STUDY GOLD COAST KICKSTART GRADUATE PROGRAM
The Kickstart Graduate program is designed specifically to provide graduates with practical workplace skills to build their effectiveness in their organisation.
Participants will receive varied training through experiential learning, practical and interactive workshops, coaching from executive and career co-facilitators and mentoring through the completion of a significant project.
The program consists of a half-day workshop each 3 weeks, from March to November. Each workshop includes a guest speaker presentation from a Gold Coast business leader, along with a complimentary networking lunch.
Taking part in the 2022 Program? visit the learning portal.
2022 Program Dates
| SESSION | WEDNESDAY | PROGRAM CONTENT |
| 1 | 23 March | Maximising your benefit from the program – for managers with participants Learn more about Kickstart and how to get the most out of the program. Starting with the latest research on how to engage and manage graduates in the workplace, this session moves into a series of structured conversations between each participant and their manager, including how they like to be managed/led, creating a learning plan, discussing ideas for their workplace project, and the self-directed orientation process. |
| 2 | 13 April | Being Great At What You Do This session covers professional brand, image and effectively using tools like LinkedIn before delving deeper to reflect on personal strengths, different communication styles, how to work with a diverse range of people, and building an effective relationship with their manager. |
| 3 | 4 May | Develop a Project Plan Identifying opportunities for workplace improvement allows participants to view their role in the broader context of the business, understanding how everyone has a role to play and the ability to contribute to overall business success. The skills required to design and plan solutions are covered here in an applied manner, including project planning, budgeting, stakeholder engagement, and risk management. |
| 4 | 25 May | Managing Time and Competing Priorities Time management skills are essential to be productive in busy workplaces with changing goalposts and constant interruptions. Participants are given strategies to set priorities, organise their day/week, recognise common pitfalls, and stay personally motivated and on-track. The focus is on linking behaviour and decisions with the key responsibilities of their job, and the vision, values & strategies of their organisation. |
| 5 | 15 June | Resilience and Managing Stress Understand how to thrive, not just survive, in the uncertain, complex world of the modern workplace. This session covers practical ways to manage stress as well key resilience measures – having a positive but realistic mindset, being comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty, and building a strong social support network. |
| 6 | 6 July | Teamwork, Collaboration and Giving/Receiving Feedback Collaboration and teamwork are central to the success of modern enterprises. In this session, we identify and practice the tools required to be effective, innovative, and responsive when working collaboratively with others, including using feedback constructively and having difficult conversations. The latest research on high-performing teams is used to explore team dynamics and help participants see how they add value. |
| 7 | 27 July | Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Emotional intelligence (EQ) is as important for career and personal success as IQ. Self-awareness is the starting point for this session, as participants undertake an EQ self-assessment to understand where they fit, then identify strategies to build on their strengths and develop their skills. Key aspects of EQ are discussed and applied to relevant workplace situations. This session also looks at effective leadership, and how to positively influence the performance of teams even if they are not in a formal leadership role. |
| 8 | 17 August | Influence and Impact – Persuasion, Selling and Negotiation Skills Everything we do is sales – we may not be selling a product, but we are selling ourselves, our ideas, and our company. This session applies ethical sales and negotiation skills to everyday situations participants face, providing practical strategies to increase their influence and effectiveness. It looks at the difference between persuasion and manipulation, provides strategies for dealing with failure and rejection, and gives participants techniques to quickly build rapport and trust. |
| 9 | 7 September | Business Writing For Clarity and Purpose Improve the clarity of written information and learn how to make an impact in all forms of business communication. This session provides strategies and structures to ensure business writing is clear, concise, engages the reader, and gets the message across. It also looks at developing a business case, including financial and non-financial costs and benefits. |
| 10 | 28 September | Presenting and Communicating With Confidence This session focusses on practical ways to be impactful when communicating verbally. Ways to manage and prevent workplace conflict are covered along with body language, effective participation in meetings, successful networking, and presentation skills, including planning for the participants’ final presentations in session 12. |
| 11 | 19 October | Critical Thinking and Innovative Problem Solving Modern workplaces require people who are able to solve complex problems, getting to the root cause, then using creative thinking, and logical analysis to develop innovative solutions. Practical tools for each step of the problem-solving process are introduced and applied in this session. |
| 12 | 2 November | Project Presentations Graduates present on their workplace project, including how they have added value to the business by saving time/money, and/or growing the business. |
There are two streams to choose from:
| PROFESSIONAL SERVICES | TRADES |
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Morning sessions: 08:00am to 1:00pm |
Afternoon sessions: 12:00pm to 5:00pm |
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Includes guest speaker presentation and complimentary lunch 12:00pm to 1:00pm |
Includes guest speaker presentation and complimentary lunch 12:00pm to 1:00pm |
|
Suited to employees whose work is online or office-based, such as administration, customer service, finance, project management, and consulting. |
Suited to employees who are hands-on, based in a factory or at the client's site, such as manufacturing, construction, automotive, landscaping, and transport |
Note: Each stream will cover the same topics but the discussions and activities will be tailored to the needs of the Graduates' industries and positions.
Which stream is best?
- If the position is hands-on and based in a factory or at the client's site, involves making, building or repairing things, the trades stream would be best as it provides practical team and workplace skills.
- If the position involves working online, or is computer or office-based, then choose the professional services stream, as it includes the same workplace skills but applies them to a professional working environment.
Eligibility
- Open to all Gold Coast businesses, of any size and from any industry
- Participants must have completed their studies within the last 2 years or be due to complete by 30 June 2022 (studies can be higher education, VET, post-grad study or otherwise)
- Maximum two participants per employer
- Participant must have commitment from line manager (manager is involved in first session, last session and receives updates throughout the course of the program)
For further information please contact [email protected] or phone 07 5556 6102