You're listening to Business English Pod, the Business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Hello, and welcome back to Business English Pod.
My name's Edwin, and I'll be your host for this lesson on delivering workplace training.
At some point in our work, we all have to teach others how to do something or explain a certain topic.
So how can we do this effectively?
How can you make sure that the participants are following what you say, focused on what you want and reaching the outcomes you expect?
The skills you need to deliver effective training will help you in other ways too.
Whether you're giving a presentation or making a sales pitch, there are lots of techniques and language that overlap.
We'll learn some of these techniques today.
We'll look at language you can use to connect the topic to people's experience and create a sense of inclusion.
We'll also look at organizational issues like outlining your topics, establishing objectives and transitioning to a new topic.
In this episode, we'll hear a trainer named Zach.
He's delivering the first of a series of workshops on customer service.
You'll also hear a couple of the participants, Ian and Nicole, as they interact with Zach.
As you listen, try to answer the following questions.
1.
What experience did Ian have recently?
2.
What is the goal of the training course?
3.
What does Zach say is the first thing they'll talk about?
Okay.
Okay, everyone.
I'm going to turn things over to Zach now.
He's going to be taking us through a new approach to customer service.
Thanks, Erin.
Much appreciated.
And it's really great to be here.
Let's jump in right away, as I know everyone's got a busy schedule.
So here's a question for you.
How many of you have had this experience?
You get a call from a customer who's really upset.
You try to help, but you get frustrated.
The caller starts yelling, and you just want to hang up.
But you can't.
And for the rest of the day, you keep thinking about all the things you could have said.
Sound familiar?
Too true.
Just the other day, I had a real doozy.
I sure wish I could have had that one back.
Right.
I completely understand.
And a show of hands here tells me that that's pretty common.
So, at the end of the day, we want to eliminate those feelings.
Okay?
I mean, what we're trying to do here is enhance your ability to deliver effective customer service.
And here's the ultimate goal that we've come up with.
We'd like to reduce the number of same-issue callbacks by 50%.
Sound reasonable?
That sounds fine.
But some of us here are field techs.
We're not dealing with these things over the phone.
Okay, right.
But you still have callbacks.
And it's a real drag visiting the same customer twice, isn't it?
Definitely.
There you go.
And what we'll see today is that it doesn't matter whether you're on the phone or in the field, or been doing this 15 years or 15 days.
Heck, even your managers might have something to learn here.
You've got that right.
Glad you agree.
And what I want to show you and this is going to make your lives easier is that customer service is an attitude.
That's the first thing we're going to be looking at.
Some other things we'll cover are expectations and personality types.
And we'll also talk about techniques and strategies for dealing with the different types.
And finally, we'll do some conflict resolution training.
Sound like a plan?
Yeah, sounds great.
Uh, quick question.
Should we be taking notes?
Good one.
Nope.
I don't want you focusing on your pens.
I'll give you everything you need in handouts.
Alright?
Great.
So, let's get into it.
As I said, we're going to start by talking about how customer service is an attitude.
Now, have a look at this first slide here.
Now let's go through the dialogue again and look at the techniques Zach uses and how the participants respond.
We actually start with Erin, who introduces Zach.
Okay.
Okay, everyone.
I'm going to turn things over to Zach now.
He's going to be taking us through a new approach to customer service.
Aaron is going to let Zach have control of the group or turn things over to him, as she says.
And Zach is going to deal with the topic of customer service.
How does he start out?
Thanks, Aaron.
Much appreciated.
And it's really great to be here.
Let's jump in right away, as I know everyone's got a busy schedule.
So here's a question for you.
How many of you have had this experience?
You get a call from a customer who's really upset.
You try to help, but you get frustrated.
The caller starts yelling, and you just want to hang up, but you can't.
And for the rest of the day, you keep thinking about all the things you could have said.
Sound familiar?
Zach thanks Aaron and jumps right into the topic of customer service.
And he does this by asking everyone a question about their experience.
He describes a situation in which an employee has to deal with an angry customer and asks everyone if it sounds familiar.
Notice that he says you throughout his explanation.
He does all of this to connect the topic of customer service to the experiences of the people in the training session.
It makes it real for them by having them remember a difficult situation.
Connecting the topic to people's experience is a great way to get them listening and engaged.
Let's practice a few other ways to do this.
Here's a situation that all of you have probably encountered.
What did you do the last time this happened?
So you're sitting at your desk and the phone rings.
Now think back to your last staff meeting.
Let's hear what happens next.
Too true.
Just the other day I had a real doozy.
I sure wish I could have had that one back.
Right.
I completely understand.
And a show of hands here tells me that that's pretty common.
So, at the end of the day, we want to eliminate those feelings, okay?
I mean, what we're trying to do here is enhance your ability to deliver effective customer service.
And here's the ultimate goal that we've come up with.
We'd like to reduce the number of same-issue callbacks by 50%.
Sound reasonable?
Zach's introduction has clearly connected with Ian, who agrees and says he has had a real doozy or an especially bad experience just recently.
And Zach sees that the situation is quite common because many people have raised their hands in agreement.
Zach has set up the problem, and now he wants to establish the objective of the training course.
He explains that they've come up with or thought of a goal of reducing same-issue callbacks by 50.
