11
O P I N I O N
Accelerated learning Ditch the lecture-and-listen style of training and replace it with something much more effective – the do-it-to-learn-it style.
I n the ultra-competitive AEC job market, professional growth is becoming the new perk. Employees and candidates – especially millennials – want to know how they can gain new skills in their roles that will lead to additional responsibilities and promotions.
Scott Johnston GUEST SPEAKER
style (pedagogy) rather than a do-it-to-learn-it style (andragogy). And because technical profes- sionals want to be expert at something before they do it, the binder of information goes in a drawer after the training, and people go back to their old habits. See SCOTT JOHNSTON, page 12 their roles that will lead to additional responsibilities and promotions.” “Employees and candidates – especially millennials – want to know how they can gain new skills in
What skills do they want? In a recent survey that Johnston Training Group conducted of engineering firms and engineers, asking what non-technical skills engineers desire and that firms value, communication ranked head and shoulders above the rest. And it’s no surprise. Communication includes business development, presentation, writing, and relationship skills – the soft skills that AEC technical professionals often struggle with. The selection panels we interview tell us over and over: “Everyone is qualified; we’re deciding whom we want to work with. If they can’t communicate effectively, it’s a deal-breaker.” PUT ON THE TRAINING WHEELS. The demand for improved communication skills inevitably leads to training. But training is often done in a lecture-and-listen
THE ZWEIG LETTER September 25, 2017, ISSUE 1217
Made with FlippingBook Annual report