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Online Training Academy - Human Resources

The Online Training Academy (OTA) is a series of web-based courses designed to build strong authorities. This convenient and cost-effective training has been developed for authority board members, consultants and management staff, billing departments, financial staff, treatment plant and work crew employees.

Each one-hour webinar will consist of a 45 minute presentation along with an interactive question and answer period. Webinars allow us to provide more training to an even broader geographic area and make learning opportunities more accessible to all employees throughout your organization. Every member of the authority team benefits from these courses!  The registration fee is $40, unless prepaid credits were purchased.

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Accountable Leadership

(Originally presented on December 10, 2014. A link of this archived session will be emailed to you to view at your convenience. Please use the registration link below.)

This is the fourth and final installment of our leadership series which focuses on ethical and accountable leadership. Some of the key components that we will cover are:

  • Identifying the difference between “legal” and “ethical” actions

  • Keys to influencing ethical workplace results

  • Recognizing the most important ways for managers to model accountability

  • How to coach team members towards greater accountability

  • Become aware of resources that managers can use to lead team members toward more accountable behavior

Presenter: Paul Caulfield, Principal, Avant, IMC and Dering Consulting Group

 

Effective Workers Compensation Strategies

(Originally presented October 14, 2014. A link of this archived session will be emailed to you to view at your convenience. Please use the registration link below.)

Want to become the best, most cost-efficient Workers Compensation risk you can be? Has your authority seen a recent large increase in your premiums?  Do you need to know how to obtain a quote in time for your renewal for property, liability or insurance?

Join us for a webinar in which we share with you the most important information you need to know and the best techniques you should employ to save money for your authority.

Presenter: Rick Atkinson, Executive Vice President of the HDH Group, Inc., representing the MRM Trust

 

Essentials of Effective Leadership

(Originally presented March 5, 2014. A link of this archived session will be emailed to you to view at your convenience. Please use the registration link below.)

This session will address leadership behaviors essential to succeeding through others. Beginning with strategies for maximizing a leader’s own productivity, the webinar will also explore effective delegation—how and when to delegate, what to include in communicating assignments, and how to follow up on delegated assignments. The webinar will conclude with a discussion of the role of both reinforcing and redirecting feedback—necessary components of strong leadership.

Presenter: Paul Caulfield, Principal, Avant, IMC and Dering Consulting Group

 

Managing and Developing Talent

(Originally presented June 12, 2014. A link of this archived session will be emailed to you to view at your convenience. Please use the registration link below.)

During this session, we will explore practical ways the leader can capitalize on individuals’ natural talents to maximize performance. From selection through long-term professional development, the leader’s ability to recognize and reward talent largely determines success. The Webinar will provide simple and powerful methods of making the most of the talent available—and finding needed talent for the future. Learning objectives include:

  • Manage team members’ talents from selection through development.

  • Engage team members using various motivation and recognition techniques.

  • Coach and develop team members to maximize their performance.

Presenter: Paul Caulfield, Principal, Avant, IMC and Dering Consulting Group

 

Resolving Conflict and Dealing with Difficult Behavior

(Originally presented October 8, 2014. A link of this archived session will be emailed to you to view at your convenience. Please use the registration link below.)

This Webinar provides guidance for resolving workplace conflict through a systematic, interest-based approach. Participants will explore a three-stage approach to conflict resolution designed to address the most common sources of workplace conflict, including miscommunications, differences in approach, and limited resources. It also provides tips for dealing with those truly difficult behaviors we experience in the workplace form time to time, including aggressive and know-it-all behaviors.

Presenter: Paul Caulfield, Principal, Avant, IMC and Dering Consulting Group

 

Understanding the Union Environment

(Originally presented on May 20, 2015. A link of the archived session will be emailed to you to view at your convenience. Please use the registration link below.)

In the “Boys and Girls” episode of NBC’s The Office, Michael Scott’s plans to hold “men in the workplace seminar” backfires when the warehouse workers at Dunder Mifflin Paper Company decide to join a union.  This webinar is made up of various scenes from that episode which will be used to teach the audience about the union environment including:

  • Why union’s form

  • How to prevent a union from forming

  • Employer’s obligations once a union is formed

  • In addition, collective bargaining strategies and tips will be addressed including:

  • Collective bargaining timelines under Act 195

  • How to prepare and strategize for negotiations

  • Hot topic issues during negotiations, including healthcare concerns

Presenter: Cory Iannacone, Esq., Rhoads & Sinon LLP

 

Workplace Investigations and Employee Discipline: What Can Pennsylvania Municipalities Learn from NBC’s The Office?

(Originally presented December 3, 2014. A link of this archived session will be emailed to you to view at your convenience. Please use the registration link below.)

In the Drug Testing episode of NBC’s The Office, Dwight Schrute finds half of a joint in the parking lot of the Scranton, PA branch of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company and takes advantage of his volunteer sheriff deputy status to investigate its source. While comical, this episode teaches municipalities that internal investigations and discipline are a critical and essential component of all workplaces.

Although the majority of violations concerning work rules, policies and the law don’t make it to arbitration or court, management should always investigate each allegation from the point of view that an outside party may review the matter.

This presentation will use The Office to cover the process for conducting a proper investigation and issuing subsequent discipline along with what rights an employee has during both the investigation and the time when discipline is issued. Real life examples, including common pitfalls, will be used as examples.

Presenter: Cory Iannacone, Esq., Rhoads & Sinon LLP

 

Click here to register and pay online for any of the above listed webinars.

 

Click here to register if your authority has pre-paid webinar credits.

 

Important Information

What you need: -A computer (Mac or PC) with high-speed internet access -Speakers or headphones to listen to the audio portion of the sessions -A valid email address for registration You will receive login information via email two days prior to the scheduled event and a final reminder one hour before the start of the webinar.

Webinar Cost – $40 per session

Cancellation Policy All cancellations must be received in writing and sent to PMAA via fax, mail or email.  No refunds will be granted for a cancellation notice received less than 48 hours before each session. Substitute registrants are welcome; please email Craig Fahnestock at fahnestock@municipalauthorities.org.