Introduction
Appleton Greene Certified Learning Providers are exceptionally intuitive people. Academically, they will have achieved a business-related degree and preferably a business-related Master degree. Commercially, they will already have had good business experience, either in a consulting or management capacity and they will also have an independent nature. They will have a strong desire to succeed and will be prepared to work hard in order to achieve their goals. They will be confident in their own abilities and will primarily see themselves as a people person, a trainer, mentor, or consultant and will recognize that what they personally find most rewarding is empowering, motivating and knowledge sharing. They will also be perfectionists in terms of the quality of their work and what they do. Most of all, they are entrepreneurs who will recognize that by productizing what they do, they are able to provide a much more tangible service offering to their clients and can earn a considerably higher income personally as a result. This is because their clients’ key performance indicators will relate specifically to the training products provided, rather than charging for their time, advice, or opinions. In many cases, Appleton Greene Learning Providers will have already consulted independently and will have learned the hard way that in order to succeed, they will need to productize what they offer their clients, in order to ensure that their business is viable over a sustainable period of time. In some cases, Appleton Greene Learning Providers will have never consulted before, but will have obtained enough managerial experience to recognize that they are more intuitive, innovative and ambitious than their peers. Ultimately there will be a strong personal desire and common goal to be in control of their own destiny, to achieve a better work-life balance and to free themselves from the restraints of traditional employment.
Business Opportunity
The Appleton Greene Certified Learning Provider (CLP) program is not an employment opportunity. It is a business opportunity specifically designed for independent entrepreneurs who see themselves primarily as a trainer, mentor, or consultant. It represents an opportunity for a select number of candidates to develop their own unique corporate training program, based upon their own personal skills and experience and then achieve clients and a sustainable business through their professional association with Appleton Greene. Appleton Greene evaluates and selects a maximum of 50 Learning Providers worldwide in each calendar year and applications are currently being considered for the forthcoming year. Appleton Greene is primarily a corporate training provider, specializing in the provision of both standard and bespoke programs to client companies which focus upon business process improvement. We have an extensive portfolio of corporate programs available to clients, which are developed and implemented by hundreds of Appleton Greene Certified Learning Providers. These programs incorporate participation from a wide variety of Appleton Greene Accredited Consultants, who each bring their own individual experience relating to the specific business and service skills which they have, the industry sectors they have worked within and the geographical locations where they have commercial knowledge. If additional expert knowledge is required then our Learning Providers have access to an international network of Appleton Greene Accredited Consultants, with a variety of different industry sector experience and geographical experience, located within most major cities worldwide. If you have a broad idea about the type of training program that you would ideally like to develop, then Appleton Greene has the experience, processes and resources to enable you to develop it and to establish your program within its own clearly defined niche market.
Programs
Appleton Greene uses standard and bespoke corporate training programs as vessels to transfer business process improvement knowledge into the heart of our clients’ organizations. Each individual program focuses upon the implementation of a specific business process, which enables clients to easily quantify their return on investment. There are hundreds of established Appleton Greene corporate training products now available to clients within customer services, e-business, finance, globalization, human resources, information technology, legal, management, marketing and production. It does not matter whether a client’s employees are located within one office, or an unlimited number of international offices, we can still bring them together to learn and implement specific business processes collectively. Our approach to global localization enables us to provide clients with a truly international service with that all important personal touch. Appleton Greene corporate training programs can be provided virtually or locally and they are all unique in that they individually focus upon a specific business function. All (CLP) programs are implemented over a sustainable period of time, usually between 1-4 years, incorporating 12-48 monthly workshops and professional support is consistently provided during this time by qualified learning providers and where appropriate, by Accredited Consultants. This is because all (CLP) programs are process-driven and are used as vehicles to implement a tangible business process. The (CLP) program provides entrepreneurial consultants and managers with the opportunity to productize what they know in the form of a corporate training program. It enables the right candidates to develop their own unique Appleton Greene corporate training program, based upon their own personal skills and experience and then promote their program through the Appleton Greene global client network, using the Appleton Greene corporate brand. The benefit of doing this should be obvious to anyone who has consulted or managed in an executive capacity for a period of 5-10 years. They will already have developed a clear understanding about precisely what they are good at and what they are not good at. They will also have a clear understanding about what sets them apart from their peers, not in terms of why they may be better than their peers, but just why they may be different. It is this differentiation that we want to develop into what we call a Unique Program Proposition (UPP). Once we have established this, we can begin to productize your knowledge in such a way as it will be perceived as a tangible service offering in the form of an Appleton Greene standard or bespoke corporate program. All that you need is a clear understanding about what you would like to develop and the hunger and personal commitment required to develop it. Appleton Greene has the business and training processes, resources and support required to establish your corporate training program within a clearly identified niche market.
