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Role-playing – We do the acting, you do the practicing

Role playing with professional Actor/Coaches offers a powerful resource to any individual wishing to practice new skills in order to communicate more effectively with clients and colleagues.

This is done in a confidential and supportive environment, where you receive detailed, constructive feedback from the Actor/Coach on what it felt like to be on the ‘receiving end’, what was effective and what could be done differently. Crucially, you rewind and practice again until the new skills are firmly embedded.

Scenarios can be based on detailed case studies or real life situations that you bring to the table. Either way, the Actor/Coach will take on the required role creating a powerful, realistic experience through which you can truly hone your skills. We do the acting, you do the practicing.

Role-playing can be carried out in two ways. Either as part of a course or in one to one ‘surgeries’. Courses enable delegates to role-play with the Actor/Coach within small groups where fellow delegates act as observers, offering constructive feedback where applicable. Surgeries are carried out on your business premises, enabling employees to visit the Actor/Coach in turn for private, one to one role-play sessions to practice new skills or work through real life scenarios in order to receive feedback and direction.

Forum Theatre - You direct the action

Forum Theatre consists of two Actor/Coaches playing out a scene in front of delegates that reflect the issues and conversations typical to your business. Alternatively the action may be used to illustrate specific skills used in influencing, say, or in building rapport. Either way, you direct the action.

First we set the scene for you and then play it out once. More often than not the conversation breaks down and this is where you come in. Having taken in the action you and your fellow delegates are now in a position to direct the conversation to a successful conclusion. If you can! The action then begins again and requires delegates to stop the actors whenever they feel the conversation is not working and to tell them what to say or do next in order to change the outcome. Body language and tone of voice through to questioning techniques, for example, all come into play. Delegates will not always agree and so by trying out different suggestions the actors clearly illustrate what works and what doesn't. This process of stopping and starting the action continues until there is a successful outcome

This is a highly effective way of creating energy and debate from the outset and paves the way for a powerful, interactive training experience.

Business Simulations – A real experience

Firstly, we work extremely closely with you to create a brief that accurately reflects a day in the life of your business. You tell us what you want to achieve. Typically, simulations will be based on how you do business with your clients and their purpose is to enable your employees, as consultants, sales executives etc., to practice their expertise within a controlled and secure environment. Crucially it enables you to observe how they currently represent you.

As the Actor/Coaches we absorb the brief, fully embodying the range of clients you interact with. How they would respond, what they would say, what their needs are. Your employees will also follow a brief, where their aim will be to achieve a successful outcome using the information provided. They visit a number of ‘clients’ on the day and we react according to how we are handled. Have we been asked the right questions? Have we been put at ease? Has trust been built or broken? Did we want to do business with them? These are the kind of questions we will ask ourselves and feedback to you and your employees.

Business Simulations offer your employees the chance to experience a sustained enactment of work in action in order to hone their skills and increase their knowledge. Quite simply they offer them a real experience.

Presentation Skills - Feel the difference

“Many people fear public speaking more than death itself”

Well, that might be a bit of an exaggeration but it is certainly a daunting prospect for the majority of us. At ActOut our aim is to help your employees to make the most of themselves and overcome the fears that prevent them from truly making an impact.

Drawing on the skills learnt in our training as actors and fusing this with our knowledge of presenting within the business environment we offer a range of training from voice work and body language to handling difficult questions. From overcoming nerves to capturing your audience through story telling. How to be passionate about your subject and to how to use language that is appropriate for your audience. And so forth.

Presentation skills training can, again, be carried out as part of a course or in one to one surgeries. Either way individuals are given the opportunity to practice and practice again, within a supportive environment, until they feel the difference!

 
© Actout 2003