T R A I N I N G
From my observations of how people and companies create and edit their work product, I believe that most employees never learned how the programs in Microsoft Office were designed to be used.
As a result, most people initially rely on trial and error to get stuff accomplished. Then, when they find a way that seems to get the job done, they habitually repeat the same steps. (It is likely that the steps take longer, require extra effort, and are more error-prone when compared to efficient methods the employees never learned.) These rote patterns become ruts of extra work, which causes more work... and end-users blame the software for being unwieldy.
Team members ask one another for advice. "Hey, do you know how to ______?" "Well, try this." When trial and error methods are taught to others in the company, more people perform unnecessary tedious maneuvers, and sometimes whole teams make extra work for whole companies.
Professional instruction offers new perspectives and often introduces students to better approaches. An investment in training pays back in many ways!
While the on-demand support from a help desk is vital for reacting to end-users' needs as they arise, training is preventative and proactive. Training empowers students to become self-reliant. When a methodology is shown to a group of people, they receive the education together, and the transformation can go deeper; each person's insights enhance everyone's learning. People with a common goal bring their shared experiences of the past, and their ideas and hopes for betterment in the future.
► When using Microsoft Office, which tasks do you wish you knew how to accomplish with ease?
► As you're working in Microsoft Office, what makes you think, "There has to be a better way to do this"?
► Which tools and features of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook do you want to master so you can more fully utilize their power and be most effective at your job?
► How could your company's teams use Microsoft Office cohesively and economically, and how would this change the quality and quantity of their work, their overall job satisfaction, and your bottom line?
As a Microsoft Certified Master Instructor for Microsoft Office, I've led thousands of classes for attorneys, accountants, executives, directors, salespeople, trainers, help desks, business owners, doctors, and professionals in many other positions. Participants enjoy my balance of patience, knowledge, enthusiasm, and flow, with a touch of humor.
Using a modified version of the classic and proven "Define - Show - Do - Review" training approach, which I've polished for many years, and listening to what my students want to know, I encourage participation and exploration in the classroom. I teach one-on-one, groups, entire companies in class-sized segments, or in some cases, via webinar.
I continually observe how people work, think, and learn, while broadening and advancing my skillset.
As a Microsoft Certified Master Instructor for Microsoft Office, I've led thousands of classes for attorneys, accountants, executives, directors, salespeople, trainers, help desks, business owners, doctors, and professionals in many other positions. Participants enjoy my balance of patience, knowledge, enthusiasm, and flow, with a touch of humor.
Using a modified version of the classic and proven "Define - Show - Do - Review" training approach, which I've polished for many years, and listening to what my students want to know, I encourage participation and exploration in the classroom. I teach one-on-one, groups, entire companies in class-sized segments, or in some cases, via webinar.
I continually observe how people work, think, and learn, while broadening and advancing my skillset.
Here is my teaching philosophy:
► What you learn is more important than what I teach.
► My job is to become unnecessary to you as you master the skills you need.
► What you learn is more important than what I teach.
► My job is to become unnecessary to you as you master the skills you need.
What does this philosophy look like in action? When you take a class with me, you practice the subject matter through in-class exercises to find your own "stuck points" and work through them, so you can really learn.
By imparting wisdom and the "why" of the actions, not simply having you rehash rote steps, I guide you to acquire the knowledge you need, and the confidence you want, to take advantage of what's available in Microsoft Office. Whether you're looking for keyboard shortcuts to insert symbols into your email messages, or you find that VLOOKUP simply isn't powerful enough to generate the data for the PivotTables in your Dashboard, or you need to conquer page numbering in multi-section Word documents, I love to share what I know.
Knowledge is power. For decades, I've been teaching individuals, departments, and entire companies how to leverage their investments in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. After training, they get their work done more quickly and consistently, and with less time and effort, because they understand how these programs are designed to be used.
"I would highly recommend Rob for Excel training. He was great to work with and very patient. He promised to dazzle me and that he did! I never thought I could get excited about Excel but he managed to do just that! I hope to work with you again sometime soon Rob."
— Jennifer Gendron
Application Support Analyst/Trainer at Blake Cassels & Graydon LLP (through Savvy Training & Consulting)
Excerpt from Recommendation on LinkedIn
— Jennifer Gendron
Application Support Analyst/Trainer at Blake Cassels & Graydon LLP (through Savvy Training & Consulting)
Excerpt from Recommendation on LinkedIn