Support Available
There are seven internal professors and tutors responsible for the Appleton Greene Certified Learning Provider (CLP) program and we encourage you to communicate with them as much as possible. In all cases tutorial support is provided online because we can then keep a record of all communications to ensure that tutorial support remains consistent. You would also be forwarding your work to the tutorial support unit for evaluation and assessment. You will receive individual feedback on all of the work that you undertake on a one-to-one basis, together with specific recommendations for anything that may need to be changed in order to achieve a pass with merit or a pass with distinction and you then have as many opportunities as you may need to re-submit project studies until they meet with the required standard. Consequently the only reason that you should really fail (CLP) is if you do not do the work. It makes no difference to us whether a student takes 6 months or 4 years to complete the program, what matters is that in all cases the same quality standard will have been achieved.
Support Process
Please forward all of your future emails to the designated (CLP) Tutorial Support Unit email address that has been provided and please do not duplicate or copy your emails to other AGC email accounts as this will just cause unnecessary administration. Please note that emails are always answered as quickly as possible but you will need to allow a period of up to 20 business days for responses to general tutorial support emails during busy periods because emails are answered strictly within the order in which they are received. You will also need to allow a period of up to 30 business days for the evaluation and assessment of project studies. This does not include weekends or public holidays. Please therefore kindly allow for this within your time planning. All communications are managed online via email because it enables tutorial service support managers to review other communications which have been received before responding and it ensures that there is a copy of all communications retained on file for future reference. All communications will be stored within your personal (CLP) study file here at Appleton Greene throughout your designated study period. If you need any assistance or clarification at any time, please do not hesitate to contact us by forwarding an email and remember that we are here to help. If you have any questions, please list and number your questions succinctly and you can then be sure of receiving specific answers to each and every query.
Time Management
It takes approximately 832 hours to become a qualified Certified Learning Provider. This can be achieved by contributing from as little as 4 hours per week over 4 years, to 8 hours per day over 6 months, or anything in-between. Learning Providers can study from home or work at their own pace and are responsible for managing their own study plan. There are no formal examinations and Learning Providers are evaluated and assessed based upon their project study submissions, together with the quality of their corporate training program and supporting documents. They can contribute more time towards study, when they have the time to do so and can contribute less time when they are busy. A designated study period of 4 years is incorporated within the original tuition fee levied by Appleton Greene. However, Study Period Extensions (SPE) can be granted at additional cost and these are subject to the discretion of the responsible (CLP) Professor and the (CLP) Program Director. All Learning Providers tend to be in full time employment while studying and the Certified Learning Provider (CLP) program is purposely designed to accommodate this, so there is plenty of flexibility in terms of time management. It makes no difference to us at Appleton Greene, whether individuals takes 6 months or 4 years in which to qualify as a Certified Learning Provider (CLP). What matters is that in all cases the same standard of quality will have been achieved with the standard and bespoke programs that have been developed.
Distance Learning Guide
The distance learning guide should be your first port of call when starting your training program. It will help you when you are planning how and when to study, how to create the right environment and how to establish the right frame of mind. If you can lay the foundations properly during the planning stage, then it will contribute to your enjoyment and productivity while training later. The guide helps to change your lifestyle in order to accommodate time for study and to cultivate good study habits. It helps you to chart your progress so that you can measure your performance and achieve your goals. It explains the tools that you will need for study and how to make them work. It also explains how to translate academic theory into practical reality. Spend some time now working through your distance learning guide and make sure that you have firm foundations in place so that you can make the most of your distance learning program. There is no requirement for you to attend training workshops or classes at Appleton Greene offices. The entire program is undertaken online, program course manuals and project studies are administered via the Appleton Greene web site and via email, so you are able to study at your own pace and in the comfort of your own home or office as long as you have a computer and access to the internet.
How To Study
The how to study guide provides students with a clear understanding of the Appleton Greene facilitation via distance learning training methods and enables students to obtain a clear overview of the training program content. It enables students to understand the step-by-step training methods used by Appleton Greene and how course manuals are integrated with project studies. It explains the research and development that is required and the need to provide evidence and references to support your statements. It also enables students to understand precisely what will be required of them in order to achieve a pass with merit and a pass with distinction for individual project studies and provides useful guidance on how to be innovative and creative when developing your Unique Program Proposition (UPP).