Also notice how Zach says, sound reasonable, to check that everyone understands.
At the beginning of any training session or presentation, it's a great idea to state exactly what you're trying to do.
You can hear how objectives are introduced in the following examples.
At the end of this course, here's what you should be able to do.
What we're shooting for is a 10% increase in sales.
We're going to work on this until everyone can do it in 15 minutes.
Now here's our final goal in this training session.
Now, back to our training session.
That sounds fine.
But some of us here are field techs.
We're not dealing with these things over the phone.
Okay, right.
But you still have callbacks.
And it's a real drag visiting the same customer twice, isn't it?
Definitely.
Zach has been talking about interactions on the telephone, but Nicole says that not everybody manages or deals with customer issues over the phone.
Sack points out however, that even field techs sometimes have to visit the same customer twice, which is similar to a callback.
This helps to set up his next technique, as we can hear.
There you go.
And what we'll see today is that it doesn't matter whether you're on the phone or in the field, or been doing this 15 years or 15 days.
Heck, even your managers might have something to learn here.
Zach is trying to create a sense of inclusion.
He wants everyone to feel that they have something to learn, no matter how they have to interact with customers or how long they've been on the job.
Just like connecting the topic to people's experience.
Creating a sense of inclusion is a good thing to do when you deliver training.
In these examples, notice how everyone is included.
This is something that we can all do better.
Whatever department you work in, you'll need these skills.
Good communication can benefit absolutely everyone.
What happens next?
You got that right.
Glad you agree.
And what I want to show you and this is going to make your lives easier is that customer service is an attitude.
That's the first thing we're going to be looking at.
Some other things we'll cover are expectations and personality types.
And we'll also talk about techniques and strategies for dealing with the different types.
And finally, we'll do some conflict resolution training.
Sound like a plan?
Ian certainly sounds engaged, and now that Zach has people listening, what does he do?
Notice how he introduces the first idea with, what I want to show you.
He says that attitude is the first topic, and then he goes on to list some of the other ideas or issues they'll cover or talk about.
Zach introduces the last topic with, and finally.
You can hear how he's basically giving everyone an outline of the training.
Outlining the topics gives people a good idea of what they will learn and shows that you're organized.
How else can you do this?
First, we'll learn to listen.
Then, we'll learn to speak.
In Week 1, we'll discuss the most common problems.
In this course, there are three things you'll learn how to do.
We've broken this training into four sections.
After outlining the topics, Zach finishes with, sounds like a plan?
Just to make sure everyone is following.
Nicole has a question.
Yeah, sounds great.
A quick question.
Should we be taking notes?
Good one.
Nope.
I don't want you focusing on your pens.
I'll give you everything you need in handouts.
All right.
Great.
So let's get into it.
As I said, we're going to start by talking about how customer service is an attitude.
Now, have a look at this first slide here.
Nicole thinks the outline sounds great but just wants to know if they should write the information down or take notes.
Zach explains that he'll give everyone the information in handouts.
Then he asks a question.
All right.
This little question helps to close the last topic.
Then he says, great, so let's get into it.
This phrase helps him move on to the next topic.
Whenever you deliver training or a presentation, you need to be able to move effectively from one topic to the next.
Listen to how this is done in these examples.
If this makes sense, then we'll move on to Section 3.
All right, everyone.
Great work.
Now we're going to talk about software.
Well, that covers the organization of a presentation.
Let's move on to the specifics.
And what is Zach's first topic?
Well, as he already mentioned, he's going to talk about attitude, but we'll have to wait until the next episode to hear more.
Now, let's practice some of the language we've learned for establishing objectives.
You'll hear a prompt outlining what you should say to set a clear objective.
Use the words in the prompt to make a statement that establishes the given objective.
For example, if you hear...
Goal, reduce, complaints, 25%.
You can say, The goal is to reduce complaints by 25%.
We'll play an example answer after each practice.
Ready?
Let's give it a go.
Communication, clients.
Answer.
Our aim is to improve communication with clients.
Last day.
You.
Be able to.
Use the new system.
Answer.
By the last day, you should be able to use the new system.
Goal.
Increase brand awareness 25%.
Answer.
Our goal is to increase brand awareness by 25%.
What we want is greater efficiency in production.
Now, let's practice useful vocabulary and idioms.
You'll hear a series of sentences with a word replaced with a beep.
Repeat the whole sentence saying the missing word.
For example, if you hear, Okay, I'd like to turn things to Ron now.
You can say, Okay, I'd like to turn things over to Ron now.
We'll play the correct answer after each question.
Let's begin.
We need to come up a solution very soon.
Answer.
We need to come up with a solution very soon.
At the end of the We need higher revenue.
Answer.
At the end of the day, we need higher revenue.
Answer.
Problems with customers are always a real drag.
Everyone will need paper to take on our discussion.
Everyone will need paper to take notes on our discussion.
We've reached the end of this episode, the first in a two-part series about delivering training.
We've learned how to connect the topic to people's experience and create a sense of inclusion.
We've also looked at establishing objectives, outlining your topics and transitioning to a new topic.
But that's not all there is to know about delivering training, so be sure to tune in to the next episode, when we'll learn about getting people's input, encouraging participation, giving feedback and more.
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Thanks for listening and see you again soon.
