Business First Summer 2017 Business First Magazine Summer 2017 | Page 64
CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY
Is it time to think outside the Box?
ohn Kao, Harvard Business School has
said, “Growth will come through
mastering the skills of creativity and
making creativity actionable.”
It’s a great quote and one that has local
businesses actively seeking out new methods
of genuinely engaging and developing their
staff. That’s where the arts inject a creative
approach to learning, unlocking personal
creativity and productivity of employees.
The arts are experts at entertainment and
at Arts & Business NI we believe that people
learn best, and are most open to change,
when they are having fun.
So, the arts world has much to offer
business when it comes to imagining and
instigating change, taking risks and coping
flexibly with the uncertainties that change
always creates.
The arts focus on all the "intelligences” and
actively develop teamwork, trust,
imagination, flexibility, a constant search for
quality, cooperation, the ability to take risks,
excellent communication and so on.
These attributes don't grow on trees, they
have to be practised and refined. The arts
world has been discovering ways exercises,
games, processes of fostering these
attributes for literally centuries and many of
these are replicable in a business context,
making the arts a perfect platform for
training creatively.
Local business Citi, has employed the arts in
the development of their staff, investing in
creative training, the training was provided
by Kwame Daniels, CEO, Bounce Culture, a
collective of DJs, musicians, designers,
photographers, music lovers and facilitators
whose primary goal is to develop a positive
environment to share their skills.
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62 www.businessfirstonline.co.uk
Michael Shannon, Learning Consultant, Citi
shares how this type of training has impacted
on the business. “Traditional training
methods have tended to emphasis the ‘teach
them everything or they’ll know nothing’
philosophy.
“The learning landscape has changed
dramatically over the last number of years,
and as an industry we must innovate to
ensure that we meet the needs of the modern
learner.
“Creative training in the workplace is a
great way to do this.”
Why did you choose creative
training over traditional training
methods?
Here in Citi we believe that people learn
through experience, exposure and education.
Creative training exposes the learner to
information in a way that can be more
engaging that just traditional training.
How did this experience compare to
training methods you have
previously employed?
We have used guest speakers in the past
and they are always
very popular – as
was this one with
Kwa Daniels.
How did the staff
respond to the
creative
training?
There was very
good feedback from
those I spoke to immediately after the event.
Everyone really enjoyed it and had some key
takeaways for their own personal
development.
What were the positive
advantages/outcomes of using
creative training?
It encourages learning through exposure to
others and listening to their experiences.
Most if not all the audience were able to
relate to the real life examples and situations
that Kwa talked about. It is also a little less
formal than traditional training which can
add to the learner experience.
Would you recommend the use of
creative training to other
businesses?
Always – making sure you have the correct
mix of traditional and creative is important to
ensure you cater for all learning styles.
To find out more about how your staff and
business can benefit from an injection of
creativity, contact Arts & Business NI on
9073 5150 or [email protected]
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