instinct can lead us to behave aggressively or passively. Both of these are generally unhelpful for our own reputation and for our relationships with others.

Communicating Assertively will show you how to avoid both extremes and instead to use assertive behaviour to build constructive and respectful working relationships.

This online course will help you understand the assertive mindset and highlight what assertiveness looks and sounds like.

View a short trailer for the online course.

"It all boils down to communication", how many times have we heard that phrase? This interactive online module is packed full of useful tips and practical examples to help you get your point across more clearly, ask the right questions and listen better to what others have to say.

The course introduces you to the key concepts of communication skills through a variety of media, offering those new to this topic a solid grounding in the essentials, as well as a great refresher for more experienced communicators.

If you’re short of time and just need the basics, or you want to explore things in a bit more detail, the versatile structure of this course offers you the flexibility to learn in the way that best fits with your schedule.

View a short trailer for the course.

We all have challenging conversations from time to time that we dread. Wishing it would go away rarely works. Having a clear strategy can make all the difference. This workshop is designed to give you the skills and confidence to have a meaningful, productive conversation at work.

This 90 minute scenario-based training, incorporating forum theatre, aims to entertain and inform. You will be watching a live work based conversation and have the opportunity to give feedback and interact with the ‘characters’ to understand and develop a positive outcome. By the end of this webinar you will have a better understanding of how a difficult conversation can go wrong and how to put it right.

We will explore how the best intentions can sometimes go wrong. We will help you build a solid technique to get it right.

The main session is for 90 minutes, followed by optional time for further discussion and Q&A with the trainer.

Great team work and individual working relationships are what we all want, but things don’t always run smoothly. We may find ourselves disagreeing with someone over work or behaviours. We may want to tell them how we feel but don’t quite know how to go about it. Sometimes we decide not to have the conversation at all, which can lead to a small problem escalating in to something bigger, more persistent and harder to resolve.

Having honest and open conversations is not always easy and can sometimes lead to a misunderstanding, bad feelings and resentment. On this workshop, using forum theatre with a scenario acted out, we will explore what can go wrong and how to put right. With your interactions, we will help you develop techniques for a constructive conversation that helps to build long-lasting effective relationships and to build trust within the team.

Feedback Model: Bitesize

PPD bitesize resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face events and more in-depth online modules.

Feedback Tips: Bitesize

PPD bitesize resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face events and more in-depth online modules.

Giving effective feedback to your team members is one of the key responsibilities of anyone who supervises or manages others. It improves performance, boosts morale and can help people to do their job to the best of their ability.

This course is full of key tips to help you give feedback that is supportive, constructive and helpful and incorporates instructional film resources to help you apply what you have learned. It also focuses on how to avoid common mistakes when giving feedback to others and how to receive feedback well.

High Performance Influencing Model: Bitesize

PPD bitesize resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face events and more in-depth online modules.

Leadership Essentials is a key programme suitable for those with responsibilities for the work, behaviour and development of others. The programme aims to help managers refresh and build their skills and experience in this area, as well as clarifying key responsibilities of manager and leader. It focuses on critical areas, such as giving and receiving feedback effectively and handling challenging conversations, using leadership styles and models to support individuals and teams. The programme incorporates tutor input; opportunities for discussion, case studies, reflection and sharing of good practice with others with similar responsibilities. It also includes curated e-learning resources to support managers with their ongoing learning and development.

Participants are required to attend both half day sessions.

A LinkedIn Learning course on Crucial Conversations, curated by PPD.

This is provided by the University of Cambridge subscription to LinkedIn Learning.

Please note that your training record on LinkedIn Learning will not currently be available via your training record within the University Training Booking System (UTBS).

A LinkedIn Learning course on Demonstrating Dignity at Work, curated by PPD.

This is provided by the University of Cambridge subscription to LinkedIn Learning.

Please note that your training record on LinkedIn Learning will not currently be available via your training record within the University Training Booking System (UTBS).

A LinkedIn Learning course on Effective and Assertive Communication, curated by PPD.

This is provided by the University of Cambridge subscription to LinkedIn Learning.

Please note that your training record on LinkedIn Learning will not currently be available via your training record within the University Training Booking System (UTBS).

A LinkedIn Learning course on Leadership and Management – Feedback Skills, curated by PPD.

This is provided by the University of Cambridge subscription to LinkedIn Learning.

Please note that your training record on LinkedIn Learning will not currently be available via your training record within the University Training Booking System (UTBS).

For many people having challenging conversations can be difficult and feel uncomfortable; however the ability to be able to talk about sensitive and emotive issues is an integral part of effective line management and can be critical to managing performance, promoting attendance and improving team dynamics.

This course will give you some practical steps to help you handle these conversations better and, where possible, get the right outcome for you, the individual and the University.

Negotiation - An Overview: Bitesize

PPD bitesize resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face events and more in-depth online modules.

Networking: Bitesize

PPD bitesize resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face events and more in-depth online modules.

Do you dread speaking in public or giving presentations? Or are you looking to build on your current skills and experience to make your planning and delivery more effective? This course aims to develop your skills, knowledge and confidence in both formal and informal presentation situations e.g. meetings, training sessions and conferences.

