We explain what a workshop is, its meaning and what is its main objective. Also, tips for running a successful workshop.
What is a workshop?
The termworkshop It is a loan from English that literally means "workshop". However, this word has become popular in the business world and the business, in which it serves to designate a particular training and / or training event, in which the employees or workers they come together and learn skills or exercise their talents in order to improve a specific area of their performance.
Theworkshops are intensive courses, which are attended to develop some talent or ability as fast and focused as possible, that is, always with an eye on the benefits that organization you will have by providing your team with these training tools.
For this, the workshops are usually in the hands of a specialist or professional in the area to be developed, usually hired under the figure of aoutsourcing.
Although they often have a lecture or lecture part, theworkshopsare often dynamic and straight to the point, encouraging participation and attitude active, participatory, on the part of the attendees.
In that they differ from lectures or courses. In addition, they do not usually address knowledge of a general nature, but rather applied: with aworkshop always looking to solve a problem or enhance a talent.
Likewise, these types of events are usually brief (4 hours maximum) and sporadic, so that they involve intensive work that hinders the operation of the company as little as possible. business. They are usually shorter than a seminar or a course, and also much more versatile: teamwork, specific talents, Customer Support, training, accident prevention, etc.
Tips for a successful workshop
For a workshop experience to be successful, the following is recommended:
- Choose the space. A workshop is an experience with a lot of focus on solving problems or growth in teamwork, which occurs in a short time. Therefore, it should be carried out in a space that does not hinder the experience: without sudden problems, with services verified in advance, where those involved comfortably fit and, if possible, that gives them a feeling of warmth, trust and intimacy, to encourage participation and not make them feel exposed.
- Have the appropriate support material. A good workshop always has more material available than it uses during the session, in order to adapt its strategies to the public, since not everyone learns the same or reacts the same to the same stimuli. It is convenient to have visual material of impact, easy to understand, that encourages concentration and not distraction or dispersion.
- Maintain a good rhythm. It is estimated that the human being's attention span lasts about 45 continuous minutes, which is why academic hours have that duration (and not 60 o'clock). In that sense, the rhythm of attention should be maintained during its peak points and then rest, through changes of activities or tone, so as not to overwhelm and "burn" the group. Intensive, after all, does not mean exhausting, nor overwhelming. A 4-hour workshop must have at least onebreak fifteen minutes in between for attendees to rest mentally.
- Accredit attendees. Those who attend a workshop do it to grow and improve, but they must also feel that they have acquired something valuable, something to put on their resumes. For this, accreditations and diplomas are always a good idea.