PPD Online Courses 2019-20

At work and at home, it’s all too easy to speak and act without thinking – and then regret it afterwards. Acting on instinct can lead us to behave aggressively or passively. Both of these are generally unhelpful for our own reputation and for our relationships with others.

Communicating Assertively will show you how to avoid both extremes and instead to use assertive behaviour to build constructive and respectful working relationships.

This online module will help you understand the assertive mindset and highlight what assertiveness looks and sounds like.

View a short trailer for the online module.

For additional guidance you can visit our Guide to successful online learning.

If you would prefer to complete the blended programme, which provides an opportunity to put your assertive skills into practice in a face to face workshop, as well as completing the online module, please visit the booking page for the blended programme.

"It all boils down to communication", how many times have we heard that phrase? This interactive online module is packed full of useful tips and practical examples to help you get your point across more clearly, ask the right questions and listen better to what others have to say.

The module introduces you to the key concepts of communication skills through a variety of media, offering those new to this topic a solid grounding in the essentials, as well as a great refresher for more experienced communicators.

If you’re short of time and just need the basics, or you want to explore things in a bit more detail, the versatile structure of this module offers you the flexibility to learn in the way that best fits with your schedule.

View a short trailer for the module.

This online course offers a short introduction to data protection concepts, explains why they are important to the University, and signposts to further guidance materials. As nearly all University staff are likely to collect and handle personal information about living identifiable individuals in one way or another, it’s important to have a basic understanding of the main issues.

All staff using personal data in some way in their role are encouraged to complete this online course once every two years, but the precise expectations about who should complete it (and how often) in different areas of the University should be set by Heads of Department (and equivalents).

The content of this course reflects the provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation as well as related data protection law.

The Staff Review and Development (SRD) process provides the opportunity for supervisors, managers and academics to engage in constructive discussion with their staff or academic colleagues about current and future work and their personal and career development.

This online module, including visual, audio and filmed material, will focus on an overview of the process, practical advice and useful reminders of good practice to help you to make the most of SRD. You will need a PC, Mac or tablet device.

Please make a booking to receive instructions about how to access the online module. For additional guidance you can visit our online learning section of the website.

View a short trailer for the online module.

This short online guide for all staff provides hints, tricks and tips to help you manage your Inbox.

Giving effective feedback to your team members is one of the key responsibilities of anyone who supervises or manages others. It improves performance, boosts morale and can help people to do their job to the best of their ability.

This module is full of key tips to help you give feedback that is supportive, constructive and helpful and incorporates instructional film resources to help you apply what you have learned. It also focuses on how to avoid common mistakes when giving feedback to others and how to receive feedback well.

This online course welcomes new staff to the University and provides key information to help them settle into their new role quickly and achieve their full potential within their role as soon as possible. It will give new staff an overview of the University, including what to expect from induction and essential information along with some background on the history and traditions.

This online course complements the local induction new staff will receive in their institution, department or faculty.

A Raven password is needed to access this online course. If you don't already have one, visit http://www.cam.ac.uk/cs/docs/faq/n5.html

Effective risk management enables the University to identify, assess and seize opportunities which assist in the delivery of its objectives and improve its performance, whilst protecting the reputation and sustainability of the University. The University is committed to ensuring that it has a robust and comprehensive system of risk management in line with the requirements of the Office for Students.

This interactive tutorial provides an introduction to the principles of risk management at the University of Cambridge. The course will give you an introduction to risk management, help you to understand why risk management is necessary and point to some practical tools and guidance to support you in managing risks.

Leadership and Management Accountabilities: Bitesize

PPD bitesize online resources are short and high impact; including videos, quick tips guides and interactive bitesize modules. Develop your skills and knowledge quickly, easily, when you need. They complement face to face courses and more in-depth online modules.

Change is a constant feature in today’s workplace and this level of change certainly won’t go away and may indeed become more intense.

Studies show that the line manager has a critical role to play in ensuring staff are ready for change and in successfully implementing it. It can therefore be helpful to reflect on how we personally approach and manage change and how we can lead and support our teams through change.

This online course will give you some practical steps to help you lead your team through change whilst maintaining your own wellbeing.

For many people having challenging conversations can be difficult and feel uncomfortable; however the ability to be able to talk about sensitive and emotive issues is an integral part of effective line management and can be critical to managing performance, promoting attendance and improving team dynamics.

This module will give you some practical steps to help you handle these conversations better and, where possible, get the right outcome for you, the individual and the University.

Minute taking is not usually about writing a verbatim record of what is said but it is about understanding why minutes are required and recognising what is important to record.

This module is an introductory guide for anyone who is required to take minutes. It does not cover the additional skills required to take minutes at University committee meetings.

Do you dread speaking in public or giving presentations? Or are you looking to build on your current skills and experience to make your planning and delivery more effective? This module aims to develop your skills, knowledge and confidence in both formal and informal presentation situations e.g. meetings, training sessions and conferences.

This online module provides an opportunity to explore key areas in both preparation and delivery of presentations.

For additional guidance you can visit our Guide to successful online learning.

The University has a statutory duty to have ‘due regard to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism’. This is known as the Prevent Duty (Section 26 of the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015). It is primarily about safeguarding students and staff in the University and includes a range of responsibilities in areas such as pastoral care, support for staff and students, procedures for arranging events and using facilities. All staff need to be aware of the process of radicalisation, definitions of extremism and the process for raising concerns in this context.

This online learning module (approx. 45 minutes) provides information about Prevent for all staff working in the University. It is to be used alongside the guidance information, including how to raise a concern in this context, on the University Prevent website.

To access this online module and see details of all available training and support, see the Prevent Training Moodle site using your Raven login.

Module 5 - Prevent, a student and staff well-being issue (safeguarding, pastoral care and student support)
The University has a statutory duty to have ‘due regard to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism’. This is known as the Prevent Duty (Section 26 of the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015). It is primarily about safeguarding students and staff in the University and includes a range of responsibilities in areas such as pastoral care, support for staff and students, procedures for arranging events and using facilities. All staff need to be aware of the process of radicalisation, definitions of extremism and the process for raising concerns in this context

This online learning module (approx. 25 minutes) provides information about Prevent for those with a pastoral role, particularly for students, in the University. It is to be used alongside the guidance information, including how to raise a concern in this context, on the University Prevent website

To access this online module and see details of all available training and support, see the Prevent Training Moodle site using your Raven login.

Managing and leading projects is a key skill, and yet it is often poorly understood and actioned; leading to projects that overrun, overspend or overwork the delivery teams.

This online module will provide you with a complete toolkit of project management skills (distilled from a number of sound project management “methodologies”) and an overview of various project planning techniques. Project Management: Online has been developed to help you focus on a project you are actively involved in (or one that is about to commence). You will apply a number of tools to real life situations and leave with a clear understanding of the major management issues and the basis of a clear and workable project plan.

For additional guidance you can visit our Guide to successful online learning.

If you would prefer to complete the blended programme, which provides an opportunity to identify options and strategies to help move your project forward in a face to face workshop, as well as completing the online module, please visit the booking page for the blended programme.

Please make a booking in order to receive the enrolment key for the course.

It is anticipated that it will take around 25 minutes to go through the online materials plus additional time to complete the exercises.