On 24th April the Brandon House in New Ross was the venue for WWETB’s 2nd Staff Event with 114 staff in attendance. Group activities included competitions to determine who was the best lie-detector and coded questions decided by Smarties.
CE Kevin Lewis, welcomed all stating that “….today is about information but also about getting to know and engage with colleagues you might not normally meet, reflecting for a while on the job we all do and why we do it.…the purpose of WWETB……a chance to consider your professional role and very importantly a chance for you to consider how your well-being can be managed in a fast moving world……”
Referring to our Strategic Plan, he stated: “…..agreement and buy-in to our core values, ensuring that we set out the culture of the organisation, is of paramount importance. The draft core values are RESPECT, ACCOUNTABILITY, LEARNER FOCUS and QUALITY and we need to live and breathe them every day. They will become the basis of recruitment and on-going work. Our brand needs to become associated with these values and when we make decisions on issues and priorities they need to be informed by these values.”
During the morning administration, management and maintenance staff from across the ETB were offered another opportunity to contribute to the Statement of Strategy 2018-2022;
advised on the scope of the new GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) requirements and informed of developments in the (FET) Further Education & Training side of WWETB activities.
The afternoon was set aside for guest speaker Declan Coyle, whose experiences over a number of decades and across several continents has shaped his approach to life.
Declan’s ‘Red Platform – Green Platform’ ethos introduces the concept of “…..’Energy Vampires’, moaning, blaming and complaining versus ‘Energy Transformers’ who radiate positive energy lighting fires ‘in’ people rather than under people”.
• “Energy Transformers radiate positive energy as they set out to be the best that they can possibly be for their school, their students and their families.”
• “On the Green Platform people focus on building their strengths, not just fixing weaknesses”
• “Negativity causes enormous stress in the workplace. This in turn affects the mental and physical wellbeing of people.”
• “Am I tired, cranky, fatigued, burnt-out, black-eyed, sleep-deprived…(on the Red Platform) or am I joyful, happy proactive, creative, innovative, engaged, goal-achieving (on the Green Platform)?”
Truth, Lies and Smarties !