Course Descriptions
All topics are customizable to meet specific client needs. Cordura works with individual organizations to build content and delivery that best ensure the desired learning outcomes of the needs of the organization.
1 Understanding Unconscious Bias
Unconscious Bias – Understanding the hidden influences behind the conscious curtain
We make tens of thousands of decisions every day. How can we better understand the hidden bias that shapes our efforts to build innovative, dynamic, and inclusive organizations. In this session, we will consider the drivers of unconscious bias and the impact on organizational decision making. We will explore how best to identify and mitigate the risks of unconscious bias in the workplace.
In this session we will…
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Consider and challenge why unconscious bias exists and how it impacts our decision-making process.
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Explore the potential business risks associated with these impacts.
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Examine tools and strategies for how best to identify and mitigate the risks of unconscious bias in business decision
Session format:
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Sessions are designed to be delivered as a 4-hour workshop. This topic can be delivered in a 2-hour conference session.
This course meets the CPA mandatory 4-hr CPD verifiable business ethics requirement.
2 Understanding & Embracing Ethics in the Workplace
“I believe…. therefore I do…”. Research shows that despite our best intentions and conviction to our values, our actions in times of conflict may not be what we expect.
In this session we will…
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Determine how to manage organizational dynamics when personal ethics conflict with corporate values.
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Explore various approaches to ethical thinking.
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Consider the impact stress and conflict has on our thoughts and actions how we can best prepare to work in this environment.
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Apply and practice specific techniques, tools, and strategies based on relevant business based scenarios.
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Examine ethics from a broad organizational perspective as it relates to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Session format:
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Session are designed to be delivered as a 4-hour workshop.
This course meets CPA mandatory 4-hr CPD verifiable business ethics requirement.
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3 Dispelling the myth of “effective meetings” - Engaging meetings your employees will want to attend
Executives and managers can spend upwards of 50% of their time in meetings that either they call, or have to attend. Is this value added or wasted time? Though the majority of employees believe in the value of teamwork, research shows that most still prefer to work alone. Assist your team in building meetings that are relevant, productive, engaging and yes, even welcomed by others in your organization.
In this session we will…
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Explore the value and benefit of contribution to meetings while challenging the structure of how these meetings are undertaken.
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Challenge what being inclusive looks like.
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Look at best practices and recent research on new innovative ideas in this area.
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Consider the impacts of how individual communication styles and organizational culture drive the way organizations use meetings.
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Discuss how technology is both a tremendous opportunity and a unique challenge.
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Examine a specific planning framework tool designed to support your team in creating relevant, productive, and engaging meetings.
Session format:
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Sessions are designed to be delivered in a ½ day format. . This topic can be delivered in a 90 minute conference session.
4 Leveraging the 4 Intelligences to Embrace and Manage Change
Our perceptions, values, and experience with past change have an impact on how we react and manage current and future change.
Using the “4 Intelligences”, (intellectual, emotional, physical, and spiritual) as a base we will explore tools, techniques, and strategies to more effectively embrace and manage change.
In this session we will…
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Consider how effective leaders seek to leverage all aspects of intelligence to embrace and manage change in themselves and their organizations.
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Discuss the nature of organizational change and its impacts on achieving goals.
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Explore how to leverage the 4 Intelligences to enhance motivation & engagement in your organization.
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Using the 4 Intelligences - intellectual, emotional, physical, and spiritual – explore tools, techniques, and strategies to effectively navigate change, and examine the challenges and opportunities specific to your role in leading through change.
Session format:
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The session is designed to be delivered in a ½ day format. This topic can be delivered in a 90 minute conference session.
5 Principles of Negotiation
In its simplest form, negotiation is the process necessary when we are unable to achieve our objectives single handedly. Each of us negotiates on some level every day. Better understanding the drivers, tools, and techniques, as well as our own individual strengths and weaknesses, can tremendously impact our effectiveness in achieving outcomes that ensure individual and organizational success in both the short and long term.
In this session we will…
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Gain an understanding of your motivational style and how it impacts your views, approach, and results within a negotiation.
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Consider the role and impact of cultural and societal norms that drive both process and results.
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Explore the myths and traps associated with various styles of negotiations.