Tutorial Support
Tutorial support for the AGC Certified Learning Provider (CLP) program is provided online either through the Appleton Greene web site, or via email. All tutorial support requests are facilitated by a designated Program Administration Manager (PAM). They are responsible for deciding which professor or tutor is the most appropriate option relating to the support required and then the tutorial support request is forwarded onto them. Once the professor or tutor has completed the tutorial support request and answered any questions that have been asked, this communication is then returned to the student via email by the designated Program Administration Manager (PAM). This enables all tutorial support, between students, professors and tutors, to be facilitated by the designated Program Administration Manager (PAM) efficiently and securely through one central and secure email account. You will therefore need to allow a period of up to 20 business days for responses to general support queries and up to 30 business days for the evaluation and assessment of project studies, because all tutorial support requests are answered strictly within the order in which they are received. This does not include weekends or public holidays. You therefore need to put some thought into the management of your tutorial support procedure in order to ensure that your study plan is feasible and to obtain the maximum possible benefit from tutorial support during your period of study. Please also retain copies of your tutorial support emails for future reference. Please ensure that ALL of your tutorial support emails are set out using the format as suggested within your guide to tutorial support. Your tutorial support emails need to be referenced clearly to the specific part of the course manual or project study which you are working on at any given time. You also need to list and number any questions that you would like to ask, up to a maximum of five questions within each tutorial support email. Remember the more specific you can be with your questions the more specific your answers will be too and this will help you to avoid any unnecessary misunderstanding, misinterpretation, or duplication. The guide to tutorial support is intended to help you to understand how and when to use support in order to ensure that you get the most out of your training program. Appleton Greene training programs are designed to enable you to do things for yourself. They provide you with a structure or a framework and we use tutorial support to facilitate students while they practically implement what they learn. In other words, we are enabling students to do things for themselves. The benefits of distance learning via facilitation are considerable and are much more sustainable in the long-term than traditional short-term knowledge sharing programs. You should therefore learn how and when to use tutorial support so that you can maximize the benefits from your learning experience with Appleton Greene. Your tutorial support guide describes the purpose of each training function and how to use them and how to use tutorial support in relation to each aspect of the training program. It also provides useful tips and guidance with regard to best practice.
Summary
We hope that you will enjoy and benefit from undertaking the Appleton Greene Certified Learning Provider (CLP) program and if you need any further assistance or clarification with anything, please do not hesitate to contact your (CLP) Administration Manager by forwarding an email and they will gladly assist you in any way that they can. Thank you once again for your application and we sincerely wish you every success with the (CLP) program.
Appleton Greene Certified Learning Provider (CLP) Program (CLP-P1) Program Planning
The First Step – Client Information Hub (CIH) Unique Program Proposition (UPP) Outline Plan
Guide to distance learning
Guide to tutorial support
How to study guide
Preliminary analysis course manual
Client Information Hub (CIH) (UPP) Outline Plan
Distance Learning
Introduction
Welcome to Appleton Greene and thank you for enrolling on one of our corporate training programs. You will be learning through our unique facilitation via distance-learning method, which will enable you to practically implement everything that you learn academically. The methods and materials used in your program have been designed and developed to ensure that you derive the maximum benefits and enjoyment possible. We hope that you find the program challenging and fun to do. However, if you have never been a distance-learner before, you may be experiencing some trepidation at the task before you. So we will get you started by giving you some basic information and guidance on how you can make the best use of the modules, how you should manage the materials and what you should be doing as you work through them. This guide is designed to point you in the right direction and help you to become an effective distance-learner. Take a few hours or so to study this guide and your guide to tutorial support for students, while making notes, before you start to study in earnest.
Study environment
You will need to locate a quiet and private place to study, preferably a room where you can easily be isolated from external disturbances or distractions. Make sure the room is well-lit and incorporates a relaxed, pleasant feel. If you can spoil yourself within your study environment, you will have much more of a chance to ensure that you are always in the right frame of mind when you do devote time to study. For example, a nice fire, the ability to play soft soothing background music, soft but effective lighting, perhaps a nice view if possible and a good size desk with a comfortable chair. Make sure that your family know when you are studying and understand your study rules. Your study environment is very important. The ideal situation, if at all possible, is to have a separate study, which can be devoted to you. If this is not possible then you will need to pay a lot more attention to developing and managing your study schedule, because it will affect other people as well as yourself. The better your study environment, the more productive you will be.