This online course provides an opportunity to explore key areas in both preparation and delivery of presentations.

Question Types: Bitesize

PPD bitesize resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face events and more in-depth online modules..

Questioning Technique: Bitesize

PPD bitesize resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face events and more in-depth online modules.

When Communication Goes Wrong: Bitesize

PPD bitesize resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face events and more in-depth online modules.

A curated collection of recommended courses by Researcher Development as part of the University of Cambridge's subscription to LinkedIn Learning.

The collection can be accessed here.

You've got interesting research to share - but is anyone listening?!

Presenting your research is an essential skill for a researcher, be it with your peers, at a major conference, or even to a classroom of schoolchildren. This online toolkit covers a whole range of performance and presentation techniques for you to work through and incorporate into your presentations, in your own time. From crafting a story to handling the dreaded Q&A, there's guaranteed to be something there to help you improve your presentations.

Outcomes

• Understand how to create a compelling presentation
• Know some practical tips for giving an engaging performance
• Understand how to continue improving with each presentation

How to Access the Course

You will need to use the following enrolment key at the link below: PST_21on

Enrol onto the Presentation Skills Toolkit (Moodle)

A CRSid / Raven password is needed to access this online course. If you don't have one, please get in touch at researcher.development@admin.cam.ac.uk.

Engaged Researcher has moved to Inkpath

To view the information about the course and book your place: https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/#/redirect/eyJuYW1lIjoiQWN0aXZpdHlEZXRhaWxQYWdlIiwicGFyYW1zIjp7ImlkIjoyMzU2NH19

To view all the Engaged Researcher courses open for booking:

1) head over to Inkpath (https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/)

2) select 'single sign-on', choose University of Cambridge, and log in with Raven

3) search 'Engaged Researcher' to find all of our courses currently open for booking.

Once upon a time there was a researcher who spun a story so enthralling that it captured their audience’s imagination and they remembered the research for years to come.

Was that researcher you? Would you like it to be?

Telling a good story helps you connect with an audience; brings your research to life, visually and emotionally; and makes it easier for them to listen, understand and remember your research.

This module takes you through the art and science of storytelling: understanding attention, motivation and the evolution of storytelling, the strength of non-verbal connections, dramatic structures and rhetorical devices; to give you the skills to craft an engaging story to communicate your own research.

And if you want to apply this on a specific story of your own, then further support is available through individual coaching.

Sarah is passionate about the art and science of communication and eloquential is her rattle bag of knowledge, skills and experience which she uses to train, coach and facilitate. Sarah collects research from areas such as psychology and neuroscience, along with practitioners’ experience from the performing arts to fill her bag of tricks, tips and advice. Sarah has been involved in public engagement since 2006, working closely with the Cambridge University. She is also a peripatetic teacher of communication and performance skills in schools, and a co-host of a podcast called Gin and Topic

Engaged Researcher has moved to Inkpath

To book your place:

https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/#/redirect/eyJuYW1lIjoiQWN0aXZpdHlEZXRhaWxQYWdlIiwicGFyYW1zIjp7ImlkIjoyMzU1OX19

Please note that this course will be held in person.

To find all the Engaged Researcher courses open for booking:

1) head over to Inkpath (https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/)

2) select 'single sign-on', choose University of Cambridge, and log in with Raven

3) search 'Engaged Researcher' to find all of our courses currently open for booking.

Practical extension of the Research Storytelling theory session to put knowledge into practice with your own research. This includes individual coaching, peer mentoring sessions, and a final showcase session which also looks at the next steps to take these stories further. Attendees must have already attended the Research Storytelling Introduction session or the Research Storytelling course delivered in the past years. 20-min one-to-one sessions with the trainer on 20 or 21 October must be booked directly with the trainer.

The course will be led by Sarah Cruise. Sarah is passionate about the art and science of communication and eloquential is her rattle bag of knowledge, skills and experience which she uses to train, coach and facilitate. Sarah collects research from areas such as psychology and neuroscience, along with practitioners experience from the performing arts to fill her bag of tricks, tips and advice. Sarah has been involved in public engagement training since 2006, working closely with Cambridge University. She is also a peripatetic teacher of communication and performance skills in schools and a co-presenter on the Gin & Topic podcast.

Engaged Researcher has moved to Inkpath

To view course information and book your place:

https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/#/redirect/eyJuYW1lIjoiQ291cnNlRGV0YWlsUGFnZSIsInBhcmFtcyI6eyJpZCI6MTE5fX0=

To view all the Engaged Researcher courses open for booking:

1) head over to Inkpath (https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/)

2) select 'single sign-on', choose University of Cambridge, and log in with Raven

3) search 'Engaged Researcher' to find all of our courses currently open for booking.

Have you ever thought about telling your research story through the universal language of photography?

This training will help you reach diverse audiences even simply by taking photographs with a smartphone! The workshop will look at how you can use photography as a tool to translate the key messages in your research work, the different styles and techniques to do so, and basic technical & software editing skills to perfect your shots.

