Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Recruitment & retention
    • Wellbeing
    • Occupational Health
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Recruitment & retention
    • Wellbeing
    • Occupational Health
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise

Coaching and mentoringHR practiceLearning & developmentLeadershipTraining methods

Reviews of a DVD on giving feedback and a book on using simulations in training

by Personnel Today 15 May 2007
by Personnel Today 15 May 2007

Real-world guide hits the performance spot

Feedback: Fixing performance problems

  • Format DVD training film with user’s guide andPowerPoint presentation
  • Price £995 +VAT
  • From Scott Bradbury
  • Contact www.scottbradbury.co.uk

Giving feedback is now acknowledged as one of the most important, yet difficult, skills a manager needs.There is always the danger that performance problems will be ignoredin the hope that they will go awayor that the employee will be antagonised byunsubstantiated negative remarks.

This latest film from Scott Bradburyaims to illustrate and coach in best practice in giving feedback.As we have come to expect from the company, the learning messages ring out loud and clear as we watch production manager Bob learn from factory manager Ninaz, through flashbacks and discussions, how to give feedback to a cross-section of staff.

Acronyms area hallmark of Scott Bradbury, and this uses Cedar, which is shorthand for: Clarify the performance Explain how you think they are actually performing Discuss the reasons for the difference between the two Agree upon steps to fix the problem Review the outcome.

Itis not a superficial device and is knit expertly into the dramatic action as we learn, along with Bob, about successful and failing approaches.

I was also impressed by the user’s guide, which includes a model training session -with very clear learning objectives -and several pre-course preparation exercises. These encourage delegates to think about performance and appraisal a week before the course. The package includes task ideas for the delegates.

Feedback was filmed in a real printing works, which adds to the authenticity of the message. This package could be used with any level of manager or supervisor to encourage better applications of performance appraisal or negative feedback without fear of condescension.It looks at better performance through the lens of best practice and courtesy, and could be relied upon to encourage an even-handed approach to poor performance. It is lucid and credible and represents great value for money.

  • Relevance? five out of five
  • Interactivity three out of five
  • Value for money five out of five

One hundred days of attitude

The New Boss: How to survive the first 100 days

  • Author Peter Fischer
  • Price £19.95
  • From Kogan Page
  • Contact www.kogan-page.co.uk
  • ISBN 0 7494 4764 8

Here is a book that can be judged by its no-nonsense cover. It does exactly what it promises, and provides the newly-appointed manager with the guidance needed to perform well during the crucial first 100 days in a new role.

Peter Fischer covers ‘transitions of power’ for both the internal and external appointee. He draws on his business psychology background to present the reader with techniques to identify key players, the questions to ask them once they have been identified, and the most pressing tasks.

Fischer is razor-sharp on how to explore expectations and structure thinking. Key learning points and checklists are used effectively.

You should think of this book as a friend – refer to it frequently and depend on its objective advice. However, it will tell you things that even a friend won’t, such as how to move out of the shadow of the glorified predecessor, and how to deal with rivals.

You may want to buy this book to help other managers, or you may just want it for yourself.

  • Useful four out of five
  • Well-written three out of five
  • Relevance four out of five

Simulation training misses a passionate trainer

Kennedy’s Simulations For Negotiation Training (3rd edition)

  • Authors Gavin and Florence Kennedy
  • Price £175
  • From Gower
  • Contact www.gowerpub.com
  • ISBN 978 0566 08738-7

This is the third edition of a popular guide to negotiation, with six new simulations to match the changing circumstances of business negotiation in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa. It also includes a new section called ‘Negotiation Cases’, containing training materials for small sub-group discussions by participants who apply the negotiation concepts introduced in the training sessions from the rest of the guide.

This guide aims to replace the need for in-house training specialists to write negotiating simulations and provides a set of 24 simulations across a cross-section of disciplines. These include: purchasing, selling, industrial relations and contract negotiation.

The common thread to the negotiations is Gavin Kennedy’s four-phase ‘wants’ method, which is based on the four phases of: prepare, debate, propose and bargain, around what do we want, what do they want, what wants could we trade, and what wants will we trade.

These simulations will have a long shelf-life and are backed up with plenty of guidance on how to prepare for the exercises and how to evaluate the outcome.

Its presentation is lucid but not glamorous, and the cover price is presumably to reflect the high-value negotiations that will ensue.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

I tested the package on a manager responsible for multi-million pound negotiations. He saw its value but felt that, at the end of the day, the trainer would still be key in introducing some passion to the concept of negotiating to discover bargaining tools.

This is a useful and respected work but requires the experienced trainers’ touch to extract its worth.

  • Useful three out of five
  • Well-written four out of five
  • Relevance three out of five

Personnel Today

Personnel Today articles are written by an expert team of award-winning journalists who have been covering HR and L&D for many years. Some of our content is attributed to "Personnel Today" for a number of reasons, including: when numerous authors are associated with writing or editing a piece; or when the author is unknown (particularly for older articles).

previous post
OH nurses should hand over tasks to OH technicians so they can focus on a co-ordinating role
next post
Breaking down barriers: a road test of Ceroc dancing for teambuilding

You may also like

Movers and shakers in HR: Axa, CIPD, King’s...

11 Sep 2025

Women less confident of achieving pay or leadership...

9 Sep 2025

Bigger budgets, but greater scrutiny – welcome to...

9 Sep 2025

Personnel Today Awards 2025 shortlist: HR director of...

9 Sep 2025

How to manage workplace investigations effectively

5 Sep 2025

New ‘failure to prevent fraud’ law a ‘game-changer’

2 Sep 2025

UK large companies’ succession planning is weak –...

29 Aug 2025

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer launches neurodiversity mentoring programme

20 Aug 2025

AI in learning still ‘potential not reality’, according...

15 Aug 2025

Skills England: Demand for ‘priority skills’ to accelerate

13 Aug 2025

  • Workplace health benefits need to be simplified SPONSORED | Long-term sickness...Read more
  • Work smart – stay well: Avoid unnecessary pain with centred ergonomics SPONSORED | If you often notice...Read more
  • Elevate your L&D strategy at the World of Learning 2025 SPONSORED | This October...Read more
  • How to employ a global workforce from the UK (webinar) WEBINAR | With an unpredictable...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits Live
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Recruitment & retention
    • Wellbeing
    • Occupational Health
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise