Feb 12, 2012 | 06:11
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May 11, 2009
Building job skills through campus classes
Students aren't the only ones taking classes at UCLA. Dozens of classes offered on campus through Skillnet help employees learn computer programs like Photoshop, communications techniques for managing your boss, or tips on how to finally tidy your desk and keep it that way.
On-campus training classes offer courses on everything from computer skills to how to keep your desk clean.
"It's part of our mandate in human resources to help with workforce preparation," Gibson said. "We have people with skill needs at different levels. New employees need training in systems like payroll. We also have a whole suite of courses about communicating effectively with colleagues and classes that help employees move up within UCLA."
Upcoming classes include instruction in the webpage design program Dreamweaver ($99), overviews of the payroll computer system ($3), tips for investing and understanding the current market (free), job-interviewing techniques ($20), and building strong work relationships ($30). While some courses are taught by CHR or other campus employees, some are taught by outside consultants, such as Regina Lark's recent class on organizing your work space once and for all.
"When people cut through the clutter in their workspace, it makes them feel more professional and accomplished," said Lark, CEO of A Clear Path: Professional Organizing for Home, Work, Life. "They love their new space, they feel more productive and they feel like they can find everything. Some people treat their workspaces as extensions of their home, and it comes to look very unprofessional."
She recalled in-office workshops she's led where she found herself walking into cubicles and offices littered with old food and overwhelmed by towers of paper and books.
"It's a health and safety issue," she said. "One woman had books stacked so high she had a pile of books fall on her and ended up with a lump on the head."
She offered a mini-version of her course, hitting the highlights:
- Make sure you have time to clean. "Your space didn't get cluttered overnight, and it won't get uncluttered all at once. If you don't set aside enough time, you'll get frustrated."
- Acknowledge that clearing your workspace means throwing some things away. "Ask yourself, will my life be better served with or without this?"
- While you clean, make temporary piles: things to toss, things to recycle, things to file and things to send to the office archives.
- After you clean, set up a filing system, and deal with new papers as they come to you, instead of waiting until the papers become new piles.
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Take time at the end of your work day to prepare your desk for the next morning.
"Being able to find things can save money," Lark added. "You have no idea how much money is wasted on campus buying supplies that someone already has tucked away in the bowels of their desk."
From within CHR, Career Development/Training Professional Elizabeth Monaco teaches techniques for "managing" your boss in the class, "Managing Up: Communicating Effectively with Your Boss." The three-hour course is offered quarterly, with the next class on May 22 ($20).
"The class is designed to help people manage their relationships with the people above them," Monaco said. "We find that many employees don't realize they have any control over those relationships."
The class emphasizes the importance of being a good employee. "You can't manage your boss if you're doing your job half-heartedly; you have to do your best work and earn respect," Monaco said. But she also offers tips for parlaying that effort into a good relationship. Monaco offered the five-minute version of her course:
- Understand whom you work for. "How well do you know your boss's likes, values, expectations, and personal and departmental priorities?"
- Knowing your boss means you can anticipate her or his needs, she explained. "Predict potential problems; resolve conflicts just in time … sweep in and save the day!" her presentation materials advise. "It's not enough to not be part of the problem. Be in that top 5% of people who find solutions."
- Learn the value of restraint. "We tend to want to respond to every negative thing. Not every single thing needs to be addressed," she said. That means accepting negative feedback without refuting it point-by-point. "You can't recoil from negative feedback. Sometimes it helps you hone your skills."
- But if your boss only offers negative feedback, or none at all, step up and ask for positive feedback. "Maybe a project goes well, so they don't say anything – ask them what they liked and what you did effectively. That way, you know more about your boss and what your boss likes, and therefore what you should continue doing." Is asking for feedback about what you did well also an indirect way to get your boss to think about why you're such a great employee? "I hadn't thought of it that way," Monaco said, "but yes, definitely."