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Examine, apply and practice specific techniques, tools and strategies to increase your negotiation effectiveness.
Session format:
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Session can be either a ½ day or full day. Full day sessions provide additional opportunities for practice and skill development.
6 Powerful Presentations
Fear of public speaking still ranks among the top fears for North Americans and yet the power and impact of an effective presenter is indisputable. Great presenters are made not born. Through greater understanding of the science behind our fears and the simple tools and techniques to enhance our skills, anyone can develop and deliver powerful presentations.
In this session we will…
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Consider and challenge the drivers behind anxiety caused from presentations and look at specific strategies, tips and tools to expand confidence and enhance effective communication.
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Breakdown the linkages between formal and informal communication to increase overall effectiveness in all methods of communication.
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Create opportunities to enhance your knowledge and skills in both developing and delivering powerful presentations
Session format:
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Session can be either a ½ day or full day. Full day sessions provide additional opportunities for practice and skill development. This topic can be delivered in a 90 minute conference session.
7 Succession & Retention
How you can secure your organization's future by managing the revolving door of succession planning and employee retention.
The immense business risk due to turnover, lack of available talent, and the inevitable departure of those nearing retirement age creates an ever increasing need to engage, retain and replace key talent. This session will examine succession planning at every level, not just at retirement and how to attract and retain employees, especially the millennial generation. We will explore tools and strategies for how best to mitigate these risks to ensure your organization’s future stability and success.
In this session we will…
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Consider the business risks due to turnover, lack of available talent, and the inevitable departure of key talent.
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Explore the challenges with engaging, retaining, and replacing key talent.
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Examine tools and strategies for how best to mitigate the risks of succession planning at every level, not just at retirement to ensure your organization’s future stability and success.
Session format:
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The session is designed to be delivered as a ½ day format. This topic can be delivered in a 60 or 90 minute conference session.
8 Finance for Non-Financial Managers
This course is designed to breakdown the complexities of financial management to allow non-financial managers to be build their financial knowledge to enhance decision-making. Develop knowledge of key terminology to understand and interpret financial information to better determine the key questions to ask to challenge the financial implications of the organization’s strategic goals.
In this session we will…
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Learn the language of financial reporting
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Improve the ability to interpret financial statements
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Learn how financial statements can drive decision making
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Identify various users of financial information and anticipate what they are looking for
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Develop skills and learn tools for financial analysis for strategic decision making
Session format:
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Session is designed to be delivered as a 2 day workshop.
9 Engaging & Motivating Self-Driven Teams
A well-trained, engaged and inspired management and employee team is an invaluable resource in today’s competitive environment. People drive results. We can create the structure and opportunities for dynamic organizational teams that produce the results we need to not just succeed but to thrive.
In this session we will…
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Uncover motivational drivers across different styles of communication and across different generations.
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Challenge and explore formal versus informal reward and recognition.When pay for performance works and when it can be a detriment to your long-term objectives.
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Consider the unique challenges of organizational dynamics and tools for inspiring leadership without changing the org chart.
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Seek to understand how critical thinking tools and techniques can support and enhance team engagement.
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Work with specific tools and activities designed to assist you in building greater engagement and motivation into your results driven teams.
Session format:
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Sessions are designed to be delivered in a ½ day format. This topic can be delivered in a 60 or 90 minute conference session.
10 Giving & Receiving Effective Feedback
“I've been telling you for 30 min that I'm listening” – How do we overcome the challenges of effective communications and feedback? In a constantly changing workplace with a broad range of personalities, cultures and multiple generations, how can we create dynamic organizational teams that produce the results we need to not just succeed but to thrive?
In this session we will…
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Examine the opportunities and challenges associated with a multi-cultural and multi-generational workforce.
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Work with specific strategies to best manage the role of technology for effective and efficient commination.
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Explore the significant impact effective feedback plays on organizational results and how it can best be used to within your organization.
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Investigate specific tools and techniques for giving and receiving feedback that drive individual and organizational results.
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Expand our understanding of “conscious” communication throughout all aspects of our professional lives.
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Explore individual perspectives on control vs. manage and how this drives effective communication and feedback within our organizations.
