Coaching models pilot training in LIVE

The Erasmus+ funded “Create Future” project has organised pilot training for trainers in partner organisations.  

In Finland, at the LIVE Foundation, the pilot training took place in November 2021. 

At the beginning of the project, Inova (one of the partners) designed the training package to meet the needs of partner organisations to develop the capacity and methodological skills of guidance/coaching staff in guidance work. 

The Pilot Training was divided into the three Coaching Models covering the following topics: 

4.11.2021, 1. session:

Think, Act, Reflect
Questioning Technique
SMART goals

17.11 2021, 2. session:

Strengths-Based Coaching
Self efficacy
Strengths and employment 

24.11.2021, 3. session:

Neurolinguistic Programming
Neuroplasticity
Cultivating good habits 

The training package was full of relevant and interesting topics that could be useful to trainers and coaches across the Live organisation. The number of participants in the live training was disappointingly low. On the other hand, this allowed the group to have an open and rich discussion, which all participants seemed to enjoy.

Participants and facilitators found the face-to-face training sessions to be the most rewarding. There was a lot of sharing of both work-related and personal experiences in the thematic areas.

Few comments from the participants:

“After the last time, I was looking forward to a nice discussion and it happened”.

“A familiar theme, complemented by a good group discussion”.

The number of modules on different topics was high in relation to the length of the training. This led to feedback from participants that some of the topics were covered a little bit superficially and that they would have preferred more in-depth training on the topics. On the other hand, they felt that they were familiar with the training topics and had used the methods in their work.

Organising the training sessions

The training on the 17th of November was held as a hybrid meeting. One participant took part online and others were face to face on the Lives’ premises.

The last training had to be delivered remotely due to tightened Covid-19 constraints. Although participants did not like the remote delivery as much as the face-to-face meetings, they were active and shared their experiences online. 

Comment from one participant:

“It is a pity that the training was conducted remotely. The discussion was still good!”

Part of the reason for the low number of participants was certainly that the training was designed as face-to-face training only. Nowadays, work is so busy that, although people want face-to-face meetings, they opt for distance training wherever possible. This is a challenge for those organising training and other events, as it is harder to ensure that people on the line focus on training and do not have other tasks going on at the same time.

The training sessions feedback and evaluation

Each participant in the pilot training completed a soft skills self-assessment before the start of the training sessions and for the last time at the end of the training. 

The graph below shows the results for the whole group and how they felt their soft skills had improved as a result of the training. As trainers, we are pleased with these results and can say that the training was not wasted. 

The blue line shows the evaluation at the start phase and the red line shows the evaluation at the end phase.

At the end of each training session, participants evaluated the training content, the training material, and the trainers. During the pilot training, we discussed the example exercises and training methods covered in the training and how well each could use them in their mentoring, training and coaching work with their clients.

The second training session covered strengths-based coaching, self-efficacy and strengths and employment. When participants were asked what they found most useful in the training, it was nice to see that different topics stood out for them. 

 Excerpts from the comments of the participants:

A task concerning the job application of two fictitious persons. It was good to think about my own reflection.

Finding strengths to support employment - Self-efficacy kit - Reflecting on your own strengths and positive self-esteem.

Finding strengths can be difficult and slow, previous bad experiences and highlighting weaknesses have an impact, it is also important to recognise skills and strengths acquired outside work and study.

Emphasis on strengths. Looking for/identifying strengths in the client's story.

The perspectives on employment are more alien to me, i.e. the themes and common reflections related to it. 

Facilitators’ conclusions

As a facilitator of the training sessions, I felt a bit unsure about the topics that I had not previously studied in depth at a theoretical level. In these topics I got to know the subject in more detail before the training started. I also had access to Inova's comprehensive facilitator material, which included exercises, video clips and examples to help me implement the pilot training.

Training trainers in the 3 coaching models is a feasible method and relatively easy to implement thanks to the well-prepared facilitator material and pre-training of the facilitators. 

All in all, I think the training was a success. Participants received support for their work, and they got peer support from the other participants involved in guidance, coaching, and training in different sectors in Live.

Pia Törnwall, Project manager

Live Foundation