CommsAbilities

Practical workshops for novice and experienced project and programme managers with communication responsibilities
 

Turning Projects Round Using Communications

 

Proven techniques to help you improve information flows between your team and the key people who can influence your project or programme's success

During our workshops you will learn practical tools and techniques to help you:

  • Create a communications plan that works in practice
  • Create a practical schedule of activities that your team can Implement
  • Engage with sponsors and senior executives
  • Persuade end users you project benefits them, their colleagues and customers
  • Demonstrate value from communication activities
  • Win internal publicity and recognition.

Available as in-house and open workshops

4 easy ways to book

Email support@sweeneycomms.com
Phone: +44 (0)20 8771 4050
Offline: Booking Form
Online: PayPal
 


Do any of the following sound familiar?

 “Our senior sponsors were really involved at the beginning but now part way through our project they seem to have a completely different set of priorities”

“Our biggest challenge is demonstrating return on investment and impact on the business without the high costs of analysis”

“As a result of failures of previous change initiatives there is a high degree of cynicism in our audiences”

“For us the big issue is working out who to communicate with and when. Who are the key stakeholders who need to know information now”

“Some people don’t like change and they are resisting even though our project will make a big difference to the way they work”

Now for some good news!

  We will spend lots of time working one-on-one and in small groups to resolve the challenges delegates face. They will leave with new ideas and skills they can implement immediately they step back into their teams.

Each workshop appeals to both project management professionals and people with project management responsibilities as part of their job.

What can you expect from our workshops

  • A structured approach that enables delegates to develop communication activities relevant to their projects/ programmes and audiences
  • Content tailored to the needs of delegates and delivered in a style that makes it easy to understand and apply
  • Practical tips, tools and techniques delegates can apply straightaway back in their teams to improve communications
  • Personal coaching for each delegate during the workshop to ensure we meet their individual needs
  • An invaluable reference manual with all the information covered during the workshop to help delegates implement their new knowledge and skills back in their work places
  • Informative and practical guides developed specially for each workshop giving more detail on key communication topics that managers often struggle with
  • Ongoing coaching and support following the workshop to help delegates work through any implementation issues they face.

For more information
Email support@sweeneycomms.com
Phone: +44 (0)20 8771 4050
Offline: Booking Form + info request

Download Brochure

 


Here are just some of the problems you will solve on these workshops

“Planning is theoretical and takes too long, it doesn’t work in our situation”

Communications planning doesn’t have to be like this. During the workshop you’ll create a simple plan that is directly relevant to your project and quickly wins the support of senior executives and your sponsor.

“Having a plan is easy compared to getting everyone to follow it”

Your plan will be clear and easy to use. Your team members will understand what needs to be done, by whom, by when, how and why. Plus they won’t need expertise to be involved in delivering the communication activities.

“We don’t have budget or support to run communication activities”

During the workshops you’ll learn how to make the most of the resources you do have, both in your own team and in other parts of your organisation. We’ll be doing a bit of lateral thinking that will reveal pockets of money, spare time, knowledge and skills that you can tap into.

“There’s no point as no one listens to what we say”

Discover techniques for putting yourself in your audiences’ shoes and learning how they like to be communicated with, as well as what keeps them awake at night. When you know this you can tailor your communications to their preferences and they’ll pay attention.

“Communications is under attack as being wasteful in the current climate”

Communications is always under attack because it is not a revenue-earning activity. During the workshops you’ll learn techniques that you can use to demonstrate to senior people, including accountants, that you are delivering value to the bottom line as well as to your organisation’s reputation. Once you know these techniques it will be much easier to win budget for future communication activities also.

“We have different communities of stakeholders who have different agendas”

Congratulations on realising you need to tailor communication activities to your different audiences. Join us and you’ll learn different ways to tailor activities so you keep their attention, overcome any resistance and persuade them to support you.

"There is lots going on, lots of priorities and sadly communications is seen as peripheral rather than core”

When we are under pressure it is easy to put our heads down and focus on tasks. But it is relationships between people that are at the heart of every project’s success. We’ll be sharing a variety of techniques that you can easily use to win and keep the support of key people.

“We’re battling cynicism following the unsuccessful delivery of a similar project five years ago”

Most end users will be sceptical until you show how your project benefits them, their colleagues and customers. We look at techniques for overcoming resistance and creating desire for change.

