The training will also equip them with the poise and assurance to better market themselves, their companies and products on a local, regional or international front. The training was conducted by Marketing Strategies, a marketing consultancy and training firm based in Nairobi.
Kenana Knitters is a business enterprise based in Njoro, Kenya and employs over 200 women who use homespun wool to knit a myriad of products for sale, both locally and internationally. Safari Bead comprises a large number of women from the Maasai community in Kenya, and focuses on providing employment opportunities for these women, many of who are illiterate and would not otherwise have a means of livelihood. They produce accessories such as belts, sandals, bags for sale both in local and international markets.
The trainees, drawn from top tier supervisors, went through basic communication tools:
I. Customer Relations - how to speak to clients, how to sell oneself, and how to sell products,
II. Inter-Departmental Communication - reasons why communication breakdowns occur and the effect this has on productivity.
III. Information seeking/giving - the importance of asking the right questions and probing further if need be (with care taken not to probe into personal matters)as well as giving simple instructions to ease communication
IV. Timing - how the right message, in tone and attitude, can be received negatively if the timing is wrong.
V. Non Verbal communication - what body language portrays in contrast to what is being said.
All these issues were discussed, with specific case scenarios given that covered the range from language and age barriers, difficulty in admitting incomprehension at the workplace, urgency taking priority over clear communication, dealing with an overlap of duties, the responsibility of supervisors to enforce clear communication, to the importance of repetition. At the end of each session, the ladies were encouraged to use workbooks, interact freely with each other, ask questions, seek clarification and contribute to discussions. They were the asked to record the practical lessons learnt.
Overall, the training was highly interactive and there was a marked difference in the participants' demeanor by the end of the day. It was clear that morale had been boosted and confidence instilled. The ladies from both companies shared their decision making/problem solving experiences with each other and in the end the entire group understood their common issues are highly likely common to other businesses of their size, type and make-up.
Directors of the two companies who were present during the training, Paddy Nightingale (Kenana Knitters) and Lisa Baratt (Safaribead) felt that a lot had been gained from the experience in terms of relevance and practicability. For the training to be effective, both Kenana Knitters and Safari Bead planned to take the training to their individual plants in order to share the lessons learnt with staff members who were unable to attend the Hub sponsored event.
Continuity and follow up
Safari Bead invited the Hub to their in-house training/feedback session which they personalized to ensure relevance and effective communications training specific to their organization.
Each participant from the Hub sponsored training had the opportunity to share their individual experience as well as the lessons learnt from the training in simplified sessions conducted in Maasai and interpreted into Swahili so that the entire group could understand.
Emphasis was placed on the effects of poor communication and the effect it has on the work environment and its impact on productivity; the importance of personalizing goals so that work has meaning for each individual and the need for junior staff to grasp what their supervisors expect of them in order to eliminate misunderstanding and aggravation. Supervisors were requested by their subordinates to communicate clearly and to give positive feedback where deserved, in order to boost morale and create a positive work environment.
This training at Safaribead was very well received and it was clear that those who participated in the training conducted by the Hub had learnt a lot and were in turn, able to share this with the rest of the group. There was a general sense of enthusiasm for the training and the level of participation, especially from the older Maasai women, was very encouraging. |
