Compass Oracy Training In Action.
Abul Kaazim, recently completed Compass' Grad scheme - Vendor Assurance Technologist
When I joined the Compass Grad programme after university, it was my first step into a professional career. I didn’t have any experience of a workplace, and I was not confident about speaking to people in this new environment. Despite having been to university, no oracy skills were explicitly taught – it was more that we just did presentations and the feedback was all about the content.
The Grad scheme I took on was operational and I realised very quickly I needed to be able to talk to people, communicate my ideas and understand theirs. This was something that I really struggled with at first and I wanted to become more confident and clearly articulate my views.
During the programme, we started to talk about presentation skills and developed the tools to have and deal with difficult conversations. I was always so worried about what people were thinking of me and what the consequences would be to having different views. I now realise that it’s good to have different opinions, healthy debate and diverse insights.
These skills have been a total game-changer for me. Having recently completed the Grad programme, I am now taking on my new role within Vendor Assurance. There is no doubt that further progress on oracy skills will be key to my future, but I now have a good foundation to build on.
Brandon Sage, Skills & Early Careers Administrator
I joined Compass via the Kickstart programme and I am now undertaking my third apprenticeship since joining. Throughout school and afterwards, I had no confidence. These programmes have helped me to grow and believe in myself - beyond recognition.
When I first started here, a big part of my role was talking to candidates on the phone and it was a really big deal for me. As part of my training, my manager had to hone this skill. We would practice calls, go through scripts and think ahead about how to deal with queries. At first, she would sit with me and we’d go through feedback after each call, until I progressed to being able to feel like I was ready to try it alone. For me this took a lot of practice and my communication skills in this area improved so much by me pushing myself to make these calls and take on constructive ideas on how to get better at it. Another area of oracy that I have enhanced during my time here is presentation skills, which has played a role in my apprenticeships.
There is no doubt in my mind that oracy skills are critical in working life - team communication, talking to candidates, dealing with problems when they crop up, but also having a voice to speak out about any support I need. In my time at Compass, learning to talk to people and tailor these skills to the environment I am in has been invaluable.
Joanne Pinkstone, Deputy General Manager, Lodestone House (soon transferring to New Talent Development Business Partner)
I have worked at Compass for 15 years, I came in as an Event Manager within the Lodestone House sector, working within one of our Independent Schools. I went to a state school and didn’t go to university, but within Compass I have climbed the career ladder and had opportunities unlocked to progress.
A turning point for me was taking on the CIPD L3 Career Pathway that took almost two years. Part of this was a course on presentation skills. The first presentation I did, I chose a topic that I could talk about easily – Sourdough Bread! That helped me gain confidence talking in front of people and we then went on to do several presentations on different subjects and getting feedback and support throughout. It has taken a lot for me to overcome the challenge of presenting and I now do feel much more confident talking to clients, colleagues, new candidates and presenting. Another skill that came through my programme was learning to communicate with different people in different ways, by thinking about their personality profile and the way they like to get information to process and understand it. This is a real skill and developing it has undoubtedly supported my career progression and confidence - I am about to take on a completely new role within the Talent team.
I feel really strongly that oracy skills are crucial to personal and working life. I work with a lot of young people, who often don’t have the skills to speak on the phone or have conversations around feedback, criticism or interviews for example. I really think that by supporting people throughout their careers, we can help them to develop communications skills that will provide them with the tools they need to progress in so many ways. This is something I am now really hoping I can bring to life through my new role and experience within Compass.