Study tools & rules
Try and make sure that your study tools are sufficient and in good working order. You will need to have access to a computer, scanner and printer, with access to the internet. You will need a very comfortable chair, which supports your lower back, and you will need a good filing system. It can be very frustrating if you are spending valuable study time trying to fix study tools that are unreliable, or unsuitable for the task. Make sure that your study tools are up to date. You will also need to consider some study rules. Some of these rules will apply to you and will be intended to help you to be more disciplined about when and how you study. This distance-learning guide will help you and after you have read it you can put some thought into what your study rules should be. You will also need to negotiate some study rules for your family, friends or anyone who lives with you. They too will need to be disciplined in order to ensure that they can support you while you study. It is important to ensure that your family and friends are an integral part of your study team. Having their support and encouragement can prove to be a crucial contribution to your successful completion of the program. Involve them in as much as you can.
Successful distance-learning
Distance-learners are freed from the necessity of attending regular classes or workshops, since they can study in their own way, at their own pace and for their own purposes. But unlike traditional internal training courses, it is the student’s responsibility, with a distance-learning program, to ensure that they manage their own study contribution. This requires strong self-discipline and self-motivation skills and there must be a clear will to succeed. Those students who are used to managing themselves, are good at managing others and who enjoy working in isolation, are more likely to be good distance-learners. It is also important to be aware of the main reasons why you are studying and of the main objectives that you are hoping to achieve as a result. You will need to remind yourself of these objectives at times when you need to motivate yourself. Never lose sight of your long-term goals and your short-term objectives. There is nobody available here to pamper you, or to look after you, or to spoon-feed you with information, so you will need to find ways to encourage and appreciate yourself while you are studying. Make sure that you chart your study progress, so that you can be sure of your achievements and re-evaluate your goals and objectives regularly.
Self-assessment
Appleton Greene training programs are in all cases post-graduate programs. Consequently, you should already have obtained a business-related degree and be an experienced learner. You should therefore already be aware of your study strengths and weaknesses. For example, which time of the day are you at your most productive? Are you a lark or an owl? What study methods do you respond to the most? Are you a consistent learner? How do you discipline yourself? How do you ensure that you enjoy yourself while studying? It is important to understand yourself as a learner and so some self-assessment early on will be necessary if you are to apply yourself correctly. Perform a SWOT analysis on yourself as a student. List your internal strengths and weaknesses as a student and your external opportunities and threats. This will help you later on when you are creating a study plan. You can then incorporate features within your study plan that can ensure that you are playing to your strengths, while compensating for your weaknesses. You can also ensure that you make the most of your opportunities, while avoiding the potential threats to your success.
Accepting responsibility as a student
Training programs invariably require a significant investment, both in terms of what they cost and in the time that you need to contribute to study and the responsibility for successful completion of training programs rests entirely with the student. This is never more apparent than when a student is learning via distance-learning. Accepting responsibility as a student is an important step towards ensuring that you can successfully complete your training program. It is easy to instantly blame other people or factors when things go wrong. But the fact of the matter is that if a failure is your failure, then you have the power to do something about it, it is entirely in your own hands. If it is always someone else’s failure, then you are powerless to do anything about it. All students study in entirely different ways, this is because we are all individuals and what is right for one student, is not necessarily right for another. In order to succeed, you will have to accept personal responsibility for finding a way to plan, implement and manage a personal study plan that works for you. If you do not succeed, you only have yourself to blame.
Planning
By far the most critical contribution to stress, is the feeling of not being in control. In the absence of planning we tend to be reactive and can stumble from pillar to post in the hope that things will turn out fine in the end. Invariably they don’t! In order to be in control, we need to have firm ideas about how and when we want to do things. We also need to consider as many possible eventualities as we can, so that we are prepared for them when they happen. Prescriptive Change, is far easier to manage and control, than Emergent Change. The same is true with distance-learning. It is much easier and much more enjoyable, if you feel that you are in control and that things are going to plan. Even when things do go wrong, you are prepared for them and can act accordingly without any unnecessary stress. It is important therefore that you do take time to plan your studies properly.
Management
Once you have developed a clear study plan, it is of equal importance to ensure that you manage the implementation of it. Most of us usually enjoy planning, but it is usually during implementation when things go wrong. Targets are not met and we do not understand why. Sometimes we do not even know if targets are being met. It is not enough for us to conclude that the study plan just failed. If it is failing, you will need to understand what you can do about it. Similarly if your study plan is succeeding, it is still important to understand why, so that you can improve upon your success. You therefore need to have guidelines for self-assessment so that you can be consistent with performance improvement throughout the program. If you manage things correctly, then your performance should constantly improve throughout the program.
Study objectives & tasks