“Too much is going on making it difficult to communicate the importance of our project”

People will be interested when they can see the benefits for themselves. During this workshop we’ll look at both how to measure value and how to publicise your achievements in ways that capture the attention of your audiences.

 

For more information
Email support@sweeneycomms.com
Phone: +44 (0)20 8771 4050
Offline: Booking form + info request

DOWNLOAD BROCHURE


 What we’ll cover each day

Workshop One: Planning & Scheduling Activities that Win Audiences Over

Day One: Creating a communications plan that works in practice
  • Initial analysis - plotting a route between where you are and where you want to get to
  • Understanding key audiences - sponsors, senior executives & end users
  • Clarifying communication objectives and linking them to the bottom line
  • Deciding what to communicate - key messages and credibility
  • Creating a balanced portfolio of channels
Day Two: Creating a practical schedule of activities that your team can implement
  • Developing a schedule of communication activities
  • Creating content - online, print, audio, video
  • Managing production activities

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Workshop Two: Persuading Sponsors, Senior Executives and End Users to Support Your Project

Day One: Re-engaging senior executive support
  • Building personal credibility
  • Understanding their perspective
  • Getting executives involved in your project
  • Demonstrating benefits to them & to the business
Day Two: Persuading end users your project benefits them, their colleagues and customers
  • Understanding resistance
  • Reducing the risks for them
  • Creating desire for change
  • Creating opportunities for end users to get involved

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Workshop Three: Realising Benefits from Communicating Your Project

 Day One: Demonstrating return on investment for communication activities
  • Measuring & monitoring techniques that are not time consuming
  • Calculating a ROI that is relevant
  • Sustainable outcomes
  • Reporting upwards
Day Two: Winning internal publicity and recognition
  • Drawing attention to your successes
  • Identifying opportunities for publicity within the organisation
  • Creating story précis’s for print & online publications
  • Persuading editors & journalists to use your stories

BOOK NOW!

 

For more information
Email support@sweeneycomms.com
Phone: +44 (0)20 8771 4050
Offline: Booking Form + info request

DOWNLOAD BROCHURE

 


Introducing your Coach and Workshop Leader

Jo Ann Sweeney is a communications consultant who helps project teams develop activities that win the support of their sponsors, senior executives and end users.

 Her results-focused approach ensures communication activities achieve their objectives, meet audience expectations, make best use of resources and deliver value to reputation and the bottom line.

Since 1993 she has specialised in helping clients develop communication plans and activities that they are able to implement with the resources they have.

Projects have spanned skills development, new product launches, office relocations, redundancies and redeployment, polltical lobbying, technology rollouts and brand makeovers Clients include BT, OP2, Federation of Small Businesses, London Councils and Transport for London.

Jo Ann is committed to providing workshop delegates with practical tools that they can use as soon as they go back to their work places to improve project success.


 This is what clients say about Jo Ann:

 “Jo Ann is an outstandingly good communicator who brings strength, depth and considerable experience.”
K Runicles, BT

 “Jo Ann is a highly experienced public relations and communications professional who is able to distil complex ideas and terminology into clear, simple and readable language.”
B Blakemore, The PEP Partnership

 “The significant positive of working with Jo Ann has been the amount I’ve learnt about communications and have been able to apply in my job.”
G Perkins, FSB

 “The ideas and material Jo Ann has provided have certainly helped to increase my profile and to generate more work. She knows how to convey what I want to put across.”
J Brown, Beynon Nicholls


 Dates, locations and fees

 Open workshops

Open workshops are held in central London at four-star venues and include morning and afternoon refreshments as well as a two-course lunch.

The delegate rate is £994 + VAT per workshop.

When you book and pay in full at least 30 days in advance you will receive a 20% early bird discount, making the delegate rate £795.20 + VAT.

Next open workshops:

23-24 March 2011 - Persuading Stakeholders to Support your Project or Programme

22-23 June 2011 – Realising the Benefits from Communicating Your Project or Programme

23-24 November 2011 – Planning and Scheduling Communication Activities that Win Audiences Over

In-house workshops

In-house workshops are run at a venue of the client’s choice and can be delivered anywhere in the world.

Fees are dependent on number of delegates and location.

 

4 easy ways to book

It is easy to book any or all of these workshops

By phone – +44 (0)20 8771 4050

By email support@sweeneycomms.com

Offline - Booking form

Online - PayPal

DOWNLOAD BROCHURE

 

Sweeney Communications Ltd
Thornton Heath, Surrey
Registered in England no.: 3982361

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