You will have the opportunity for a one-to-one 20-minute session with the trainer where you can discuss your ideas and questions and get project specific help.

The training will be led by Domininkas Zalys. Dom’s career in the creative industry began in Florence and further developed studying photography at the Cambridge School of Art. Dom has worked with Wired Magazine, Jordan Belford, Prof Stephen Hawking, and many more established people and businesses around the world.

Engaged Researcher has moved to Inkpath

To view course information and book your place:

https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/#/redirect/eyJuYW1lIjoiQ291cnNlRGV0YWlsUGFnZSIsInBhcmFtcyI6eyJpZCI6MTIxfX0=

To view all the Engaged Researcher courses open for booking:

1) head over to Inkpath (https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/)

2) select 'single sign-on', choose University of Cambridge, and log in with Raven

3) search 'Engaged Researcher' to find all of our courses currently open for booking.

This is an in-person event.

This training will introduce you to the world of visual communication. We will look at visualising data versus visualising abstract concepts and think about appropriateness! How can you simplify a huge body of research into something that is visually enticing to people outside of your field? In this training you will learn how to create visual metaphors that illustrate your research as well as the basics of frame by frame and stop motion animation so that you may turn these illustrations into short animated gifs.

This event is Online only.

Why is YouTube popular? Because people love watching videos. A research video can be a great way to get your message across to your collaborators, your friends, and the wider world as well as being a condition of some funding bodies.

But it isn't easy to do well - and this is where this course will make a difference. Come along and learn the skills needed to plan, shoot & edit high quality footage for research videos so that your video can stand out from the crowd. You just need yourself, a camera phone and your enthusiasm!

You will have the opportunity for a one-to-one 30-minute session with the trainer where you can discuss your ideas and questions and get project specific help.

The course will be led by Ryd Cook. Ryd is a multi award winning film director, actor and mentor. His fiction and documentary films have screened in film festivals around the world. He has 15+ years of experience, filming, editing and producing a range of films. He has also been teaching practical filmmaking for over 10 years for all ages. He currently works as a director, cameraperson, actor and mentor.

Communicating your research via the media can be an effective way of reaching a wide audience. This workshop will help you understand what makes a news story and what to expect when engaging with the media. It will provide tips to help you tell your story most effectively and ensure your research is reported accurately, as well as explaining how the University can support you.

Engaged Researcher has moved to Inkpath

To view course information and book your place:

https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/#/redirect/eyJuYW1lIjoiQWN0aXZpdHlEZXRhaWxQYWdlIiwicGFyYW1zIjp7ImlkIjoyNTQ0M319

To view all the Engaged Researcher courses open for booking:

1) head over to Inkpath (https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/)

2) select 'single sign-on', choose University of Cambridge, and log in with Raven

3) search 'Engaged Researcher' to find all of our courses currently open for booking.

Please note that this course might be held in person.

This course will cover how to use Social Media tools for Public Engagement.

The course will be delivered by Anu Hautalampi, a communications specialist with a focus on social media. Anu was the first Head of Social Media and AV for the University of Cambridge and created the University’s social media strategy. She currently leads on social media for UN Women globally.

This training is aimed at users who already run one or more social media accounts and are looking to develop their strategic approach. We will consider and discuss your current goals and audiences for social media and assess the current performance of your social media channels. We will look at gaps and share ideas around tactics to grow your reach and engage your followers.

The course will be delivered by Anu Hautalampi, a communications specialist with a focus on social media. Anu was the first Head of Social Media and AV for the University of Cambridge and created the University’s social media strategy. She currently leads on social media for UN Women globally.

Engaged Researcher has moved to Inkpath

To see course information and book your place:

https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/#/redirect/eyJuYW1lIjoiQ291cnNlRGV0YWlsUGFnZSIsInBhcmFtcyI6eyJpZCI6MTExfX0=

To see all the Engaged Researcher courses open for booking:

1) head over to Inkpath (https://webapp.inkpath.co.uk/)

2) select 'single sign-on', choose University of Cambridge, and log in with Raven

3) search 'Engaged Researcher' to find all of our courses currently open for booking.

Are you struggling to engage with public audiences beyond the usual suspects? Do you want to widen your professional network? Could you be the authoritative voice in your field? If these questions resonate with you then podcasting could be the answer. This training will give you all the skills, tools and information you need to get started with creating a compelling podcast, keep going after the first flurry of excitement, and increase your overall impact. The training will be led by Dr Anna Ploszajski, an award-winning materials scientist, writer, presenter, podcaster, performer, trainer and storyteller based in London.

The aim of this session is to start a conversation on underserved audiences and the role of public engagement. This training is based on the 'Discover/Play/Discuss' trilogy and participants can expect a workshop and discussion.

This course is led by Vanessa Mignan Jenkins. Vanessa is an independent trainer and social inclusion consultant for science engagement institutions. Vanessa uses her cross-cultural expertise to support institutions working outside their comfort zone. "I believe that even if inclusion is a serious matter, we can explore it in a lively, secure and even playful way."