Session format:
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Session can be either a ½ day or full day. Full day sessions provide additional opportunities for practice and skill development. This topic can be delivered in a 90 minute conference session
11 Exceptional Customer Service in Challenging Situations
Is the customer always right? In a service driven society the opportunities and challenges associated with exceptional customer service are numerous. Participants will consider the essential elements of exceptional customer service.
In this session we will…
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Understand the value, role and risks of customer service.
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Consider what exceptional customer service looks like in respective areas including external and internal situations.
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Explore approaches, tools and techniques to deal with difficult customer.
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Explore the idea that the “customer is always right”.
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Consider personal triggers and challenges in dealing with difficult customers.
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Role-play specific customer service scenarios addressing in person and telephone experiences.
Session format:
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Sessions are designed to be delivered in a ½ day format. This topic can be delivered in a 90 minute conference session.
12 Conflict Resolution
Conflict exists in all organizations. The challenges and the debates associated with healthy conflict are integral to strong teams and effective decision making. Risk arises when conflict becomes personal and counterproductive to your team which can result in an erosion of effective decision making. Better understanding the drivers, tools, and techniques, as well as our strengths and weaknesses, can tremendously impact our effectiveness in managing conflict to achieve outcomes that ensure individual and organizational success in both the short and long term.
In this session we will…
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Gain an understanding of the drivers of conflict in the workplace and the potential risks associated with individual views, approaches, and reactions.
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Discuss how to manage organizational dynamics to identify and mitigate the risks of conflict in the workplace.
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Consider the role and impact of cultural and societal norms in drivers and responses to conflict.
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Consider the impact stress and conflict has on our thoughts and actions and how we can best prepare to work in this environment.
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Examine, apply, and practice specific techniques, tools, and strategies based on relevant business based scenarios to consider how to avoid conflict where possible and manage conflict when necessary.
Session format:
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Sessions can be either a ½ day or full day. Full day sessions provide additional opportunities for practice and skill development. This topic can be delivered in a 90 minute conference session.
13 Engaging & Leading within Change
Our changing and dynamic environments create both tremendous opportunities and significant challenges. Change is a constant reality in an increasingly dynamic global environment yet fear and resistance to change remain a key challenge for many organizations. Engaging and leading within change is critical to individual and organizational success.
In this session we will…
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Explore the human elements of change and what drives resistance in ourselves and in our teams.
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Develop a greater understanding of change dynamics and other considerations to help assess risk and control.
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Consider strategies, tools and techniques to better enable you to engage and lead within these changing environments.
Session format:
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Sessions are designed to be delivered in a ½ day format. This topic can be delivered in a 60 or 90 minute conference session.
14 Planning for a Business
It is estimated that 98% of business in BC is driven by small business according to a 2018 BC Stats report. Of the 501,300 businesses, 493,100 are made up of employees ranging from 5 – 50. Small business is no longer small but owners and entrepreneurs are struggling to quantify their ideas.
An effective business plan is a document that conveys the key fundamentals and the strategy, prospects and growth potential of a company. It is a selling document for external users and a road map for internal ones. A business plan is an invaluable management tool if it is well prepared, reviewed and updated on a regular basis
In this session we will…
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Consider and challenge the drivers behind financial forecasts but also explore how to quantify the non-financial aspects of the business.
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Breakdown the linkages between strategy, mission and vision to increase overall effectiveness in all methods of planning.
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Create opportunities to enhance your knowledge and skills in both developing and formatting powerful business plans
Session format:
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Session can be either a ½ day or full day. Full day sessions provide additional opportunities for practice and skill development. This topic can be delivered in a 90 minute conference session.
15 I have a case, How do I make it?
The perception that a financial forecast is all that is needed to evaluate a business case has been soundly debunked in our fast paced business environment. Whether you are looking to expand your business, acquire or divest of major assets an effective business case is essential.
When making a business case, non-tangible effects like organizational culture, strategy alignment and financial impact need to be accompanied by a clear implementation plan and resource strategy.
In this session we will…
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Consider the steps for presenting an effective business case for either internal or external audiences.
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Breakdown the linkages between situational analysis, strategic alternatives and effective forecasting.
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Create opportunities to develop or refine an idea and provide tools to develop an effective business case including clear measures of success.
Session format:
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Session can be either a ½ day or full day.Full day sessions provide additional opportunities for practice and skill development.
