The Training Practice | Practice Notes

Practice Notes - November 2004

Tea and Toast learning sessions - December 2004

If you haven't been along already, then come along to one of our hour-long sessions. They're free and open to everyone.

Workstyle, teamwork, and communication - learn more about your preferences with FutureSelves

For this Tea and Toast we've teamed up with Geoff Plimmer of FutureSelves. They've developed a unique NZ measurement tool that lets you know your barriers to influencing clients and colleagues, to developing your career and working with your team. We think it's a real asset. Come along and learn about it and do a basic FutureSelves exercise.

Date Monday 6 December

Time 8am - 9am

Venue The Training Practice Boardroom, Level 5, Newspaper House, 93 Boulcott Street.

All welcome - email katherine@trainingpractice.co.nz if you want to come. No charge.

A look back at Bush's and Kerry's speeches

A chance to learn some speechwriting lessons from the campaign speeches of these two presidential candidates. Both had an army of speechwriters so there are plenty of techniques to examine.

Date Wednesday 15 December

Time 8am - 9am

Venue The Training Practice Boardroom, Level 5, Newspaper House, 93 Boulcott Street.

All welcome - email katherine@trainingpractice.co.nz if you want to come. No charge.

Useful questions for performance management interviews or coaching

Try the Funnel Down question technique. You start with a general question and then get more specific. Here's how it works.

Questions about the background and context

What's the story?

Questions about specific behaviour

Who did what?

What was your role specifically?

Questions that query expectations

What did you expect compared with what happened?

What did you anticipate? How did that compare with what happened?

Questions to investigate motives

What does this situation mean to you?

What's the most important part of this for you?

Questions to discover meaning

What does this mean to you personally?

How did this affect you?

What implications does this have for you?

Ombudsmen Annual Report, 2003/4 - complaints and an interesting Official Information Act case

You'll find the full report on the Ombudsmen's website www.ombudsmen.govt.nz

It's an interesting read for people in the state sector to get an overview of what issues/organisations people are making complaints about. Apart from prisons (inmates use the Ombudsmen's 0800 number quite a lot) complaints against central government departments were as follows. Numbers in brackets are for the previous year:

Department of Labour (170) 227 - 224 involved the Immigration Service

ACC (186) 175

IRD (112) 133

Ministry of Social Development (123) 117

Police (48) 46

Child, Youth and Family (56) 43

Ministry of Justice 41

Concerning the Official Information Act (OIA), the report reminds agencies that "the initial question on receipt of a request for information should be is there any valid reason not to grant access to the information requested not why should be comply with this request." (p25)

One interesting OIA case quoted is about the Police. The Police initially refused a request for information about, and costs involved in, the attempted appointment of a manager. Due to Police error, the appointment process did not reveal the individual had traffic convictions. Once the convictions came to light, the individual resigned and a personal grievance action by the individual was settled confidentially. This included a financial settlement.

The Ombudsmen weighed up the privacy of the person, and the confidentiality agreed between the parties, against the public interest. The end result was that the total cost to the Police of the attempted appointment was made public - around $80,000, including the financial settlement and all other costs. So, the exact amount of the settlement is not released.