I was pleased to see that almost 40% of you took the time to respond to the training survey we sent out last month.  Your feedback will be very helpful as we select training courses in the future.  And the strong response reinforces my belief that despite budget limitations we need to find ways to continue offering our employees meaningful training and development opportunities. 

The results also reminded me that our assumptions about what our employees need and want aren't always correct.  For example, when I reviewed the responses I wasn't surprised to learn that many of you wanted to learn more about Social Media Best Practices but I certainly wouldn't have predicted that a course about the Company and its Products would be so in demand.  But that's why it's so important that we continue to solicit this type of feedback from our employees.  

Our HR team is still analyzing the survey results and will use the results to develop a long-term training strategy designed to introduce new courses each year.  The first priority will be deciding what topics to focus on in 2010.

The final strategy will be shared with you once it's completed.  Until then here's a look at some of the results, divided between those topics of most interest to managers and those of most interest to the rest of the staff:

:

Manager Top 5 Choices

General Skills

1. Business Writing
2. Effective Listening
3. Building Team Effectiveness
4. Managing Change
5. Time Management, Organization & Prioritization

Industry Skills

1. ALM - The Company and its Products
2. Social Media Best Practices
3. Understanding Web Metrics
4. Learning About Your Customers
5. Using the Marketing Database

Staff Top 5 Choices

General Skills

1. Excel
2. Managing & Growing their Career
3. Effective Negotiation Skills
4. Effective Listening
5. Communicating/Working with Different Personality Types

Industry Skills

1. Social Media Best Practices
2. ALM - The Company and its Products
3. Expanding News Coverage Through Use of Multi-Media
4. Understanding Web Metrics
5. Learning About Your Customers

Additional Topics Suggested by Respondents

• General finance (e.g., budgeting/forecasting/roi)
• Reporting and Writing Skills
• Graphic/Web Design and Interactive Programs
• Outlook Skills
• Microsoft Programs
• Sales Training

I will be back to you with additional details once the training agenda is complete.